Shocking, Heartbreaking, Transformative

Journalist Jess Shane had become disillusioned with the documentary industry and its effects on people profiled. She set off to create a new paradigm and craft stories with input from the people whose lives she’s covering. Shane reveals her process of creating a new kind of storytelling, featuring four people who’ll receive compensation and editorial input. But after months of collaboration, the subjects are unable to offer meaningful contributions to Shane’s presentation of their life stories. And the documentarian must confront what happens when subjects want more of the control she offered.

From PRX’s Radiotopia Presents comes “Shocking, Heartbreaking, Transformative.” Shane lets listeners into her earnest project to create stories that do right by their subjects, only to learn what is lost by doing so. It also asks questions about the commoditization of nonfiction programs by the companies that supply them and the audiences that demand them.

OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "SHOCKING, HEARTBREAKING, TRANSFORMATIVE" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 16 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.

The Truth About Jim

Sierra Barter’s step-grandfather had terrorized her family for years before his death in 2008. Jim Mordecai sexually abused the women in his life, including his step-daughter and his high school students. But he also seemed to have knowledge about a string of 1970s unsolved murders involving hitchhikers near his Northern California hometown. Sierra launches an investigation into Jim’s life which draws her closer to estranged relatives, but what she learns of her dead step-grandfather fits the profile of a man who could be responsible for some of the most infamous killings in the Bay Area.

The Max Original “The Truth About Jim” follows Sierra’s journey to learn about Mordecai’s past, his victims, and his penchant for violence. Was this serial sexual offender also responsible for the Santa Anna Hitchhiker Murders? Or even more shocking…could he have been the Zodiac Killer?

OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "THE TRUTH ABOUT JIM" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 12 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.

In Crime of the Week: frankly disappointing.

Cover Up: Body Brokers

Sunset Mesa Funeral Home was a trusted business for bereaved residents in Montrose, Colorado. Director Megan Hess smooth-talked family members and offered steep discounts on cremations for those who donated their bodies to science. But the community was shocked when it learned the ashes in their urns were not those of their loved ones. Investigators discovered customers were being misled as to how their remains would be used. Hess was getting rich in the shadowy world of body dealing. In the backroom, she was dismembering heads and limbs to be illegally sold to medical companies for research.

From Sony Music Entertainment, Campside Media and Black Bar Mitzvah, comes “Cover Up: Body Brokers.” The podcast recounts how Hess and her mother harvested body parts from their funeral home while giving families cremains from a mixed pile of ashes. Host Ashley Fantz talks to investigators, Sunset Mesa employees, and loved ones affected by the scam. 

OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "COVER UP: BODY BROKERS" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 12 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.

In Crime of the Week: By any other name.

True Detective: Night Country

After the last sunset of the year, a group of scientists vanish from their arctic research station near Ennis, Alaska. Police Chief Liz Danvers later finds the men naked and flash-frozen in the ice with no indication of how they got there.

Danvers reluctantly reunites with Trooper Evangeline Navarro, her former partner still haunted by the unsolved killing of an indigenous woman. The uneasy pair seek to answer what happened at Tsalal station and whether it’s connected to Annie K’s murder. But as an endless darkness settles over the Night Country, are greater forces at play?

“True Detective: Night Country” is season four of the HBO series and stars Jodi Foster, Kali Reis, Fiona Shaw, and Finn Bennett. Are the deaths linked to one another or with the mining operation polluting the water supply? Haunted both literally and figuratively by loss and isolation, the characters confront their own darkness living above the Arctic Circle.

OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "TRUE DETECTIVE: NIGHT COUNTRY" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 12 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.

In Crime of the Week: dick pic.

Runaway Joe

In 1985, Irish residents were stunned to learn the man they knew as country gentleman Michael O’Shea was actually Joseph Maloney, a fugitive from America, accused of poisoning his wife twenty years earlier. He had fled to Ireland after escaping custody in New York. Though a court ruled he be sent back to the US, a legal glitch with his extradition order allowed Maloney to flee with his second wife. Decades later, the accused murderer remains on the run, frustrating authorities on two continents.

From RTÉ Documentary on One comes the podcast “Runaway Joe.” It looks at one of the FBI’s oldest cold cases. Host Pavel Barter interviews friends of Maloney’s murdered wife, American authorities hunting him, and Irish residents who knew him for years as Mick O’Shea. Can investigators find the elusive fugitive and bring him to justice nearly 60 years after the crime?  

OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "RUNAWAY JOE" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 9 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.

They Called Him Mostly Harmless

The case of an unidentified hiker found dead in the Florida Everglades baffled police. He’d gone by the trail nickname “Mostly Harmless,” but no one knew who he really was. His story energized Internet sleuths who started their own investigation into the John Doe. The online community grew toxic, with splinter groups competing with one another in a search for answers. But when the identity of Mostly Harmless was uncovered and the questions to his life on the trail were answered, some wondered whether the quest had been worth it. 

The Max Original film “They Called Him Mostly Harmless” recounts the crowdsourced hunt for the mysterious man’s identity. It poses questions about whether these armchair detectives were searching for the hiker - or searching for themselves.

OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "THEY CALLED HIM MOSTLY HARMLESS" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 11 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.

In Crime of the Week:  long in the tooth.

On Our Watch: New Folsom

When Valentino Rodriguez Jr. died at home, his family believed it had something to do with his time in an elite investigative unit inside New Folsom Prison. He’d been driven out of the job by other corrections officers Valentino believed were behind the abuse of prisoners. KQED reporters Sukey Lewis and Julie Small began to dig through reams of newly-released documents and interview tapes, hoping to shed light on what was happening in California’s most violent prison. Meanwhile, with guidance from Valentino’s mentor, Val Senior launched his own investigation into his son’s final days with the help of an insider.

Season two of KQED’s “On Our Watch: New Folsom” tells the tale of two corrections officers struggling with the pattern of violence and a culture of silence within the high-security facility. The hosts investigate the challenges they faced and follow in their footsteps to uncover the secrets hidden inside the most dangerous prison in the Golden State.

OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "ON OUR WATCH: NEW FOLSOM" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 11 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.

Dr. Death: Bad Magic

Doctor Serhat Gumrukcu had been hailed as a genius whose experimental treatments for cancer and AIDS made a half-billion dollars for Enochian Biosciences. But the researcher seemed to have two obsessions: one was performing magic tricks and the other was a penchant for secrecy. Financial investors turned up troubling information on Serhat. His diplomas and other credentials were phony, and he’d left a trail of white collar crimes. They’d soon learn, on the other side of the country, a man in a business dispute with Serhat was lured from his home, murdered execution-style, and left in a snowbank. 

“Dr. Death: Bad Magic” is season four of Wondery’s hit podcast series. Host Laura Beil tells the tale of the amateur magician and professional con artist who fooled financiers, scientists, and patients - and now faces murder-for-hire charges. Was Serhat the medical pioneer he claimed to be or was it all an illusion?

OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "DR. DEATH: BAD MAGIC" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 10 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.

In Crime of The Week: Cocaine bears.

Gwyneth vs Terry: The Ski Crash Trial

In 2016, a pair of skiers collided on the slopes of Utah’s Deer Valley Resort. Retiree Terry Sanderson said the crash left him with brain damage and emotional pain, so he filed a $300,000 lawsuit against the other skier: A-list celebrity Gwyneth Paltrow. But Paltrow said Sanderson crashed into her. Rather than settle, she defended herself in court with an army of high-priced attorneys and expert witnesses. What might normally be a low-profile personal injury case turned into a televised cause celebre. 

The documentary “Gwyneth vs Terry: The Ski Crash Trial” from Discovery+ and Max looks back at the case that captivated pop culture. Was the actress using her star power to avoid responsibility or was the optometrist to blame and just looking for a payday?

OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "GWYNETH vs TERRY" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 10 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.

The Runaway Princesses

In 2000, the daughter of Dubai’s leader, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, ran off to England. Though her father was seen as a progressive champion of women’s rights in the Arab world, Shamsa claimed her father subjected his children to harsh punishment for disobedience. The princess was then forcibly taken from British soil by Sheikh Mohammed’s men, sparking a diplomatic crisis.

After spending nearly four years in prison for her own escape attempt, Shamsa’s sister Latifa also fled the country in 2018 to get away from her father. Her swashbuckling, high-profile breakout made international news, but claiming she’d been kidnapped, Indian security forces captured her at sea and brought her home. 

From the team at The New Yorker and “In the Dark” comes “The Runaway Princesses.” Madeleine Baran and Heidi Blake report on Latifa’s and Shamsa’s attempts to leave Dubai, the consequences for doing so, and what’s happening with the princesses today. Is Latifa now living a happy life in Dubai as she claims, or is she making those statements under duress?

OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "THE RUNAWAY PRINCESSES" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 10 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.

In Crime of the Week: no tipping.

The Vanishing Point

Emmilee Risling was last seen in 2021 on the Pecwan bridge. Hoopa Valley authorities were unable to determine whether the troubled woman threw herself into the Klamath River or met with foul play.

Emmilee was just another in the growing number of indigenous men and women who vanished from tribal lands in the Pacific Northwest. All their stories are different. Some deal with addiction, mental health, or domestic violence. But what they all have in common is the same location in Northern California.

“The Vanishing Point” from Tenderfoot TV looks at the story of five missing people from Hoopa Valley. Host Celisia Stanton and her team explore the cold cases and attempt to learn why this tribal land is a vanishing point for so many. 

OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "THE VANISHING POINT" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 10 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.

Radical

In 2000, a deputy was killed and another wounded in Atlanta’s West End while trying to serve an arrest warrant. Authorities said the gunman was Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin, the leader of the local mosque and caretaker of the predominantly Muslim neighborhood. In the years before becoming Imam Jamil he’d been known as H. Rap Brown, a leader in the 1960s Black Power Movement accused by the FBI of inciting violence. West End residents did not think their spiritual leader was behind the fatal shooting and wondered if his arrest was motivated less by the contradictory evidence and more by his past as an outspoken activist.

From Campside Media, Tenderfoot TV and iHeartMedia comes “Radical.” Host Mosi Secret investigates the night of the shooting and attempts to find out who Iman Jamil really is. Is he truly a man of God? Is he a dangerous extremist? Or is the answer somewhere in the middle?

OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "RADICAL" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 10 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.

In Crime of the Week: fowl language.

The Estate

Growing up, Alex Estrada knew there was something important about the phone calls his father would receive from a man in prison. He learned his dad and Calvin Jones were accused of having their business partner killed in 1973. They dropped the charges against Rosalio Estrada, but Jones got a life sentence. Already navigating a toxic relationship, Rosalio’s possible culpability confirmed Alex’s belief his father was a bad man. But was he a killer? Alex sets off to scrutinize the fifty-year-old murder case in an attempt to reconcile his complicated feelings for his dead father.

In the podcast “The Estate” from Sonoro and Tenderfoot TV, Estrada re-examines the evidence in a long-forgotten case, looking for clues as to who Rosalio really was. It attempts to blend true crime, political science, and family memoir into one.

OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "THE ESTATE" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 10 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.

American Nightmare

In 2015, Aaron Quinn told Vallejo police his girlfriend had been kidnapped in the middle of the night by home-invading frogmen. Detectives thought he made up the far-fetched tale to hide her possible murder. But days later Denise Huskins turned up at her parents’ house with a similarly elaborate story of abduction and sexual captivity. Citing its parallels to the movie “Gone Girl,” investigators accused the couple of a hoax. But miles away, a rookie detective uncovered an out-of-place piece of evidence in a serial rape case: a strand of blonde hair attached to a pair of blackout goggles.  

The Netflix series “American Nightmare” follows Aaron and Denise’s ordeal, first as the victims of a bizarre serial rapist, then as defendants humiliated by cops who said they lied about it. It also features the investigator who bucked the system to get them justice on more than one level.

OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "AMERICAN NIGHTMARE" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 11 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.

In Crime of the Week: watch and wear.

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In Her Defence

After missing for six years, Miles Naslund was discovered at the bottom of an Alberta pond, his body welded inside a metal toolbox. Police arrested his wife Helen who said she shot him in 2011 while he slept after enduring three decades of abuse. But the full extent of her sons’ involvement in the killing remains murky. And Helen’s sentence was much harsher than that of other Canadian women who’ve used the Battered Woman defense. 

From The Globe and Mail  comes the podcast “In Her Defence.” Host Jana G. Pruden recounts Helen Naslund’s case through jailhouse interviews and commentary from friends, children, and legal experts. Did the court fully take into account the 30 years of domestic violence she endured at the hands of her shooting victim? And is she protecting any family members who might have played a larger role in the killing and coverup? 

OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "IN HER DEFENCE" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 10 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.

Peacock's Dr Death season 2

TV producer Benita Alexander thinks the work of a transplant surgeon will make for a great story. Dr. Paolo Macchiarini is saving lives by implanting the first artificial tracheas, and Benita soon finds herself in a secret relationship with the charismatic medical pioneer. Once they’re engaged, Benita grows suspicious of his tales of famous friends and promises of a new life in Europe. But worse, Macchiarini has been obfuscating the results of his surgeries, treating patients like human guinea pigs while the devices rot inside their bodies.

Peacock is out with the second installment of their dramatic adaptation of “Dr. Death,” based on the Miracle Man season of the Wondery Podcast. Actors Mandy Moore and Edgar Ramírez recreate Macchiarini’s catfishing romance in the US, while Luke Kirby plays one of the doctors in Sweden looking to expose the surgeon’s deadly lies.

OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "DR. DEATH" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 9 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.

In Crime of Week: road script.

Burden of Guilt

As a child, Tracyrachel Bern’s father would beat her if she asked about the 1971 death of her baby brother Matthew. Her parents would later tell her what they told police: that the two-year-old girl threw the infant from his crib. After living years with the guilt, Tracyrachel came to question details of the accident and whether her abusive father, Jan Barry Sandlin, may have killed the baby and blamed it on her. She set off on a four decades long journey to learn the truth and get justice for Matthew.

From Glass Podcasts comes “Burden of Guilt.” Host Nancy Glass interviews Tracyrachel about her efforts to clear her name and hold Matthew’s killer responsible. Did a toddler really dash a baby’s head or was she scapegoated to hide someone else’s fatal act of violence?

OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "BURDEN OF GUILT" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 9 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.

Boston Globe's Murder in Boston Podcast

It was a crime story that shook Boston. The survivor of a fatal carjacking said his pregnant wife was murdered by an unknown Black man - triggering an unprecedented police crackdown in Black neighborhoods still dealing with the racial legacy of bussing. The city’s spotty track record on civil rights fueled police, politicians, and the media too eager to believe a fiction wrapped in racism. But even after it was revealed to be a hoax - and that Charles Stuart staged the death of his wife - the damage to the community could not be undone.  

The “Murder in Boston Podcast” by The Boston Globe is a companion to, but separately-produced from, the HBO series of the same name. Hosted by editor Adrian Walker, the podcast digs into the Charles Stuart case from a local point of view, going deeper into its many threads. It takes a critical look at the city’s racial backstory, flaws in the investigation, and the indiscriminate targeting of Black men - as well as the failures of its own newspaper. It even uncovers new information into who knew ahead of time that Stuart was the culprit.

OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "MURDER IN BOSTON PODCAST" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 10 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.

In Crime of the Week: pothole committed.

HBO's Murder in Boston: Root, Rampage & Reckoning

In 1989, Boston was stunned by a dramatic carjacking. Charles Stuart said his wife Carol was shot in the head and he was gravely wounded by a Black man who robbed them. While the media fought each other for the latest details, police launched an aggressive and prolonged manhunt in the adjacent Black neighborhoods. Within the Black community, the harassment and heavy handed arrests opened fresh wounds in a city with a checkered past on race relations. But police were so willing to believe Stuart’s account of the bizarre attack, few suspected he was behind it all along.

From HBO Documentary Films in association with The Boston Globe comes “Murder in Boston: Roots, Rampage & Reckoning. The three-part series retraces the investigation into who killed Carol Stuart against the backdrop of a liberal city unable to reconcile its racist history. We also hear from reporters, activists, and local residents affected by the manhunt and an unapologetic cop who helped run it.

OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "MURDER IN BOSTON: ROOTS, RAMPAGE & RECKONING" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 12 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.

The Bakerfield Three

In 2018, Micah Holsonbake’s family said the 34-year-old banker went missing from Bakersfield, California. Two weeks later, a friend of Micah’s reported his 20-year-old girlfriend Baylee Despot also vanished. Just weeks after that, another friend, 38-year-old entrepreneur James Kulstad, was gunned down in a quiet neighborhood. Their families believed the fates of the three were more than a coincidence.

The three were loosely connected in a world filled with drug addiction, sex trafficking, and illegal weapons. The mothers of the so-called Bakersfield 3 banded together to alert the public, keep pressure on investigators, and support each other, all while Baylee’s boyfriend publicly taunted her mom. But as new evidence turned up, the answer to what happened threatened to tear their alliance apart.

From Casefile Presents comes the 15-part podcast “The Bakersfield Three.” Host Olivia LaVoice draws upon her years of covering the case as a TV reporter. Using her police sources, intimate relationships with the families, and her own story, LaVoice walks us through a mystery filled with shocking twists.  

OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "THE BAKERSFIELD THREE" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 15 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.

In Crime of the Week: gold brick.