American Criminal
Episodes
The Great McDonald's Monopoly Heist | The Two Jerrys | 2
11 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
After finding a way to steal the highest value prize tokens for the McDonald's Monopoly games, Jerry Jacobson had a problem: he needed people who coul...
The Great McDonald's Monopoly Heist | A Man on the Inside | 1
04 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In 1987, McDonald's joined forces with another American icon for a marketing scheme. The McDonald's Monopoly promotion was so popular that the company...
Case File | American Scandal | The Ice Pick Surgeon
27 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Medical professionals are some of the most trusted people in our society. And for good reason. They dedicate their lives to helping others. Every now ...
American Criminal Season 20: The Great McDonald's Monopoly Heist
20 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In the late-1980s, McDonald’s teamed up with another icon of American capitalism: the game of Monopoly. Together, the two brands launched one of the...
Killer Nurse: Genene Jones | Do No Harm | 4
20 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
After being chased from Bexar County Hospital, killer nurse Genene Jones heads to Kerrville to work in a new pediatric clinic. And despite how close s...
Killer Nurse: Genene Jones | Angel of Death | 3
13 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
At Bexar County Hospital, Genene Jones' colleagues started to notice that a worrying number of children were dying while she looked after them. It got...
Killer Nurse: Genene Jones | The Nurse Who Cried Wolf | 2
06 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
After a lifetime of making up dramatic stories about herself to get the attention she loved, Genene Jones found a career where she could surround hers...
Killer Nurse: Genene Jones | A Calling | 1
30 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Genene Jones grew up in a loving family, but always felt overlooked by everyone around her. Then, when her brother died in a horrific accident, she fo...
Halloween Horrors | Crime and Coffee Couple: The Liske Griffin Halloween Murders
23 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Love a cozy yet dark vibe? Join Allison and Mike, a witty, married duo with over 20 years of banter under their belts, for Crime and Coffee Couple—y...
Halloween Horrors | The Real Amityville Horror | 3
16 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In November, 1974, six members of the DeFeo family were found murdered in their beds in Amityville, New York. The truth behind the shocking crime rock...
Halloween Horrors | The Candyman Killer | 2
09 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In 1974, one shocking crime changed the way Americans think about trick or treating forever when Ronal O'Bryan's son Timothy died after eating poisone...
Halloween Horrors | The Trick or Treat Murder | 1
02 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
On Halloween night, 1957, Peter Fabiano is gunned down by one final trick-or-treater. Or so it seems. To listen to all three episodes of 'Halloween...
Rope, Hitchcock, and Murder on Screen
25 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Jeremy sits down to chat with Christie Vela and Michael Federico from "Terror and Tacos" to talk about Alfred Hitchcock's 1948 thriller, "Rope." The f...
Leopold and Loeb | Cry for Blood | 4
18 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Following their brutal murder of Bobby Franks, Leopold and Loeb were facing imminent arrest, and when investigators put the screws to them, the teenag...
American Criminal Season 18: Halloween Horrors
18 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This Halloween, American Criminal is bringing you three tales of real crimes with a spooky twist. A masked trick or treat slayer, a real-life killer ...
Leopold and Loeb | This Cruel and Vicious Murder | 3
11 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In May, 1924, Leopold and Loeb set out to commit their carefully planned "perfect crime." First they had to choose a victim, then kidnap and kill him,...
Leopold and Loeb | Nothing but the Night | 2
04 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Once they're reunited in Michigan, Leopold and Loeb carried on their downward spiral into criminality. Their schemes got progressively more daring unt...
A Conversation with Jeremy Schwartz
29 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
A frank conversation with our host Jeremy Schwartz about his favorite cases we've covered, his career as an actor on and off the stage, and what he's ...
Leopold and Loeb | The Prodigies | 1
28 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Growing up in Chicago, Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb both seemed destined for greatness. They each performed well in school, and advanced to univers...
Kill Your Darlings
27 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this special bonus episode, we're bringing you pieces of our favorite stories that didn't make it to the final episodes. Thank you for being a li...
