True CrimeSociety & Culture

Criminal

Vox Media Podcast Network

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.

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31 episodes
Avg 40 min
English

Episodes 31

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#381
Friday · 40 min
Family Secrets, Part 2
In June of 1985, police followed in pursuit as Fritz Klenner drove through the streets of Greensboro, North Carolina, with his cousin Susie Lynch and her two sons. When the chase eventually ended, it was like “something right out of a movie.”
#380
September 11 · 31 min
Family Secrets, Part 1
In 1985, college student Ian Perkins reconnected with a family friend, Fritz Klenner, who told him a secret. He said he was a CIA agent — and offered to let Ian come along on his next mission.
#10005
September 8 · 33 min
He Was Told It Was a Job. It Was His Kidney They Wanted.
In 2021, a Nigerian man heard from a friend who offered him a job opportunity in the U.K. After he arrived he was taken to a hospital, where he found out that he wasn’t there for a job at all - but instead, for a kidney transplant.
#379
September 4 · 1 hr 4 min
The Informant
In 1978, an investigator in the Harris County DA's office in Houston got a call from an old friend. He told the investigator that he was in jail, that he wanted him to come pick him up — and that he had some information about a case that he thought the investigator would be very interested in.
#378
August 28 · 40 min
911
A conversation with a 911 operator about what happens on the other end of the line – and the day she heard her daughter's voice on the phone.
#10004
August 25 · 45 min
What Happened When 33,000 People’s Therapy Notes Were Released Onto the Internet
Imagine receiving an email from a stranger that said your therapist’s notes about you would be released onto the internet for all to see — unless you paid a ransom. That’s exactly what happened to 33,000 people in Finland in 2020, and it became the biggest criminal case in the country’s history.
#377
August 21 · 43 min
Out of the Box
In 1964, Reg Spiers couldn’t afford a plane ticket home to Australia from England, so he came up with another way to get there: “I saw them shipping animals. And I thought, well, if the dogs can survive it, I could.”
#376
August 14 · 53 min
A Bump in the Night and Unexpected Guests
Amber Dawn was 20 when she moved into a one-bedroom apartment in Enumclaw, Washington. On her very first night, she began to notice strange sounds. And they didn’t stop.
August 13 · 46 min
Please Continue (Criminal+)
Today, an unlocked episode of Criminal Plus that's full of exciting updates, public service announcements, and Tom Cruise's teeth.
#10003
August 11 · 28 min
How a Volcanic Eruption Led to a Criminal Trial
In 2019, a volcano erupted off the coast of New Zealand - killing 22 tourists who were on it at the time. Four years later, a criminal trial began - where prosecutors claimed that several individuals and companies had violated workplace safety laws, and had “used an active volcano to make money.” Phoebe interviews Emily Clark from the Australian Broadcasting Company about the trial and what happened next.
#375
August 7 · 51 min
Mr. Apology
In 1980, posters appeared in subway stations and on telephone poles in New York City with a phone number to call. When you called it, you would hear a message: “This is Apology. Apology is not associated with the police or any other organization but rather is a way for you to tell people what you have done wrong and how you feel about it.”
#374
July 31 · 48 min
The Premonitions Bureau
On October 21, 1966, a woman named Lorna Middleton suddenly woke up from her sleep, struggling to breathe. The day before, a man named Alan Hencher was at work in London when he began to tremble all over. They both said they knew something terrible was about to happen.
#10002
July 28 · 28 min
She Killed Three People with Poisonous Mushrooms. Did She Mean To?
In 2023, a woman named Erin Patterson had her husband's family over for a lunch of beef Wellington. A week later, three people were dead. Phoebe interviews Guardian reporter Nino Bucci about what happened next.
#373
July 24 · 40 min
The Comfort Kit
A few hours after Rachel Waters’ mother died in hospice care, police showed up at Rachel’s childhood home with a search warrant. “It had my name and the word ‘homicide’ on it.”
#372
July 17 · 35 min
125 Acres
George Dinning was emancipated in 1865, when he was 10 years old. By the time he was in his mid-thirties, he’d bought the land on which he had been enslaved. Years later, 25 white men approached the house George had built by hand and told him to come outside.
#10001
July 14 · 36 min
Why Alex Murdaugh is Getting a Do-Over
Earlier this year, Alex Murdaugh’s 2023 double murder conviction was overturned by the South Carolina Supreme Court - due to “shocking jury interference.” Phoebe interviews Wall Street Journal reporter Valerie Bauerlein about what happened, and about the long history of law-breaking behavior in the Murdaugh dynasty.
#371
July 10 · 38 min
That’s Not Me
Porcha Woodruff was eight months pregnant when she was arrested by police one morning at her home in Detroit. When she spoke with a detective at the police station hours later, she asked them, “Why am I here?”
#10000
June 30 · 27 min
What Nobody Tells You About the Morgue (with Patricia Cornwell)
Phoebe interviews crime novelist Patricia Cornwell about spending years in an autopsy suite, and why she would have “run from the room screaming” had she known what her future would look like.
#370
June 26 · 30 min
All the Time in the World
The “body farm” at Texas State University is a place almost no one is allowed to see, because it’s one of very few places in the world that deliberately puts out human bodies to decompose in nature. We asked if we could visit, and they agreed.
#369
June 19 · 42 min
The Caller
In 2008, an article in the monthly FBI bulletin argued that 911 calls could contain clues for homicide investigations. “The caller, in fact, may be the killer.”

Showing 1–20 of 31 episodes