Breakdown

Latest Episodes:

S05, Ep2: The courtship of Tex and Diane McIver Jul 17, 2025

Show notes

Tex McIver couldn't get the new resident of the luxury condo complex out of his mind. She ignored all his entreaties to meet him, and he finally contrived to "bump into" her at the complex's gym early one morning. Diane was a powerful and successful businesswoman who eventually would marry Tex. But on a sultry September night a year ago, he killed her.

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S05, Ep5: Prospective jurors: He did it Jul 17, 2025

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One prospective juror after another is dismissed for cause because he or she believes Tex McIver intended to kill his wife. At the end of a long week of jury selection, the parties are finally able to qualify a pool of sufficient size that they can select 12 jurors and four alternates from it. But the defense must be troubled by the sheer number of people who had already made up their minds.

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S05, Ep4: Legal strategy Jul 17, 2025

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Both the prosecution and the defense have enormous challenges facing them as the trial begins. For the prosecutors, it's a question of motive. For the defense, it's the defendant himself.

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S05, Ep1: The McIver Murder Case Jul 17, 2025

Show notes

Insisting it was an accident, Claud "Tex" McIVer will soon stand trial for the murder of his wife, Diane. Although Diane told ER surgeons it was an accident just before she died, the state has indicted Tex with malice murder. The year since Diane died has seen some extraordinary and often bizarre turns. This first episode of the new season of Breakdown will set the stage for the upcoming trial.

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S06_Ep5: The Verdict Jul 17, 2025

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The jury in the double-murder case of Nicholas Benton could not hang the verdict on any single piece of evidence or testimony. That is, nothing that came up in court was so compelling that it enabled the jury to declare "guilty" or "not guilty." But what about something that came up outside of court? AJC Editor Kevin Riley wraps up his insider's account of being foreman on the jury in a murder trial.

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S06_Ep4: Deliberation Jul 17, 2025

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The jury elects a foreman and begins its deliberations. The cellphone evidence is strong, but jurors are concerned about the lack of physical evidence: no murder weapon, no getaway car, no fingerprints, no DNA. And the state's star witness may or may not be believable.

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S06_Ep3: A trial by jury Jul 17, 2025

Show notes

Nicholas Benton's murder trial gets underway. The state puts on a formidable case -- albeit with some big holes in it -- and then rests. Here comes the defense, and the jury can't wait to hear what Nick Benton will say when he gets to the stand. Meanwhile, if you'd like to talk with us about this case, join the AJC Breakdown Facebook group.

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S06_Ep2: Voice of a Killer? Jul 17, 2025

Show notes

First contact: An Atlanta homicide investigator goes to the home of the man who has emerged as his suspect. The man lives with his mother, and the detective winds up interviewing both. A year later, AJC Editor-in-Chief Kevin Riley gets his first indication that he will become deeply engaged in the outcome of this double homicide investigation.

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S07, Ep9: The verdict Jul 17, 2025

Show notes

Chip Olsen's fate is now in the hands of the jury. Will the ex-cop end up behind bars? We take you through the murder trial's dramatic conclusion and its aftermath.

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S06, Ep1: A Jury of His Peers Jul 17, 2025

Show notes

Kevin Riley, editor-in-chief of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, goes deep inside a double-murder in Atlanta. With extraordinary access to key players in the case, Riley and longtime Breakdown host Bill Rankin explore the sudden and vicious killings of Reggie Coicou and Quincy "Fat" Wytche.

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