Clarence Darrow: Lawyer of the Century
26 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Ahead of our next series on Leopold and Loeb, Lindsay Graham (American Scandal, American History Tellers, & History Daily) joins the show to talk abou...
A Menendez Brothers Parole Update
25 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
There have been a lot of developments in the Menendez case since our last update. Recently, Lyle and Erik Menendez appeared before the parole board fo...
American Criminal Season 17: Leopold and Loeb
23 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This season on American Criminal we’re taking you inside the minds of the killers who committed one of the most infamous crimes of the 20th century:...
Lucas, Toole, and the Murder of Adam Walsh | Bring Out Your Dead | 4
21 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
With their confessions piling up, Henry Lee Lucas and Ottis Toole earn infamy as two of history’s most prolific serial killers. But while not everyt...
Lucas, Toole, and the Murder of Adam Walsh | Death and Texas | 3
14 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
After abandoning Ottis Toole once again, Henry Lee Lucas finds himself in Texas. There he commits a pair of horrifying murders that will open a Pandor...
Lucas, Toole, and the Murder of Adam Walsh | The Head in the Canal | 2
07 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
When Ottis Toole meets Henry Lee Lucas outside of a homeless shelter in Florida, he’s overjoyed to have found a soulmate. But when one friend abando...
Lucas, Toole, and the Murder of Adam Walsh | Fledgling Criminals | 1
31 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Henry Lee Lucas and Ottis Toole are two of history’s most prolific serial killers. Or they’re liars who aren’t to be trusted. Either way, they’...
Case File | The Cult Next Door
24 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Mattie Lasiter and Ashleigh Teeter's father led a doomsday cult in Arkansas. Now they're sharing their stories and educating others about how to recog...
American Criminal Season 16: Lucas, Toole, and the Murder of Adam Walsh
17 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
On July 27, 1981, six-year-old Adam Walsh was kidnapped from a Sears parking lot in Florida. Just days later his remains were found in a drainage cana...
NXIVM | The Mighty Fall | 4
17 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
When Keith Raniere felt the women in his cult slipping out of his control, he came up with a way to keep them under his thumb. The secret group known ...
NXIVM | Sex, Lies, and Billionaires | 3
10 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
As Keith Raniere's company hits its stride, he lures billionaire heiresses and hollywood actresses into the fold. But not everyone is content to stay ...
NXIVM | Laying the Foundation | 2
03 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
By the turn of the century, Keith Raniere had launched a new company that would not only bring him vast sums of money, it would also give him access t...
NXIVM | Growing Up with Keith Raniere | 1
26 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In 2017, a little-known consulting firm called NXIVM became the center of an international scandal. One day, no one had heard of the group at all. The...
Case File | God Hook: The Ohio Craigslist Killings
19 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Obviously, most of us don’t use the internet as a search engine for murder. But there are bad apples in every bunch. Richard Beasley was one of tho...
To Kill A Cheerleader | How to Hire a Hitman in Channelview, Texas | 3
12 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
After her daughter Shanna was disqualified from the cheerleading tryouts, Wanda Holloway was seeing red. In her mind, there were two people responsibl...
American Criminal Season 15: NXIVM
12 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In 2017, a little-known consulting firm called NXIVM became the center of an international scandal. One day, no one had heard of the group at all. The...
To Kill A Cheerleader | A Girl's Best Friend is Her Mother | 2
05 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
As Wanda Holloway married, divorced, and remarried, one thing in her life remained constant: her obsession with making her daughter a cheerleader. But...
To Kill A Cheerleader | God, Glory, and Glamor | 1
29 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It was a case that made headlines around the world: Texas mother hires hitman to kill her neighbor -- over cheerleading. But how did it get to that po...
Case File | Eyewitness History: Bill Ayers
22 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It's hard to remember that we're all living through history every day, and that some of the people who lived through the turbulent periods we learn ab...
