Podcast · 173 episodes
Criminal
by Vox Media Podcast Network · English
Criminal is the first of its kind. A show about people who’ve done wrong, been wronged, or gotten caught somewhere in the middle. Hosted by Phoebe Judge. Named a Best Podcast of 2023 by the New York Times. Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.
Latest episodes
Not Criminally ResponsibleThe “not criminally responsible” case of Brian Bechtold, who confessed to killing his parents in 1992, was found not criminally responsible due to paranoid schizophrenia, and spent decades in…25 Sep 2026 · 44 min
Family Secrets, Part 2“Family Secrets, Part 2” covers the 1984 double homicide of Dolores Lynch (68) and her daughter Janie Lynch (39) near Louisville, Kentucky, and the later 1985 Winston-Salem/North Carolina killings of…18 Sep 2026 · 41 min
Family Secrets, Part 1The episode “Family Secrets, Part 1” (Criminal) explores Dr. Fred Klenner’s controversial vitamin C “cures” and how his son Fritz Klenner allegedly used elaborate lies and weapons to manipulate Ian…11 Sep 2026 · 31 min
All episodes
Not Criminally ResponsibleThe “not criminally responsible” case of Brian Bechtold, who confessed to killing his parents in 1992, was found not criminally responsible due to paranoid schizophrenia, and spent decades in…25 Sep 2026 · 44 min · 22 chapters
Family Secrets, Part 2“Family Secrets, Part 2” covers the 1984 double homicide of Dolores Lynch (68) and her daughter Janie Lynch (39) near Louisville, Kentucky, and the later 1985 Winston-Salem/North Carolina killings of…18 Sep 2026 · 41 min · 15 chapters
Family Secrets, Part 1The episode “Family Secrets, Part 1” (Criminal) explores Dr. Fred Klenner’s controversial vitamin C “cures” and how his son Fritz Klenner allegedly used elaborate lies and weapons to manipulate Ian…11 Sep 2026 · 31 min · 9 chapters
The InformantThe “informant” Paul Skalnik, a jailhouse snitch whose uncorroborated testimony helped convict people—including a man later sentenced to death—in Pinellas County, Florida, and Houston, Texas.4 Sep 2026 · 1 h 4 min · 25 chapters
Out of the BoxReg Spears’ 1964 escape-from-poverty plan to get from London to Perth by hiding inside a custom-made crate labeled “cash on delivery,” inspired by other “mailed humans” stunts.21 Aug 2026 · 43 min · 16 chapters
A Bump in the Night and Unexpected GuestsThis episode is a compilation of four “mysterious presence” stories, framed around listening to instincts and how strangers can exploit trust or access.14 Aug 2026 · 53 min · 20 chapters
The Premonitions BureauThe “Premonitions Bureau” project, sparked by the Aberfan coal-tip disaster (Oct 21, 1966), and the idea that fear/visions might sometimes predict catastrophes—plus later “hits” like a Cyprus plane…31 Jul 2026 · 49 min · 25 chapters
The Comfort KitA hospice caregiver fights over a “comfort kit” (morphine/benzodiazepine) for her dying mother, then faces murder-related charges after the mother’s death; charges later dropped and the episode ends…24 Jul 2026 · 40 min · 17 chapters
125 AcresThe 1897 attack on freedman George Denning at his 125-acre Kentucky farm, his murder trial after a white man (Jody Kahn) was killed, and Denning’s later civil lawsuit that helped set a precedent for…17 Jul 2026 · 36 min · 17 chapters
That’s Not MeEpisode “That’s Not Me” argues that facial recognition and AI-driven policing can produce wrongful arrests through mistaken identity, overreliance on machine results, and poor investigation.10 Jul 2026 · 38 min · 11 chapters
What Nobody Tells You About the Morgue (with Patricia Cornwell)Patricia Cornwell discusses what the morgue/medical examiner work is really like, how she researched it, and how it shaped her crime writing—especially her forensic pathologist character Kay…30 Jun 2026 · 28 min · 11 chapters
All the Time in the WorldA visit to Texas State University’s Forensic Anthropology Center (“body farm”) on Freeman Ranch, explaining how donated human bodies are intentionally decomposed to build a “death database” for…26 Jun 2026 · 31 min · 17 chapters
The CallerEpisode “The Caller” centers on a Missouri case and the controversial practice of “911 call analysis” (the FBI’s “9-1-1 homicide calls and statement analysis” / “COP scale”) used to infer guilt from…19 Jun 2026 · 43 min · 27 chapters
RiverwalkEpisode “Riverwalk” follows the 2019 disappearance and death of 19-year-old Zach Brettler in London, found dead in the Thames near the Riverwalk complex.12 Jun 2026 · 48 min · 17 chapters
A Man to Be Afraid OfThe life and alleged crimes of Tennessee sheriff Buford Pusser, the 1967 ambush that killed his wife Pauline, and how later investigations and a 2025 TBI autopsy contradict Pusser’s account,…5 Jun 2026 · 45 min · 15 chapters
Breaking Up is Hard to Do (Criminal+)The hosts pivot from Criminal to Criminal Plus’ new video-interview format, then riff on true-crime headlines and everyday “life projects” (makeup, grip strength, pets, therapy breakups, and…29 May 2026 · 46 min · 29 chapters
Mantrap“Mantrap” explores civil and criminal liability for booby traps set to protect property, focusing on the legal principle that deadly force generally can’t be used to defend property alone.22 May 2026 · 39 min · 15 chapters
The MountainThe January 18, 2025 Grossglockner climb that ended in Kirsten Gertner’s death, and the Austrian criminal case charging her partner, Thomas Plamberger, with grossly negligent homicide.15 May 2026 · 32 min · 14 chapters
The Poison Squad19th–early 20th century American food fraud and the push for federal food safety laws, culminating in Harvey Washington Wiley’s “Poison Squad” human trials and the 1906 Meat Inspection Act and Pure…8 May 2026 · 43 min · 15 chapters
PoisonedThe 1993 Jack in the Box E. coli outbreak in the Seattle area, including children’s deaths and long-term changes to U.S. food-safety rules.1 May 2026 · 39 min · 16 chapters
The NumbersThe Detroit “numbers” (an underground lottery) run by Bridgette Davis’s mother, Fannie Davis—how it worked, why it existed, and how it eventually declined as Michigan legalized and televised…24 Apr 2026 · 51 min · 23 chapters
UnwarrantedThe “Mapp v. Ohio” story behind the Supreme Court’s exclusionary rule—how police searched Dollry (Dahlry) Mapp’s home without a valid warrant, seized alleged obscene books, and how that led to the…17 Apr 2026 · 39 min · 11 chapters
Rhinelander v. RhinelanderThe 1924–1925 Rhinelander annulment trial, sparked by newspaper coverage of Leonard Rhinelander (wealthy “blue blood”) marrying Alice Jones, a working-class English-descended woman with dark skin;…10 Apr 2026 · 41 min · 11 chapters
The LonglineIn Jupiter, Florida, shark-diving guides John Moore and Tanner Mansell find a suspected illegal longline fishing setup entangled with live sharks; they cut 19 sharks free, later learn the line had a…3 Apr 2026 · 37 min · 13 chapters