Criminal
Criminal is the first of its kind. A show about people who’ve done wrong, been wronged, or gotten caught somewhere in the middle. Hosted by Phoebe Judge. Named a Best Podcast of 2023 by the New York Times. Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.
Episodes
E. Jean
We visited E. Jean Carroll at her house in the woods to talk about her two trials against President Donald Trump. Say hello on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. Sign up for our occasional newsletter. Follow the show and review us on Apple Pod…
The Bus Ride
Two days after Hurricane Katrina hit, people who lived in the Fischer Housing Projects were still trapped – and it didn’t seem like anyone was coming to help. So 20-year-old Jabar Gibson came up with a plan. Say hello on Facebook, Instagram…
Kids on the Case
The summer after Jessica Maple finished 6th grade, she found out that her great-grandmother’s house had been burglarized. So, 12-year-old Jessica got out her notebook, looked for fingerprints, and decided she would conduct her own investiga…
The Clock Starts Ticking
On October 11, 2008, an 18-year-old was shot by someone firing a gun from the back seat of a car. A couple of hours later, homicide detectives arrived on the scene. And so did the camera crew for a reality television show. Say hello on Face…
Death in Eden
In the early 1930s, eight people settled on an uninhabited island in the Galapagos. Within five years, two were missing and two were dead. Abbott Kahler’s book is Eden Undone: A True Story of Sex, Murder, and Utopia at the Dawn of World War…
The Double
In 2023, two men told police the same story: each man said that his name was William Woods, and that his identity had been stolen. Say hello on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. Sign up for our occasional newsletter. Follow the show and revie…
The Man Nobody Killed
On September 15, 1983, Michael Stewart was on his way home from a nightclub when police arrested him. Thirteen days later, he was dead. Elon Green’s book is The Man Nobody Killed: Life, Death, and Art in Michael Stewart’s New York. Say hel…
The Clearwater Monster
Early one morning in 1948, a phone call woke up the police chief in the small town of Clearwater, Florida. The caller said he’d seen something strange at the beach. Residents had found an odd set of footprints in the sand, and a rumor began…
Uncle Harold
In 1997, Eric Konigsberg received a strange voicemail from someone in prison — a hit man who had confessed to at least ten murders. Eric and the man had never spoken before, but Eric had a hunch about who it was: his uncle. Eric Konigsberg’…
By Any Means Necessary
In July 2010, a woman was on vacation with her boyfriend of six years — they were traveling around Italy in a van. One day, she was looking for a pair of sunglasses in the glove box, and she found a passport. It had her boyfriend’s photo — …
The Guru
In the late 1960s, a yogi named Swami Rama came to the United States. His followers believed he could read their minds, visit them in their dreams, and manipulate reality. Shruti Swamy was one of them. Shruti Swamy wrote a version of this s…
Professor Quaalude
John Buettner-Janusch was one of the first Americans to study lemurs. He held prestigious faculty positions at Yale, Duke and NYU, before surprising everyone with a series of increasingly bizarre crimes. Phoebe and Lauren got to visit the D…
Thin Ice and Unusual Punishments
Two years ago, we started making Criminal Plus episodes — behind-the-scenes conversations featuring Phoebe and Criminal co-creator Lauren Spohrer. Today, we’re sharing some of those conversations with you — about everything from Phoebe’s ja…
Action Park
“Anyone who went to Action Park understood you could get really messed up going there. It was part of why you wanted to go.” Seth Porges made a documentary about Action Park, along with Chris Charles Scott. It’s called Class Action Park. Sa…
No Hint or Help
In the 1950s, a new television quiz show premiered called Twenty One. But the first episode was a disaster — so the producers decided to try something. Say hello on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. Sign up for our occasional newsletter. Foll…
False Positive
The night before she gave birth, Susan Horton had a salad for dinner. The next day, doctors told her she’d tested positive for opiates - and reported her to child welfare authorities. This episode is from our friends at the Reveal podcast. …
Tabatha
When Tabatha Trammell was 50 years old, she started studying to become a doula — a support person for pregnant women. Today, most of her clients are incarcerated. She says she always tells them her own story when she meets them: “I went dow…
The Job
Not long into his job as prison superintendent, Frank Thompson had to prepare his staff to perform Oregon's first execution in three decades. They simulated each step of the process over and over and over.This episode was first released in …
The Roofman, Part 2
When Jeffery Manchester escaped from prison, a lot of people weren't surprised. But they didn't expect what happened next. "I kind of figured he'd be on the beach with a margarita, but nope."This is the second part of a two-part story. Say …
The Roofman, Part 1
