Wrongful Conviction
Hosted by criminal justice reform advocate Jason Flom, Pulitzer prize-winning producer Maggie Freleng, and Emmy Award-winning producer Lauren Bright Pacheco, Wrongful Conviction features intimate conversations with men and women who have spent years in prison for crimes they maintain they did not commit. Some have been fully exonerated, while others continue to languish, with some even facing execution on death row. Each episode peels back the layers behind the stories of those caught in a legal system gone wrong, with insights from lawyers and experts. This gripping series reveals the tragedy of injustice and the triumph possible when people step up and demand change.
Episodes
#595 Jason Flom with Kristine Bunch
This week’s episode is an update on the story of Kristine Bunch that was originally recorded in 2020. Kristine spent 17 years in prison after being wrongfully convicted of setting the fire that killed her three-year-old son, Anthony. It was a conviction built on junk fire science and evidence that was later shown to be false and misleading.Since getting out, Kristine has devoted an extraordi
#594 Jason Flom with Greg Bright
This week’s episode is a look back at the story of Greg Bright, as originally told to Lauren Bright Pacheco. Greg spent 27 and a half years in Angola for a murder he didn’t commit. He was a young man when he went in, and nearly 50 when he finally walked free in 2003. But Greg’s story is also a reminder that exoneration doesn’t give you those years back. And right now in Lou
#593 Jason Flom with Jeffrey Deskovic
Jeffrey Deskovic’s first Wrongful Conviction episode was originally published in 2017, and his story is one we’ve returned to many times over the years — not only because of the 16 years he lost in prison for a murder he didn’t commit, but because of what he chose to do with his life after he was finally exonerated.Jeffrey’s story also has an extraordinary connection
Introducing - The Devil's Quarry II: Preview
When teenager Robin Murphy goes missing, her friends and co-workers organize a search. Award-winning investigative journalist and longtime Rolling Stone Magazine contributor Paul Solotaroff hosts the next entry in the acclaimed Bone Valley anthology. To hear this episode in its entirety, search for Bone Valley Season 6 | The Devil's Quarry II wherever you listen to podcasts. New episodes are
#592 Jason Flom with Anthony DiPippo
This special episode was recorded in 2017 with Anthony DiPippo, 6 months after his release from prison.Anthony’s case concerns the murder of Josette Wright, a 12-year-old girl whose body was found in November 1995 in a wooded area of Putnam County, NY with her hands and feet tied behind her back and her underwear shoved down her throat. A few weeks later, detectives from the sheriff’s
Introducing - The Devil's Quarry II
If Season 1 of The Devil’s Quarry was a horror story, Season 2 is a ghost story. More than 30 years after 17-year-old Robin Murphy vanished from Carmel, New York, investigative journalist Paul Solotaroff and reporter Kathleen Horan plunge into the cold case that has haunted the community for decades. Robin was last seen with a convicted violent predator who was never charged in her disappear
#591 Jason Flom with Andrew Krivak
This special edition of Wrongful Conviction Behind Bars was recorded inside of Wende Correctional Facility, a maximum-security prison in Buffalo, NY with Andrew Krivak, and his attorney Professor Adele Bernhard in 2017.Andy’s case concerns the murder of Josette Wright, whose body was found in November 1995 in a wooded area of Putnam County, NY with her hands and feet hog-tied behind her back
#590 Jason Flom with Jens Soering
In 1990, Jens Söering was convicted of murdering his then-girlfriend Elizabeth Haysom’s parents, Derek and Nancy Haysom, in their Bedford County, Virginia home. Jens, who says he falsely confessed to protect Elizabeth, served more than 33 years in prison before being paroled and deported to Germany in 2019. Now, 41 years after the crime, Jens has filed a petition for a writ of actual in
#589 Jason Flom with Tyrone Noling
On April 5th, 1990, Bernhardt and Cora Hartig, both 81, were shot to death in their Atwater, OH home with a .25 caliber gun. Miles away, 18-year-old Tyrone Noling was involved in two non-violent robberies – in one, he stole a .25 caliber gun and in the second, it accidentally discharged, hurting no one. This gun, however, was not the Hartig murder weapon, and despite other, more viable suspe