American Criminal Season 14: To Kill A Cheerleader
15 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In 1991, a small Texas town just outside of Houston was shocked to discover just how far one mother was determined to go to ensure her child’s succe...
The Weather Underground | Extinguished | 4
15 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
With their numbers dwindling, the remaining members of the Weather Underground took stock of what they had left. The Vietnam War was still raging, and...
The Weather Underground | Smolder | 3
08 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In the aftermath of the devastating explosion in New York that killed three of their comrades, the members of the Weather Underground scattered. Sudde...
The Weather Underground | Inferno | 2
01 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In their first major act since forming, the Weathermen gathered in Chicago for several days of planned protests and brawls with the police. The hope i...
Introducing: Unsolved Histories
29 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The Unsolved Histories podcast team was pleased to get a phone call letting them know a U.S. senator not only listened to Season 1, but wanted to addr...
The Weather Underground | Starting the Fire | 1
24 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
On March 6th, 1970, a bomb went off in the basement of a four-story townhouse in Greenwich Village, New York. As the smoke cleared, it became clear th...
American Criminal Season 13: Weather Underground
21 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Coming April 24th, 2025: A group of college students sets out to end the Vietnam War. Along the way, they transform into a cult-like guerrilla operati...
Encore: The Menendez Brothers | They Had It Coming | 4
17 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
After their arrest, Lyle and Erik Menendez face the death penalty. But even as the media examines the case from every angle, it's years before the ful...
Encore: The Menendez Brothers | Acts of Grief | 3
10 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In the quiet moments after killing their parents, Lyle and Erik Menendez expect to be arrested. But when no one suspects they're the killers, the brot...
Encore: The Menendez Brothers | They’re Going To Kill Us | 2
03 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
For years, Lyle and Erik Menendez suffered at the hands of their parents. But when the brothers finally stood up for themselves, the family's toxic dy...
Encore: The Menendez Brothers | Five-Year Plan | 1
27 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
On August 20th, 1989, Lyle and Erik Menendez shot and killed their own parents. Until then, this Beverly Hills family had been a portrait of the Ameri...
An Update on the Menendez Brothers
20 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Since we first aired our series on the Menendez Brothers, there have been a lot of developments with the public's interest in the case and Lyle and Er...
Case File | Forbidden History: KKK: Secret Societies
18 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The Ku Klux Klan is the most notorious white supremacist group in America. Once having over a million members, today it is just a shadow of its former...
The Murder of Medgar Evers | The Truth | 4
13 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Less than a year after Byron De La Beckwith shot Black civil rights leader Medgar Evers in cold blood, he was a free man. But the journey to bring him...
The Murder of Medgar Evers | No Justice, No Peace | 3
06 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
After his arrest for the murder of Medgar Evers, Byron De La Beckwith is surprisingly cocky for a man facing the death penalty. Then again, Mississipp...
The Murder of Medgar Evers | The Fanatic | 2
27 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
With a family legacy built on lies, racism, and a 'Paradise Lost' mentality, Byron De La Beckwith grows into a young man with offputting manners, a br...
The Murder of Medgar Evers | The Crusader | 1
20 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In the 1960s, the US is rocked by a series of high-profile assassinations of civil rights leaders, beginning with the shocking murder of Medgar Evers ...
Case File | The Incorruptibles
13 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In the early part of the 20th century, an off-the-books vice squad known as embarked on a campaign to purge the Lower East Side of crime and sin. This...
John Gotti | The Fall | 4
06 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
As top dog in the Gambino family, John Gotti feels untouchable. He's the Teflon Don. But his arrogant demeanor leads him to make the kinds of shortsig...
John Gotti | The Teflon Don | 3
30 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Fed up with the way the Gambino family is being run, John Gotti's assembled a team of hitmen to carry out one of the most audacious mob hits in histor...
John Gotti | Beaten Down, Moving Up | 2
23 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
John Gotti's rise through the ranks of the Gambino crime family hasn't been without its share of setbacks. But just when things seem to be going well ...