Between 1998 and 2000, more than 40 stores and chain restaurants across the country were robbed by a masked man who always entered through the roof. Police couldn’t figure out where he’d turn up next.To listen to Part 2 right now, sign up f…
The Pride of Pine Hill
In the midst of the 1996 race for North Carolina governor, a new candidate emerged. Her name was Jolene Strickland, and her campaign slogan was “Too Good to be True.”Barry Yeoman wrote about Jolene Strickland for The Assembly. Tricia Romano…
The Bottom of the Cliff
In May of 2021, the National Park Service received a call that a woman had fallen over the Grandview Overlook at New River Gorge National Park. After days of searching with rappel lines, infrared cameras, and dogs, they didn't find anyone.S…
The Man Without a Will
A Toronto police officer was having an affair with a government worker – and then they found out about an elderly man who died with a large estate, and no will.For more on the story, read Katherine Laidlaw’s piece, “The Inside Job.”Say hell…
High Tide
Right after sunset, three boats sailed towards the rice plantations on the Combahee River. Harriet Tubman knew they had to hurry - they only had six hours before the changing tide would make it very difficult to get away.Edda L. Fields-Blac…
Five Stars
“Christopher Kinahan is probably the most successful and entrepreneurial criminal that Ireland has ever produced.”Say hello on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. Sign up for our occasional newsletter, The Accomplice. Follow the show and review…
The Stay
Last year, a committee of state lawmakers in Texas issued a subpoena for a man on death row to testify four days after he was scheduled to be executed. Today, what happened next in Robert Roberson's case.Say hello on Twitter, Facebook, Inst…
The Butterfly Smuggler
The first time Ed Newcomer went to the L.A. Bug Fair, he met a man who called himself the world’s most wanted butterfly smuggler. It took three years of undercover work for Ed Newcomer to catch him in the act.Say hello on Twitter, Facebook,…
Ava and the Pickpocket
“He stole my watch. He stole my jewelry. I stopped wearing jewelry – just to see what else he would steal.” In 2004, Ava Do met a professional pickpocket at a bachelorette party in Las Vegas. And they fell in love.Say hello on Twitter, Face…
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 slavery. As they passed the Confederate-held Fort Sumter, Robert Small…
The Raid
In 2023, police raided the Kansas newspaper where Eric Meyer worked with his mother, Joan. Seven officers also searched their home. Joan had a heart attack and died the next day.Say hello on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. Sign up …
Guns, Grenades, and $100,000
“Anything you can think of is going to be in the water.”Say hello on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. Sign up for our occasional newsletter, The Accomplice. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts.Sign up for Criminal Plus t…
Dexter Wade
Bettersten Wade searched for her missing 37-year-old son for nearly six months. Then she found out that the police knew where he was the whole time.Say hello on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. Sign up for our occasional newsletter,…
Moon Rocks Wanted
On September 18, 1998, an unusual ad ran in USA Today — a company called John’s Estate Sales was looking to buy a moon rock. The phone number on the ad belonged to Special Agent Joe Gutheinz at NASA.Say hello on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram…
The Christmas Fire
The bodies of a woman and her child were found inside a burned house on Christmas Day, 1843. An autopsy showed that they’d died before the fire even started.Alex Hortis's book is The Witch of New York.Say hello on Twitter, Facebook, Instagr…
Turtle vs. Toilet, a Monster in the Closet, and a Surprise Possum
Stories of animals really going for it.Say hello on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. Sign up for our occasional newsletter, The Accomplice. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts.Sign up for Criminal Plus to get behind-the-…
Operation Flagship
In 1985, 160 people were sent letters saying they’d won free tickets to an NFL football game. They were told to pick up their tickets at the Washington Convention Center. When they arrived, they were greeted by cheerleaders, men in tuxedos,…
The Sale
In 1791, three men filed lawsuits in the General Court of Maryland. They were all suing the same person: the Jesuit priest who enslaved them.Say hello on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. Sign up for our occasional newsletter, The Ac…
For the Sake of American Youth
“Children nowadays, they make maps. And say, this is the street where the store is that we're going to rob, and this is where we're going to hide, and this is how we get away.” In the 1950s, U.S. senators were worrying about “the fifth hors…
Extraordinary and Compelling Reasons
In 1993, Gary Settle was sentenced to 177 years in prison. Twenty-six years into his sentence, he started helping other inmates get out of prison through something called compassionate release - a policy that allows people in prison to peti…
The Reverend
In 1977, a man named Robert Burns went to a funeral and shot someone, in the head, in front of 300 people. He didn’t deny it, and his lawyer didn’t deny it. Burns told a police officer: “I had to do it. And if I had to do it over, I’d do it…