#588 In Memory of Jason Strong | Jason Flom with Jason Strong
This episode is re-released in loving memory of Jason Strong. Rest in Peace and PowerJason Lee StrongAugust 3, 1975 – August 8, 2026 In December 1999, the body of an unidentified young woman was found beaten to death in a forest preserve near North Chicago in Lake County, IL. Ten days after the body was discovered, Jeremy Tweedy, Jason Johnson and Jason Strong were brought in for questioning
#587 Maggie Freleng with Deborah Nicholls
One evening in March, 2003, a fire broke out in Deborah Nicholls' Colorado Springs, CO home, killing her three children. Her husband suffered significant burns, but escaped. After a 2-year investigation, it was determined that the fire was not accidental, and that Deborah and her husband started it for the insurance money. The trial was a battle of the experts – one presenting the junk scien
#586 Jason Flom with Ronnie Miller
Ronald Miller and Lori Johnson of Rockford, IL had a daughter, G.M., in 2010. In 2015, several days after an argument between Johnson and Miller in which Miller threatened to sue Johnson for full custody, Johnson reported Miller to DCFS. Shortly after, she obtained an order of protection which ended all contact between Miller and his daughter. Johnson claimed G.M. had told her that Miller touched
Introducing - The Burden | Bad Cops
Baltimore, Maryland likes to call itself Charm City. But you have to wonder: Is the nickname ironic? Consider one of the city's star cops, a sergeant so accomplished that he earned his own nickname, the Golden Boy. But Golden Boy led a double life. Said one of those who encountered him in the street. "I was robbed by the Baltimore City Police….with a gun … armed rob
#585 Jason Flom with Keith LaMar
On April 11, 1993, a riot broke out at the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility in Lucasville, OH, primarily due to tensions between the prisoners and the guards. The riot went on for 11 days resulting in 10 deaths and millions of dollars in damages. 23-year-old prisoner Keith LaMar was a witness to the riot, and although there was no physical evidence linking him to any involvement in the riot, th
#584 Jason Flom with Tysheem Crocker
In October 1997, Skip Clark was killed in York, PA. Police officers decided that the death was gang related, and that two gangs were out for each other after having a dispute. Tysheem Crocker was dragged into the conversation. The State argued that he and others plotted to retaliate against their rival gang, and that Skip was caught in the middle. Despite four witnesses testifying that they knew w
#583 Jason Flom with Carl Miller
On October 25, 1979, Rabbi David Okunov was robbed and fatally shot while on his way to temple in Brooklyn, New York. Two eyewitnesses described the perpetrator to authorities, and the police's first primary suspect fingered 19-year-old Carl Miller as the gunman. Despite not matching either eyewitness's descriptions, not being picked out of the line-up, and no physical evidence tying him to the cr
#582 Guest Host Conor Hall with Brian Pippitt
Evelyn Malin was the 84-year-old owner of the Dollar Lake Store in tiny Shamrock Township, 130 miles north of Minneapolis. On the morning of February 24, 1998, she was found beaten and strangled to death in the living quarters that were connected to her convenience store. Over a year later, Brian Pippitt was charged with premeditated murder based primarily on the incentivized testimony of two witn
#581 Jason Flom with Pierre Rushing
On April 15, 2011, Dawone Taylor was murdered in Oakland, CA over a dispute about an allegedly stolen ipod. Pierre Rushing, a promising young musician who never met Mr. Taylor, was later charged and convicted for the murder primarily on the questionable testimony of a struggling drug addict who was unable to accurately describe Pierre’s appearance. Learn more and get involved:Pamela Pr
#580 Jason Flom with Anthony Apanovitch
On August 23rd, 1984, Mary Anne Flynn was found dead in her Cleveland, OH bedroom. She had been strangled and severely beaten and there was evidence she had been sexually assaulted. There were multiple suspects including a violent ex-boyfriend, an ex-tenant who was an attempted rapist and an exterminator who had a copy of the house key. But investigators focused solely on Tony Apanovitch, a local
#579 Jason Flom with Daniel Holtzclaw
