Criminal

Latest Episodes:

The Clearwater Monster Jul 04, 2025

Show notes

Early one morning in 1948, a phone call woke up the police chief in the small town of Clearwater, Florida. The caller said he’d seen something strange at the beach. Residents had found an odd set of footprints in the sand, and a rumor began circulating that Clearwater Beach had a sea monster.

Listen to other episodes of This is Love at https://thisislovepodcast.com/.

This episode was first released in 2020.

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Artwork by Julienne Alexander. Check out our online shop.

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Uncle Harold Jun 27, 2025

Show notes

In 1997, Eric Konigsberg received a strange voicemail from someone in prison — a hit man who had confessed to at least ten murders. Eric and the man had never spoken before, but Eric had a hunch about who it was: his uncle.

Eric Konigsberg’s book is Blood Relation.

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By Any Means Necessary Jun 20, 2025

Show notes

In July 2010, a woman was on vacation with her boyfriend of six years — they were traveling around Italy in a van. One day, she was looking for a pair of sunglasses in the glove box, and she found a passport. It had her boyfriend’s photo — but a different name.

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The Guru Jun 13, 2025

Show notes

In the late 1960s, a yogi named Swami Rama came to the United States. His followers believed he could read their minds, visit them in their dreams, and manipulate reality. Shruti Swamy was one of them.

Shruti Swamy wrote a version of this story for the June 12th issue of The Believer. You can find it at https://www.thebeliever.net/.

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Professor Quaalude Jun 06, 2025

Show notes

John Buettner-Janusch was one of the first Americans to study lemurs. He held prestigious faculty positions at Yale, Duke and NYU, before surprising everyone with a series of increasingly bizarre crimes.

Phoebe and Lauren got to visit the Duke Lemur Center in person – hear all about it in our latest episode of Criminal Plus. Use the promo code “JOINUS” for 20% off an annual membership. You’ll get behind-the-scenes bonus episodes of Criminal, ad-free listening of all of our shows, special merch deals, and more.

Peter Kobel’s book is The Strange Case of the Mad Professor.

This episode was first released in 2019.

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Thin Ice and Unusual Punishments May 30, 2025

Show notes

Two years ago, we started making Criminal Plus episodes — behind-the-scenes conversations featuring Phoebe and Criminal co-creator Lauren Spohrer. Today, we’re sharing some of those conversations with you — about everything from Phoebe’s jangly bracelets to the reason a judge ordered a man to watch Bambi. And we’re also sharing a promo code if you’d like to support our work and join our membership program. Use the code “JOINUS” for 20% off of an annual Criminal Plus membership, at thisiscriminal.com/plus.

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Action Park May 23, 2025

Show notes

“Anyone who went to Action Park understood you could get really messed up going there. It was part of why you wanted to go.”

Seth Porges made a documentary about Action Park, along with Chris Charles Scott. It’s called Class Action Park.

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Artwork by Julienne Alexander. Check out our online shop.

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No Hint or Help May 16, 2025

Show notes

In the 1950s, a new television quiz show premiered called Twenty One. But the first episode was a disaster — so the producers decided to try something.

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Artwork by Julienne Alexander. Check out our online shop.

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False Positive May 09, 2025

Show notes

The night before she gave birth, Susan Horton had a salad for dinner. The next day, doctors told her she’d tested positive for opiates - and reported her to child welfare authorities.

This episode is from our friends at the Reveal podcast. Listen to a longer version here.

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Artwork by Julienne Alexander. Check out our online shop.

Episode transcripts are posted on our website.

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Tabatha May 02, 2025

Show notes

When Tabatha Trammell was 50 years old, she started studying to become a doula — a support person for pregnant women. Today, most of her clients are incarcerated. She says she always tells them her own story when she meets them: “I went down that same road. But I'm here today. And I'm going to tell you how to navigate this prison system.”

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Sign up for Criminal Plus to get behind-the-scenes bonus episodes of Criminal, ad-free listening of all of our shows, special merch deals, and more.

We also make This is Love and Phoebe Reads a Mystery.

Artwork by Julienne Alexander. Check out our online shop.

Episode transcripts are posted on our website.

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