Once Upon A Crime

Latest Episodes:

Murdered Musicians: The Mysterious Death of Al Jackson Jr. Oct 14, 2024

Show notes

In 1975, a renowned drummer who played with some of the most prominent artists of the 1960s and ‘70s was found shot and killed after an apparent botched robbery.

But some suspected Al Jackson, Jr. had been set up for murder. Was his soon-to-be ex-wife involved in his slaying? Was a friend’s relationship with a wanted fugitive to blame? Or was he privy to sensitive music business information that made him a target?

Resources:

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/nov/25/al-jackson-jr-memphis-sunset-the-mysterious-death-of-stax-heartbeat

http://staxrecords.free.fr/aljacksonpage.htm

https://torontosun.com/news/world/hunter-murder-music-and-the-memphis-sound-of-stax-volt

http://vancouverdrummer.blogspot.com/2017/09/al-jackson.html

Links:

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Our website: www.truecrimepodcast.com

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Murdered Musicians: Zapped - The Life and Death of Funk Musician Roger Oct 07, 2024

Show notes

In this episode, a young Ohio man begins playing music before he is barely out of diapers. He and his brothers would form a band and shoot to the top of the charts. They were hometown heroes and certified music stars, but a baffling turn of events would end in a double tragedy.

This is chapter one in the Rocktober series, “Murdered Musicians” - Zapped - The Life and Death of Funk Musician Roger.

Resources:

https://www.dayton.com/news/local/icon-lost-one-dayton-most-gut-wrenching-murders-years-ago/g0LamsZlgO9s7NvR6Ar6cM/

https://www.daytondailynews.com/what-to-know/troutman-brothers-shot-dead-recording-artist-believed-victim-in-murder-suicide/HDHRGKMFV5BP5DQVK53FIE7DX4/

https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/zapp-brothers-found-dead-90905/

https://www.daytondailynews.com/news/local/photos-roger-troutman-and-the-legendary-zapp-band-through-the-years/s5jkHsjNadR3ym8L3YLK9H/

https://vimeopro.com/user15889254/unsung/video/301288752

https://www.grunge.com/931330/the-tragic-1999-murder-of-funk-legend-roger-troutman-explained/

https://ohtravel88.wordpress.com/2020/06/14/the-tragic-stories-of-roger-larry-troutman-and-ray-combs/

Links:

Patreon - www.patreon.com/onceuponacrime

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The Politics of Murder - The Attack on Paul Pelosi Sep 23, 2024

Show notes

A formerly peace-loving man becomes obsessed with extreme political conspiracy theories. David DePape falls down a rabbit hole, consuming ever-more radical views on YouTube, blogs, and social media posts.

A perfect storm of factors will cause him to carry out a baffling and horrific attack after breaking into the home of the Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Resources:

“Paul Pelosi attack: From nudist activism to online hate, suspect David DePape’s strange descent,” Rachel Swan, Dustin Gardiner, and Sarah Ravani, The San Francisco Chronicle, November 16, 2023.

“Where is Nancy?: Here’s what happened, minute by minute, inside the Pelosi home,” Megan Cassidy, The San Francisco Chronicle, November 3, 2022.

“David DePape Sentenced after Conviction on Assault and Attempted Kidnapping Charges,” Press Release, Office of the Attorney General, May 17, 2024.

“Gypsy Taub Speaks Out About Ex-Boyfriend David DePape,” Jay Barmann, SFist.com, October 31, 2022.

“Ex-wife of man who attacked Paul Pelosi is barred from court,” Brian Krans, KQED, June 18, 2024.

Links:

Patreon - www.patreon.com/onceuponacrime

Dani After Dark - Watch my interview on “Dani After Dark” on YouTube - https://youtu.be/_krzF5A1t7I?si=1dY4TgRrQA3DtrLC

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The Politics of Murder: Panic at the Ballpark - The Congressional Baseball Game Shooting Sep 16, 2024

Show notes

In this month’s series, “The Politics of Murder,” we’ll take a look at cases where violent acts are perpetrated upon political figures. In this episode, a disgruntled man whose life is unraveling due to his own actions places the blame on the policies of one political party. His random act of violence will turn a pleasant day at a ballpark into ten minutes of horror and chaos.