At 2 AM, on June 18th, 2014, Daniel Holtzclaw finished up his shift as an Oklahoma City police officer and made his way home in his all black cruiser. He saw a car swerving and pulled over 57-year-old daycare provider Jannie Ligons. About 3 hours later, Ms Ligons would claim that Officer Holtzclaw forced her to perform oral sodomy through the fly of his uniform pants from the back seat of his squa
#578 Jason Flom with Charles "Brandon" Martin
On October 27, 2008, Jodi Lynne Torok was at her Crofton, MD home talking on the phone with her close friend, Blair Wolfe, when a man, purporting to be a salesman, knocked on her front door. Jodi ended the call to respond to the so-called salesman, but thereafter never called Ms. Wolfe back or answered any of Wolfe's subsequent telephone calls. Growing increasingly concerned, Ms. Wolfe telephoned
#577 Jason Flom with John Giuca
On October 12, 2003, Mark Fisher was found shot and killed in a driveway in Brooklyn, NY after spending the night hanging out with a group of his peers, including John Giuca and Antonio Russo. Upon interrogation, a few of the people that Mark had been with late the night before led police to believe that John and Antonio were involved in Mark’s murder. Despite no physical evidence and no eye
#576 Jason Flom with Billie Allen
On March 18, 1997, two men exited a minivan and walked into the lobby of a bank in St. Louis, MO wearing ski masks and armed with semi-automatic rifles. Shots were fired and a security guard, Richard Heflin, was shot and fatally wounded. Billie Allen, aged 19, was arrested at about 2am the next morning and taken to police headquarters where he remained in an interrogation room, handcuffed to a tab
#575 Jason Flom with Larry DeLisle
After a hot summer day - August 3rd, 1989, the DeLisle’s took their 4 children for ice cream along the Detroit River. A mechanical defect in their car caused the night to take a deadly turn that sent Larry DeLisle to prison for what should have been seen as a tragic accident. Learn more and get involved at: https://www.change.org/p/gretchen-whitmer-free-larry-he-lost-all-4-of-his-children-du
#574 Jason Flom with Alexis Ke'Erica Martin
15 year-old Alexis Ke’Erica Martin was aware that her ex-boyfriend was about to free her from sex trafficker, Angelo Kerney, but didn’t know that Kerney was about to be killed. Ohio’s brand new safe harbor law should have protected this inspiring survivor. Learn more and get involved at: https://www.gofundme.com/f/gxes23-alexis-keerica-martin-support-fundhttp://ohiojpc.org/ Vote
Introducing - Undisclosed: TJ Weekly - Jason Flom
In this episode, Rabia and Colin chat with Jason Flom about his transition from leading roles in the music industry to becoming an advocate for criminal justice reform, wrongful convictions, and innocence work.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
#573 Guest Host Tiffany Reese with Patrick Brown
On February 21, 1994, in New Orleans, LA, a 6-year-old girl was taken to the hospital after complaining of pain and unusual vaginal discharge. The doctors concluded that the young girl had been raped after she tested positive for gonorrhea. The girl was interviewed by authorities without any guardian present, and ended up saying that a family member named Patrick had touched her genitals. Despite
#572 Guest Host Kemba Smith with Leon Benson
On August 8th, 1998, 25-year-old Kasey Schoen was shot and killed while sitting in his car in Indianapolis, IN. A few days later, a man approached officers and told them that he saw 22-year-old Leon Benson shoot the victim. A single eyewitness identified Leon as the shooter out of a photo lineup, despite the fact that he did not match the eyewitness's initial description of the shooter. Leon was u
#571 Guest Host Guest Host Ashley Fantz with Marvin Anderson
On July 17, 1982, in Hanover County, VA, a white woman was raped by a black man who was a total stranger. During the rape, the man beat her and threatened her with a gun, and also mentioned that she was not the only white woman he had had sexual relations with. Based on this statement alone, police immediately suspected 18-year-old Marvin Anderson to be the perpetrator because Marvin lived with hi
#570 Guest Host John Huffington with Elmer Daniels
On January 15, 1980, in Wilmington, DE, a 15-year-old girl, "G.S," reported she had been raped alongside the railroad tracks. The victim and her young male friend, "K.C.", said they were together on the tracks when a young black man approached them and assaulted G.S. After giving numerous inconsistent statements, K.C. told police he recognized the attacker from school and that his name was Elmer.
