Criminal Records Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Lynching in America Aug 27, 2020

Show notes

This week, we're joined by Nikki Brueggeman for a discussion of two horrific hate crimes in early 20th century America. As we discuss the deaths of Mary Turner and Jesse Washington, we look at the way the NAACP worked to publicize the horrific injustice of lynchings, the reason we tell these stories with a focus on the victims first, and the way modern oral historians like Nikki are continuing the work of documenting Black stories.

Content note: This episode contains descriptions of two hate crimes against Black Americans. We talk about the intense violence perpetuated against them, including racist violence, mutilation, torture, murder, and the killing of an infant. Some of the sources linked in our show notes contain graphic images of a mutilated corpse.

Show notes, sources, and information about where to find Nikki's work

The Aqua Tofana Poisonings Aug 13, 2020

Show notes

This Italian family's secret recipe requires a special ingredient: a fatal dose of arsenic. Join us for a story of murder most foul, corrupt priests, saleswomen with pockets full of poison, secret cabal of witches moving through European courts, a ceiling alligator, and Santa Claus's special bone juice.

Show notes and sources at this link

Phryne Jul 30, 2020

Show notes

Did an ancient Greek party girl get off on a capital charge because she flashed the judge? Or was this story just an excuse for artists to get away with painting bare breasts? This week, we dig into trial records, archeological evidence, and ancient gossip to try to get a sense of the woman behind the legend.

Content note: This episode is about a historical figure who may or may not have been a sex worker. Some of the sources we quote from translate her profession as "prostitute"–academic translations tend to lag a bit behind commonly accepted language.

Show notes and sources at this link (HEADS UP, the images in this are not safe for work)

Doc Baggs Jul 16, 2020

Show notes

We're heading back to the wild west to meet one of America's smoothest criminals. Let Charles "Doc" Baggs teach you the art of stealing from the rich, giving great speeches, and staying one step ahead of the law. What do we learn when we listen to a criminal telling his side of the story reporters? Who shaped our understanding of the moral landscape of the American west? How cool is this dude, seriously?

Show notes and sources at this link

Rosa Parks Jul 02, 2020

Show notes

You've heard of Rosa Parks—but do you actually know the full story? This week, we dig into the brutal history of segregation in the United States, the difficult work of activism, and the way black civil rights leaders' stories are often taught as part of a whitewashed narrative that minimizes their agency and fails to engage with their actual political views.

CONTENT NOTE: A lot of the advocacy work that Rosa Parks and other activists we discuss in this episode took on involves attempting to get justice for acts of extreme violence, including sexual violence, against black Americans. We don't go into any graphic details but even a dry recounting of the facts may be disturbing.

Show notes and sources at this link

Feel like donating to a good cause after listening to this episode? Here are some charities we recommend:

The Stonewall Riots Jun 18, 2020

Show notes

It's Pride month, and you know what that means: It's time for a deep dive into the structural oppression of queer people in America, the exploitative underbelly of New York's mob-owned gay bars, and the night those tensions boiled over in 1969. What exactly was banned by sodomy laws and other laws used to target queer New Yorkers? Why was the mafia paying the police to keep gay bars open? And what was the movement that came out of Stonewall fighting for on the streets and in the courts?

Show notes, sources, and places to donate at the link (Heads up: Might be NSFW depending on how your work feels about cartoon penis costumes)

Feel like donating to a good cause? Might we suggest these charities:

William Calley (The My Lai Massacre) Jun 04, 2020

Show notes

This week, we cover one of the most shameful war crimes in American history--and the shockingly light sentence of the only man successfully convicted for it. What happens when business tactics are applied to warfare? Why did it take so long for William Calley's crimes to come to light? And why did so many Americans, including the president, believe he was justified in murdering hundreds of civilians?

Content notes: This episode is about a war crime trial involving firing on unarmed civilians, mass murder including the murder of children, and sexual assault. We don't go into gory details, but even a dry recounting of the facts may be distressing.

Show notes, sources, and information about places to donate to bail funds at this link (note: While we've decided not to post photos of the victims during and after the massacre on this page, there are some photographs of soldiers burning houses that may be disturbing)

The Murder of Magistrate Li Yuchang May 21, 2020

Show notes

This week, we bring you a story about a suspicious suicide, a vengeful spirit, and the wrath of the emperor. Why was a ghostly accountant out for revenge? How good was the Qing dynasty CSI team? And how did one of the most regimented legal systems in history end up with such a weird, orientalist misrepresentation in the English-speaking world?

Show notes and sources at this link

Midhat Pasha May 07, 2020

Show notes

In our first court case from the Islamic world, we meet one of history's greatest bureaucrats. Midhat Pasha was fantastic at taking control of troubled territories and coming up with grand new legal ideas, but he wasn't so great at playing politics. Meet the scholar who rose to be the Grand Vizier of an empire before he became the defendant in an unwinnable show trial.

Show notes and sources at this link

Mary Carleton Apr 23, 2020

Show notes

Meet the woman who claimed to be a German princess, scammed a handful of husbands, palled around with pirates, and played her scandalous self on the stage. Why were so many English men so easy to dupe when a stranger showed up claiming noble heritage? How did a con artist become a celebrity? How much do we really know about Mary as a person, and how much did this self-made woman construct herself as a character?

Show notes and sources at this link