Sources:

https://www.secretservice.gov/sites/default/files/reports/2020-06/Hodgkinson.pdf

https://www.washingtonian.com/2018/05/28/terrifying-story-of-the-congressional-baseball-shooting-steve-scalise/

https://www.politico.com/news/2021/04/21/2017-baseball-field-shooting-fbi-conculsion-483993

Links:

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The Politics of Murder - The Shooting of Gabby Giffords Sep 09, 2024

Show notes

In this month’s series, “The Politics of Murder,” we’ll take a look at cases where violent acts are perpetrated upon political figures. First up, a young man begins to lose his grip on reality and fixates on a congressperson whom he targets for assassination. Jared Lee Loughner’s mass shooting at a community political event will spark debate regarding violent political rhetoric, gun control laws, and the state of mental health care in the U.S.

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_Tucson_shooting

http://edition.cnn.com/2011/CRIME/01/08/arizona.shooting.suspect/

http://www.cnn.com/2011/CRIME/01/09/arizona.shooting.investigation/index.html

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/03/27/gabby-giffords-shooting-records/2024589/

http://www.cnn.com/2011/CRIME/01/15/arizona.shooting.images/index.html

https://edition.cnn.com/2012/11/08/justice/arizona-loughner-sentencing/index.html

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/03/27/gabby-giffords-shooting-records/2024589/

https://www.cnn.com/2012/08/07/us/arizona-loughner-plea/index.html

https://theweek.com/articles/488172/arizona-massacre-should-sarah-palin-share-blame

Links:

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Buried Family Secrets: Dark Tide: Growing Up with Ted Bundy Aug 26, 2024

Show notes

Before Ted Bundy became a collective symbol of a real-life boogeyman and the person who helped coin the term “serial killer,” he was a son, a brother, a grandson, and a cousin - someone with friends and family members who loved him and never could have suspected the evil that lay within him and would come to destroy so many lives.

In this episode, I have the pleasure of speaking with one of those family members - someone who grew up with Ted Bundy and with whom he shared a close relationship.

Edna Cowell Martin knew Bundy as “cousin Ted.” Having to face the horror of what her cousin had done and the chaos of the media circus surrounding his arrest, trial, and execution, Edna and her family chose to remain anonymous…until now.

Edna’s new memoir, “Dark Tide: Growing Up with Ted Bundy,” reveals new details of his life, personality, and family relationships through his cousin Edna’s memories, photographs, and letters from Bundy himself. We learn what it was like for his family members to grapple with the realization that a person they loved and thought they knew well was one of the most infamous serial killers in U.S. history.

***

You can purchase the book “Dark Tide: Growing Up with Ted Bundy” at the link below or ask for it at your favorite independent bookstore.

https://amzn.to/3SQ3MNR

One listener will win a copy of the book. To enter, go to our Instagram page, look for the “Dark Tide” post, and follow the instructions to have a chance to win. Good luck! https://www.instagram.com/OnceUponaCrimePod/

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Buried Family Secrets - My Grandfather the Serial Killer - Jim Mordecai Aug 19, 2024

Show notes

A young woman grows up hearing stories about her abusive grandfather. She takes it upon herself to learn the whole truth about him. In the course of her investigation, shocking revelations come to light, and she begins to ask the question - was Jim Mordecai a serial killer?

Sources:

The Truth About Jim, 2024, Skye Borgman, director. Distributed by HBO Max.

https://www.foxnews.com/us/california-woman-suspects-relative-was-serial-killer-uncovering-family-secrets

https://www.the-sun.com/news/10391888/truth-about-jim-mordecai-hbo-sierra-barter/

https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-reviews/the-truth-about-jim-docuseries-1234968110/

https://www.businessinsider.com/jim-mordecai-zodiac-killer-the-truth-about-jim-sierra-barter-2024-2

https://www.theeducationisthub.com/jim-mordecai/

Links.

Once Upon a Crime on YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@OnceUponACrimePodcast

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Buried Family Secrets - My Mother the Murderer - Judy Gough Aug 12, 2024

Show notes

In this month’s series, “Buried Family Secrets,” I’ll share stories about family secrets that hid decades-old murders and may have prevented the killers from facing justice. Fortunately, in each case, one family member dared to share the truth so justice could be served.

In this first episode, when Lloyd Ford disappears in 1980, his wife claims he’s run off with another woman. But her 12-year-old knows the truth and will be forced to keep her mother’s deadly secret for over two decades.

Sources:

The Devil You Know, Season 3, Episode 5. (2012) Director: Mary Bissell

https://www.idahopress.com/news/gough-admits-to-1980-murder/article_cf5cb179-e997-57c2-bd80-08239f2f9b3e.html

https://thecinemaholic.com/judy-gough-where-is-lloyd-fords-wife-now/

Links:

Once Upon a Crime on YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@OnceUponACrimePodcast

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Bonus Episode: The Murder of Lita McClinton - A Conversation with Author Deb Miller Landau Aug 09, 2024

Show notes

A Devil Went Down to Georgia: Race, Power, Privilege, and the Murder of Lita McClinton, written by Deb Miller Landau, is the story of the murder-for-hire of Lita McClinton Sullivan in 1987.

Lita was a beautiful, accomplished woman from a respected Atlanta family. Her interracial marriage to millionaire Jim Sullivan in 1970s Georgia was noteworthy in itself. Their differences fueled their deep attraction for each other in the beginning—she was a college-educated, Black debutante from the South. He was a white entrepreneur from working-class Boston, ten years her senior.

They fell in love and soon married. But, before long, Lita found herself trapped in a marriage with a controlling man who treated her as a possession. When Lita filed for divorce from Jim Sullivan a decade later, it set off a series of events that ended in her violent death and subjected her family to a decades-long search for justice.

I spoke with Deb Miller Landau about this decades-old murder case detailed in her book, available now in your favorite bookstore or online retailer.

Links:

The author’s website - www.debword.com and Instagram https://www.instagram.com/dml_author/

A Devil Went Down to Georgia: Race, Power, Privilege and the Murder of Lita McClinton, Deb Miller Landau, Pegasus Books, 2024. ISBN 9781639366835

To purchase the book on Amazon - https://amzn.to/4dk0zOD

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Resorting to Murder - The Murder of Sara Kuszak Jul 29, 2024

Show notes

In this week’s episode, a young woman, newly engaged and expecting a baby, goes for a morning run in the serene beachfront town of Ceiba, Puerto Rico, and finds herself trapped in a nightmare. Still finding the inner courage to keep her wits about her, the terrified woman’s actions would help solve her own murder.

Sources:

“Kidnap Victim Called Fiancee Before Slaying,” SFGate.com, Feb 7, 2009.

https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Kidnap-victim-called-fiance-before-slaying-3173177.php

“Murder in Puerto Rico,” Latitude38.com, Feb 6, 2009.

https://www.latitude38.com/lectronic/murder-in-puerto-rico/

“Puerto Rican Indicted in Pregnant Woman’s Slaying,” SavannahNow.com, Feb 5, 2009.

https://www.savannahnow.com/story/news/2009/02/06/puerto-rican-indicted-pregnant-womans-slaying/13603126007/

“Puerto Rican Man Gets 105 Years in Killing of Pregnant San Jose Native,” Associated Press, June 1, 2009.

https://coastalcourier.com/news/state-national/puerto-rican-gets-105-years-for-killing-savannah-woman/

Links:

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