#569 Jason Flom with Dusty Turner
On June 19th, 1995, Dusty Turner was out at a bar with some friends in Virginia Beach, VA, including his roommate and training partner, Billy Brown. Dusty Turner and Jennifer Evans were sitting in his car waiting for Evans’s friends to join them when an extremely intoxicated Billy Brown forced his way into the back seat and began insulting Evans and pulling her hair. When she tried to defend
#568 Maggie Freleng with Dusty Turner
On June 19th, 1995, Dusty Turner was out at a bar with some friends in Virginia Beach, VA, including his roommate and training partner, Billy Brown. Dusty Turner and Jennifer Evans were sitting in his car waiting for Evans’s friends to join them when an extremely intoxicated Billy Brown forced his way into the back seat and began insulting Evans and pulling her hair. When she tried to defend
#567 Maggie Freleng with Lance Alford
In the evening of May 22, 2005, Salvador A. Martinez was shot and killed in Camden, NJ. The notorious Camden Police Department eventually set its sights on Lance Alford, and after coercing three supposed eyewitnesses to identify and testify against Alford as the perpetrator, Alford was convicted of first-degree murder. Based on this testimony alone, Alford was sentenced to life in prison.&nb
#566 Maggie Freleng with Josh Burns
On January 7, 2014, 37-year-old Brenda Burns gave birth to a baby girl, Naomi. Two months later, on March 15, 2014, Brenda was running errands, and Naomi was home with her father, Brenda’s husband, 37-year-old Joshua Burns. They had talked on the phone while Brenda was out, and all was well. When Brenda returned, she found Joshua tending to a cut on Naomi’s face. Naomi fell forward whi
#565 Maggie Freleng with Jane Dorotik
On Sunday February 13, 2000, 53-year-old Jane Dorotik reported her husband Robert missing after he failed to return home from a jog in Valley Center, CA. An avid runner, Robert’s body was found the next morning. He had been strangled with a rope and his skull was fractured. After investigators found what they purported to be human blood throughout the Dorotik residence, the state developed a
#564 Maggie Freleng with Dr. Marvin Cotton Jr.
On January 24, 2001, 25-year-old Jamond McIntre was shot seven times and killed in Detroit, MI. Though there were no eyewitnesses to the shooting, three individuals, including 21-year-old Marvin Cotton, were ultimately identified. After a trial that hinged on the testimony of a jailhouse snitch, Cotton was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of
Wrongful Conviction with Maggie Freleng Season 5 - TRAILER
Maggie Freleng, Pulitzer Prize winner, iHeartPodcast 2024 Social Impact Award Honoree and acclaimed host of Bone Valley Season 3: Graves County, returns with compelling stories of redemption and justice in the newest season of Wrongful Conviction with Maggie Freleng starting March 5, 2026. Wrongful Conviction with Maggie Freleng is a production of Lava for Good™ Podcasts in association with
#563 Jason Flom with Fred Clay
In 1979, 28-year-old cab driver Jeffrey S. Boyajian was robbed and murdered when he was shot in the head five times after he picked up three men in a Boston, MA neighborhood. Several eyewitnesses identified Fred Clay as one of the three men who entered Boyajian’s cab. But Clay, who was 16 years old at the time, maintained his innocence. He testified that he’d been at his foster home at
#562 Jason Flom with Rafael Madrigal
On July 5, 2000, Ricardo Aguilera was shot and wounded in a gang related drive-by shooting in Los Angeles, California. Several witnesses identified 25-year-old Rafael Madrigal Jr. in a photo lineup as either the shooter or driver of the car involved. Those witnesses testified against Rafael at trial. Rafael, who maintained his innocence throughout the ordeal, had been at work at Proactive Pa
#561 Jason Flom with Rodney Roberts
