Found and American Vigilante

In the podcast "American Vigilante" a British journalist interviews a mercenary who travels the world to rescue children, capture fugitives, and avenge the innocent. But are his testosterone-fueled tales true? 

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "AMERICAN VIGILANTE" GO TO MINUTE 27:55

Using DNA tests, three girls adopted from China learn they're cousins. In "Found" from Netflix, they enlist the help of a Beijing researcher to find the birth parents who abandoned them because of the country's one-child Policy.

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "FOUND" GO TO MINUTE 1:02:00

In Crime of the Week: the fish are biting. 

Mississippi Goddam and What Happened, Brittney Murphy?

In 2008, high school football star Billey Joe Johnson was pulled over for speeding in Lucedale, Mississippi. Moments later, the officer radioed that the Black teen had killed himself with a shotgun. “Mississippi Goddam: The Ballad of Billey Joe” is an eight-part series of PRX's "Reveal" podcast. Host Al Letson pokes at the conclusion the teen’s death was an accident.

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "MISSISSIPPI GODDAM" GO TO MINUTE 27.

The sudden death in 2009 of a rising star shocked Hollywood. The HBO Max two-part series “What Happened, Brittney Murphy?” recalls the actor’s Hollywood climb and subsequent fatal backslide during her marriage to a gold-digging Svengali.

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "WHAT HAPPENED, BRITTNEY MURPHY?" GO TO MINUTE 61.

In Crime of the Week: Don't be cruel.

Dr. Death 3 and Wild Crime

In season 3 of "Dr. Death," a news producer falls in love with a surgeon on the cutting edge of regenerative medicine. But dogged by questions about his research and his promises of a romantic life together, his con soon unravels. 

FOR OUR SPOILER FREE REVIEWS OF "DR. DEATH: MEDICINE MAN," GO TO 30:00

In "Wild Crime," National Park Service investigators look at the death of a woman who plunged from a mountain side. Did Toni Henthorn fall...or was she pushed by her husband, Harold?

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "WILD CRIME," GO TO 1:01:52

In Crime of the Week: seeing Red (number 3).

Murdaugh Murders and The Way Down

Gwen Shamblin earned fame and fortune with a diet program heavy on religious devotion. The HBO Max series "The Way Down: God, Greed, and the Cult of Gwen Shamblin" shows when her religious dogma veered away from mainstream Christianity, her church took on the trappings of a cult.

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "THE WAY DOWN" GO TO 34:30

They were a powerful name in South Carolina’s legal community. But after the double slaying of two family members, new scrutiny was paid to the Murdaughs’ past involvement in a series of deaths. "Murdaugh Murders" explores in real time the fast breaking story of homicide, obstruction, fraud, and influence in the Lowcountry. 

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "MURDAUGH MURDERS" GO TO 1:11:40

In Crime of the Week: tough day at The Office.

Britney Vs Spears and Fault Line

For years one of the world’s biggest pop stars was held captive to a conservatorship which controlled her money and her life. The Netflix documentary “Britney Vs Spears” reveals the undisclosed legal documents which trace how the singer’s father and a gaggle of lawyers leveraged the system to restrict her agency and make themselves rich.

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "BRITNEY VS SPEARS" GO TO 29:00

In October 2019, two men in a car ran over antifa protestor Sean Kealiher in Portland before fleeing. The podcast “Fault Line: Dying for a Fight” asks whether police won't solve the case because of the victim's left-wing, anti-law enforcement views.

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "FAULT LINE" GO TO 1:07:00

In crime of the week: captivating review.

Witnessed: Borderlands & The Women and the Murderer

In the new podcast series “Witnessed: Borderlands” from Campside Media, host Rob D’Amico recalls the story of a drug runner and a crooked lawman who moved pot and cocaine through West Texas and how their alliance culminated in a botched billion dollar coke deal. 

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "WITNESSED: BORDERLANDS" GO TO 20:50

The Netflix French import “The Women and the Murderer” recalls the manhunt for a serial killer who terrorized Paris. It's told from the point of view of the female detectives, reporters, and lawyers involved in the case. 

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "THE WOMEN AND THE MURDERER" GO TO 54:30

In crime of the week: take the money and run.

Suspect and John of God

For years, the Brazilian faithful sought out psychic healer John of God, but the religious leader told young women their miracles were to be performed through other techniques. The Netflix import “John of God: The Crimes of a Spiritual Healer,” explores the case of a man who used his position to assault hundreds of women.

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "JOHN OF GOD" GO TO 22:30

A murder in an apartment building left cops with two viable suspects, but not enough evidence for an arrest.  Did they put too much faith in a questionable interpretation of the DNA? “Suspect” from Campside Media and Wondery slowly pulls back the layers of a case with dubious assumptions, racial bias, and junk science which likely put the wrong man behind bars.

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "SUSPECT" GO TO 1:00:00

In crime of the week: naked grapes.

Firebug and Laëtitia

Southern California officials were dealing with a string of seemingly unrelated arsons. Then a manuscript turned up with a fictional account of the fire setter. Is the book a veiled confession by the author whose identity stuns investigators? The podcast "Firebug" explores that question.

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "FIREBUG" GO TO 26:00

When a teenager's scooter is found abandoned in the road, police begin a desperate search. The six-part French language series “Laëtitia,” now on HBO, focuses on her troubled past, the effect on her twin sister, the hunt for evidence, and the leaders who used the crime for their own political ends.

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "LAËTITIA" GO TO 56:00

In crime of the week: take a bite out of crime.

9/12 and LuLaRich

The memories of what happened on September 11th are burned clearly into our minds, but what happened afterward is often fuzzy. In "9/12," from Pineapple Street Studios, Wondery, and Amazon Music, host Dan Taberski goes beyond the usual retrospectives, and looks at how 9/11 stopped being a day and became an idea.

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "9/12" GO TO35:00

While leggings company LuLaRoe earned billions, the money came not from consumers - but from the tens of thousands of sales women purchasing substandard inventory too flimsy to sell. The Amazon Prime documentary “LuLaRich” dives into what officials have called a huge pyramid scheme. 

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "LULARICH" GO TO [+4].1:08:00

In crime of the week: no mate, proper whack.

Only Murders in the Building and The Yellow Car

In 1989, daycare provider Effie Entezari was shot in the parking lot of her Vancouver, Washington apartment complex. KGW and VAULT Studio's "The Yellow Car" follows Pooneh Gray's quest to clear her father’s name, questioning the ballistics, and struggling to test DNA from an alternative suspect.

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "THE YELLOW CAR" GO TO 26:20

When a resident in their expensive New York apartment dies under suspicious circumstances, a former TV cop, a washed-up Broadway producer, and a mysterious young woman start their own true crime podcast. Hulu's "Only Murders in the Building," starring Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez, is a comic send-up of true crime troupes, an old-fashioned whodunnit, and a character study about regret. 

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "ONLY MURDERS IN THE BUILDING" GO TO 59:40

In Crime of the Week: we all scream...

The White Lotus and Pray Away

With Toby away on vacation, the crime writers welcome actress and podcaster Janet Varney to the panel.

The Netflix documentary “Pray Away” looks back at the early-adopters of conversion therapy and the advocates who believed in its efficacy...until they didn’t. The film also follows an evangelical who renounced his trans identity and is organizing a political movement for those who identify as “ex-gay.” 

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "PRAY AWAY" GO TO 35:00

Who was killed during their stay at this luxurious Hawaiian resort? Beneath the comedy in the HBO series “The White Lotus” there is a simmering tension and a commentary on the tedium of wealth, the indifference of privilege, and the specter of death. 

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "THE WHITE LOTUS" GO TO 1:13:00

In Crime of the Week: deal of a lifetime.

TO PRE-ORDER AN AUTOGRAPHED COPY OF LARA'S NEW BOOK, DEAD ON DEADLINE, CLICK HERE.

Peacock's Dr. Death and No Place Like Home

In Oz, everyone wanted to get their hands on the ruby slippers. In Grand Rapids, someone did! The C13 Originals podcast “No Place Like Home” looks at the 2005 movie memorabilia heist and the hunt for the thieves. 

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "NO PLACE LIKE HOME" GO TO MINUTE 27:15

A pair of Dallas surgeons are alarmed by their new colleague. Dr. Christopher Duntsch leaves a trail of maimed, paralyzed, and dead patients - while hospital administrators look the other way. The Peacock Originals’ adaptation of “Dr. Death” is the medical-procedural soap-opera buddy-movie think-piece courtroom-drama of the summer. 

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "DR. DEATH" GO TO MINUTE 1:06:20

In Crime of the Week: pissed off.

Heist and Chameleon: High Rollers

In season two of Campside Media’s “Chameleon: High Rollers,” host Trevor Aaronson takes listeners inside the FBI’s ill-fated Operation Botox. The podcast promises a tale of love triangles, gun runners, exotic dancers, wrongful prosecutions, and a pair of agents having too much fun undercover in Sin City.

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "CHAMELEON: HIGH ROLLERS" GO TO MINUTE 32.

The Netflix series “Heist” looks at three colorful crimes perpetrated by somewhat ordinary people. Employing stylized re-creations and interviews with the amateur perpetrators, it explores the thrill, the dangers, and the fun behind each caper. 

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "HEIST" GO TO MINUTE 72.

In Crime of the Week: hell on wheels. 

Murder in Illinois and Murder By the Coast

Christopher Vaughn was convicted for the 2007 killings of his wife and children in the family minivan. The iHeart podcast "Murder in Illinois" looks into whether someone else was responsible and an innocent man is in prison. 