John Gotti | Making a Man | 1
16 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Living in poverty as a young kid, John Gotti takes up mafia work very early on. He knows that the Gambino family is his ticket out, and he's willing t...
Case File | The Road to Jonestown
09 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
At the same time that Harvey Milk was finding his community and learning to lead, a charismatic preacher named Jim Jones was assembling a flock that w...
The Assassination of Harvey Milk | Gunshots at City Hall | 5
02 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In November of 1978, Dan White stirs up drama at City Hall by resigning, then by changing his mind. But his shocking announcements are overshadowed by...
The Assassination of Harvey Milk | The Hero | 4
26 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
While Harvey Milk's campaigning for election yet again, a young firefighter decides to throw his hat in the ring, too. Dan White's decision to enter p...
The Assassination of Harvey Milk | Blood on the Streets | 3
19 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
After his first election defeat, Harvey Milk transforms himself into a real leader for San Francisco's gay community. Unfortunately, his impatience to...
The Assassination of Harvey Milk | Sodom by the Sea | 2
12 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
After almost 40 years adrift, searching for a place, a person, or a community he could call home, Harvey Milk finds himself in San Francisco. But the ...
The Assassination of Harvey Milk | In the Shadows | 1
05 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Growing up as a gay kid in the 1930s and '40s, Harvey Milk's life is full of confusion and fear. But every step he takes in his early life lead him to...
Case File | The Diamond Heist Sweethearts
28 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In the heart of the Flapper Era, Roger Whittemore and his wife Margaret, affectionately known as “The Tiger Girl,” recruited a dream team of harde...
Doris Payne | Out With a Bang | 4
21 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
After pulling off a daring jailbreak from Monaco, Doris Payne finds herself stranded in Paris. With no passport, no money, and just one person she can...
Doris Payne | Love and Death | 3
14 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
By the early 1960s, Doris Payne is flying high thanks to her success as a jewel thief. She's living in Los Angeles, stealing by day and partying at ni...
Doris Payne | Mixing Business with Pleasure | 2
07 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Now that she's decided to become a bona fide jewel thief, Doris Payne dives in headfirst, going for big scores right out of the gate. But getting her ...
Doris Payne | Rise of a Jewel Thief | 1
31 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Growing up in West Virginia, Doris Payne sees the way society treats girls like her, and the way they treat wealthy white women, and she's not okay wi...
Case File | The Menendez Brothers: The Official Companion Podcast
24 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Today, we bring you the first episode from The Menendez Brothers: The Official Podcast. Lyle and Erik Menendez haven't spoken together about their ca...
Sante Kimes | Final Dynasty | 5
17 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
With her husband gone, and his millions vanished, Sante Kimes was determined to get her hands on money in any way she could. Her devious schemes led t...
Sante Kimes | No Witnesses | 4
10 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
After her imprisonment for slavery, Sante Kimes is determined not to go back to jail. And she’s only too happy to get her hands a little bloody to k...
Sante Kimes | Involuntary Servitude | 3
03 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
With her husband’s millions, Sante Kimes could easily afford to hire staff to run her household. But spending money was out of the question if Sante...
Sante Kimes | The Art of Being Rich | 2
26 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
With her first husband in the rearview mirror, Sante Kimes set out to find herself a man who was truly worthy of her. And in Sante’s mind, there was...
Sante Kimes | Fire and Vice | 1
19 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
By the end of her life, Sante Kimes had a reputation as one of the most devious defendants judges on both coasts had ever seen. But before that, she w...
Serial Killers, Serial Liars | The Psychology of False Confessions | 5
12 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Distinguished University Professor Dr. Allison Redlich discusses the science of false confessions, the police techniques that can lead to them, and wh...
Serial Killers, Serial Liars | Bring Out Your Dead | 4
05 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
With their confessions piling up, Henry Lee Lucas and Ottis Toole earn infamy as two of history’s most prolific serial killers. But while not everyt...