Rodney Roberts was arrested in 1996 in Newark, NJ, after an altercation with a friend. After several days in custody, he found himself charged with the kidnapping and rape of a 17-year-old girl. His court appointed attorney advised him to plead guilty or spend the rest of his life in prison. Rodney had a good job and had recently moved with his young son into a new apartment. Hoping to get back to
#560 Jason Flom with Vanessa Gathers
In 1998, Vanessa Gathers was wrongfully convicted of robbing and beating 71-year-old Michael Shaw to death. There was no physical evidence linking Vanessa to the crime, and her conviction was based on a false confession extracted from her by notorious New York police detective Louis Scarcella, whose tactics led to the wrongful convictions of more than a dozen people. She is joined by her attorney
#559 Jason Flom with Ryan Ferguson
Ryan Ferguson was a 17-year-old high school student when Kent Heitholt, a sportswriter for the Columbia Daily Tribune, was found beaten and strangled in Missouri. Heitholt's murder went unsolved for two years until police received a tip that a man named Charles Erickson could not remember the evening of the murder and had told a friend that he thought he may have been involved. Erickson, who had s
#558 Jason Flom with Antoine Day
On September 1, 1990, Thomas Peters and James Coleman were shot while shooting craps outside a liquor store on the west side of Chicago, IL at about 1:30 am. The men were taken to a hospital, where Peters died and Coleman was treated and released for a gunshot wound in the back. Day and a codefendant were arrested eight days later after a nephew of Peters and witness to the crime, told police they
#557 Jason Flom with Dennis Maher
On November 16, 1983, a 28-year-old woman was attacked and sexually assaulted by an unknown male as she was walking home from work in Lowell, MA. The following evening, a 23-year-old woman was attacked less than one hundred yards away from the site of the first assault. Even though no biological evidence could link him to any of the crimes, Dennis Maher, who was a sergeant in the United States Arm
#556 Jason Flom with Franky Carrillo
On January 18, 1991, six teenage boys were standing on a curb talking in front of a house in the Los Angeles, CA suburb of Lynwood. Donald Sarpy, the father of one of the boys, stepped onto the driveway to call his son inside when a car drove by and two shots were fired, killing Sarpy. 16-year-old Francisco “Franky” Carrillo Jr. became a suspect in the case after he was mistakenly iden
#555 Lauren Bright Pacheco with Frank Gable
Early on the morning of January 18, 1989, a security guard found the body of Michael Francke lying in a pool of blood on the floor of the North Portico of the Dome Building of Oregon State Hospital in Salem, OR. An autopsy revealed the cause of death to be a stab wound to the heart. Michael Francke - who had a background as a military man, former prosecutor and judge, and then head of the New Mexi
#554 Lauren Bright Pacheco with Pablo Velez
In the early morning hours of July 14, 2004, 19 year-old Adrian Payan and 18 year-old Emerson Bojorquez were ambushed at a nightclub in Houston, TX. A man named Jason Wooley fired the first shot of the shootout, and a man waited outside in a Cadillac, wearing a blue shirt and firing shots from an assault rifle. Bojorquez was killed, but Payan survived. Witnesses noted the Cadillac’s license
#553 Lauren Bright Pacheco with Jeff Smith
On July 9, 2006, at Club Crystal in Waterloo, IA, an individual later identified as Tonye Jackson was shot multiple times and killed on the property. The shooting occurred during active nightclub hours, with multiple patrons present at the scene. Three gunshots along with Jeff Smith’s nickname were audible on a recorded Black Hawk County Jail phone call contemporaneous with the incident. Aft
#552 Lauren Bright Pacheco with Robert Bintz
In August 1987, the body of 44-year-old single mother of two, