Criminal

Episode 144: Looking Out

People incarcerated in California’s San Quentin State Prison aren’t allowed to have pets — but some people, like Ronell Draper, have found ways to work around that. Meet Ronell Draper, also known as “...

Jul 17, 2020

Episode 143: Knock and Announce

“I didn’t do what they said I did. And it was like, I don’t know how to disprove the police. I mean, it’s my word against theirs. I don’t really stand a chance.” In 2015, the 15th Circuit Drug Enforce...

Jul 03, 2020

Episode 142: Robert Smalls

On May 13, 1862, in Charleston, South Carolina, a man named Robert Smalls took command of a Confederate ship called The Planter and liberated himself and his family from enslavement. As they passed th...

Jun 19, 2020

Episode 141: It Looked Like Fire

On August 10th, 2014, one day after 18-year-old Michael Brown was shot and killed by Officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri, Edward Crawford went to his first protest. “The people, you know, I gu...

Jun 05, 2020

Episode 140: Cowboy Bob

In May 1991, a bank robber walked into a bank in Irving, Texas, and without speaking handed the teller a note that read, “This is a bank robbery. Give me your money. No marked bills or dye packs.” Wit...

May 15, 2020

Episode 139: Learning How to Forgive

“I’ve been teaching law for almost 40 years. And I recently realized we don’t really teach people in law school about the tools of forgiveness that are built into the legal system.” Today, we’re talki...

May 01, 2020

Episode 138: Starlight Tours

In January 2000, the bodies of two First Nations men were found frozen in a remote area of Saskatoon, Canada. It was a place where nobody walked, especially in the winter. And then, a man named Darrel...

Apr 17, 2020

Episode 137: Wolf 10

In April of 1995, wildlife biologists flew small airplanes over Yellowstone National Park, looking for two missing wolves. “They’re just gone. And that’s implausible because wolves don’t just disappea...

Apr 03, 2020

Looking for Wolves

Our other show, This is Love, is coming back on April 1. All new stories, about animals and the wild, and what happens when we take time to look around us. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram...

Mar 25, 2020

Phoebe Reads a Mystery

Phoebe reads Agatha Christie’s first novel, The Mysterious Affair at Styles. For more, visit Phoebe Reads a Mystery on its own feed. Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/phoebe-reads-a-mystery...

Mar 24, 2020

Episode 136: La Brea Dave

Sgt. David Mascarenas was the Dive Supervisor for the Los Angeles Police Department. He’s been diving his whole life, and prides himself on never refusing a dive, no matter how treacherous. At least u...

Mar 20, 2020

Episode 135: 527 Lime Street

Just before midnight on October 15, 1990, police arrived at 527 Lime Street in Jacksonville, Florida to find the small wood-frame house on fire. A man named Gerald Lewis was standing in the front yard...

Mar 06, 2020

Episode 134: Call Russ Ewing

“The police had surrounded the house. They had been there for quite a while. They didn’t want to try to rush the house because they thought he might kill one of the innocent people. But after waiting...

Feb 21, 2020

Episode 133: Red Hair, Gold Car

One day Adam Braseel got a phone call from his mother. She said that a man in Grundy County, Tennessee had been murdered, and the police thought Adam had something to do with it. Adam was charged with...

Feb 07, 2020

Episode 132: Herrin Massacre

In the spring of 1922, the United Mine Workers of America announced a national strike. And then, that summer in Herrin, Illinois, 23 people were murdered over two days. Men, women, and children came o...

Jan 24, 2020