Serial Killers, Serial Liars | Death and Texas | 3
29 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
After abandoning Ottis Toole once again, Henry Lee Lucas finds himself in Texas. There he commits a pair of horrifying murders that will open a Pandor...
Serial Killers, Serial Liars | The Murder of Adam Walsh | 2
22 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
When Ottis Toole meets Henry Lee Lucas outside of a homeless shelter in Florida, he’s overjoyed to have found a soulmate. But when one friend abando...
Serial Killers, Serial Liars | Fledgling Criminals | 1
15 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Henry Lee Lucas and Ottis Toole are two of history’s most prolific serial killers. Or they’re liars who aren’t to be trusted. Either way, they’...
Stolen At Birth | Ripples | 5
08 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Adam Pertman, one of the most respected thought leaders in the child welfare world, discusses the history of adoption in America and the legacy of Geo...
Stolen At Birth | The Ties That Bind | 4
01 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In the 1940s, Georgia Tann was raking in hundreds of thousands of dollars by selling stolen children. But by the time the law caught up to her, it was...
Stolen At Birth | Abduction | 3
25 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
By the mid-1930s, Georgia Tann had revolutionized the adoption industry. She’d long been outright stealing babies from their parents, but now she de...
Stolen At Birth | A Baby for Christmas | 2
18 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In 1929, Georgia Tann had a problem: too many children in her care and not enough people wanting to adopt. So, she came up with a solution: a baby giv...
Stolen At Birth | Women's Work | 1
11 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
As a child, Georgia Tann grew up believing that money was the true measure of a person's worth. That became a problem when Georgia assumed control of ...
Sam Bankman-Fried | Crypto Criminals | 4
04 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Senior writer for Wired Andy Greenberg talks about the day that FTX collapsed, and the wild world of crypto crime detectives. His book Tracers in the ...
Sam Bankman-Fried | The Collapse | 3
27 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In the summer of 2022, the crypto bubble finally bursts. And for a moment, it seems like Sam Bankman-Fried will be the industry’s savior. Then it tu...
Sam Bankman-Fried | "Don't Miss Out" | 2
20 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
With his crypto investment firm making tens of millions of dollars, Sam Bankman-Fried is a runaway success. But it’s not enough. So in 2019, he laun...
Sam Bankman-Fried | Theoretical Altruism | 1
13 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Growing up, Sam Bankman-Fried is a gifted child. Then, in college, he gets sucked into the world of Effective Altruism, and becomes obsessed with maxi...
The Salt Lake City Bombings | The Criminal Mindset | 5
06 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Author and professor of forensic psychology, Dr Katherine Ramsland, discusses Mark Hofmann and the path from forgery to murder. To listen to all fou...
The Salt Lake City Bombings | The Best There Ever Was | 4
30 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
As the mastermind of the Salt Lake City bombings scrambles to cover their tracks, investigators piece together the clues that will bring this deadly c...
The Salt Lake City Bombings | Seeing God in the Flames | 3
23 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
When rare document dealer Mark Hofmann becomes the third victim of the Salt Lake City bombings, investigators feel certain they understand what's goin...
The Salt Lake City Bombings | The Mormon Indiana Jones | 2
16 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In a suburb south of Salt Lake City, a bomb kills another faithful Mormon. The incident is too similar to the first explosion for them to not be conne...
The Salt Lake City Bombings | Revelations | 1
09 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In October of 1985, a pipe bomb rocks an office building in downtown Salt Lake City, killing one man and sending the city into a state of shock. But t...
Al Capone | The Untouchables | 5
02 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Author and historian A. Brad Schwartz discusses how policing evolved to catch up to Al Capone, and what role Eliot Ness played in Capone’s story. ...
Al Capone | Death and Taxes | 4
25 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
As local investigators try to pin the Valentine's Day massacre on Al Capone, federal agents begin looking for the evidence that will finally get the k...
Al Capone | Bloody Valentine | 3
18 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
As Chicago's gang violence turns the city's streets red, Al Capone fixates on taking out anyone who threatens his crushing grip on power. To listen ...