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "MURDER IN ILLINOIS" GO TO MINUTE 29:00

The killing of a teen in a Spanish seaside village and the prosecution of a family friend for the slaying gripped the country. Netflix's "Murder By the Coast" describes how a subsequent crime would rock two nations. 

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "MURDER BY THE COAST" GO TO MINUTE 58:00

In crime of the week: dog fight.

Un(re)solved and Sophie: A Murder in West Cork

It took an act of Congress to compel the FBI to reinvestigate more than 100 civil rights-era murders. From FRONTLINE PBS comes the podcast “Un(re)solved,” a look at the attempt to close open cases of racially-motivated killings from five decades ago.

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "UN(RE)SOLVED" GO TO MINUTE 28:00

In 1996, a French tourist was murdered outside her Irish vacation home. Suspicion in the death of Sophie Toscan du Plantier turned to a man already publicly involved in the investigation. Netflix’s three-part series “Sophie: A Murder in West Cork” revisits Ireland’s most infamous homicide.

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "WEST CORK" GO TO MINUTE 1

In crime of the week: nacho average customer.

Alligator Candy and Day X

When journalist David Kushner was four-years-old, his older brother biked off to buy him his favorite gum. In "Alligator Candy" from UCP Audio, Kushner struggles to come to terms with the loss and the thought that his request led to tragedy.

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "ALLIGATOR CANDY" GO TO MINUTE 28:15

The discovery of a handgun at an airport led authorities to a German soldier posing as a Syrian refugee and the possibility right-wing extremists had infiltrated the nation’s military. The New York Times podcast “Day X” looks at the rise of German extremists, the political figures they were targeting, and their crimes hidden in plain sight.

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "DAY X" GO TO MINUTE 1:04:00

In Crime of the Week: Do not pass Go. 

Do You Know Mordechai? And Lupin (season 2)

A stranger knocks on a woman's door and asks if she knows her ex-boyfriend, whom she learns was not who he said he was. In “Do You Know Mordechai” from UCP Audio and Antica Productions, host Kathleen Goldhar works on behalf of the bamboozled and brokenhearted to find a romantic con artist. 

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "DO YOU KNOW MORDECHAI" GO TO MINUTE 27:00

France’s favorite gentleman burglar is back in season two of Netflix's “Lupin.” Assane Diop employs disguises, high tech trickery, and pure brawn to get his revenge on the man who framed his father.

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "LUPIN" GO TO 56:00

In Crime of the Week: how the cookie crumbles. 

The Vaping Fix and The Trials of Frank Carson

Defense attorney Frank Carson was a rough courtroom brawler, unafraid to accuse police and prosecutors of corruption to win cases. But the disappearance of a small-time thief led investigators to focus on Carson. Was the criminal attorney as violent as his clients...or was it a vendetta by cops and lawyers to bring down their pugnacious foe? 

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "THE TRIALS OF FRANK CARSON" GO TO 30:00

Two Stanford students proposed a safer way to give smokers their hit of nicotine without the harmful carcinogens of cigarettes: a product that would eventually be called “Juul.” But a series of design flaws, marketing missteps, and a failure to anticipate unintended consequences only made the problem worse.

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "THE VAPING FIX" GO TO 1:07:00

In crime of the week: and I've been working like a dog.

Searching for Sheela and The Woman in the Window

After her reclaimed fame in "Wild Wild Country," former cult leader Ma Anand Sheela went on a book tour of India. Netflix's follow-up "Searching for Sheela" shows her greeted by fans and reporters, projecting an image of a woman both enlightened by her experience and unrepentant of her past.

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "SEARCHING FOR SHEELA" GO TO THE 27:00 MINUTE MARK.

An agoraphobic woman witnesses a crime across the street, but investigators believe the attack was a product of her medicated imagination. Amy Adams and Gary Oldman star in the thriller "The Woman in the Window."

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW" GO TO THE 1:03:00 MINUTE MARK.

In Crime of the Week: moooving violation. 

Exit Scam and Nail Bomber: Manhunt

The sudden death of Gerald Cotten left Bitcoin owners in the lurch, because no one else had the password that controlled the hundreds of millions of dollars in cryptocurrency. In the “Exit Scam,” host Aaron Lammer asks did this missing Crypto-King take a fortune to his grave...or take it on the run?

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "EXIT SCAM" GO TO 35:30

A series of 1999 bombings rocked London’s Black and gay neighborhoods. Can a regular chap-turned-spy find the neo-Nazi behind the attacks? We’ll talk about Netflix’s “Nail Bomber: Manhunt.”

FOR OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEW OF "NAIL BOMBER: MANHUNT" GO TO 1:08:00

In crime of the week: I want my mullet back.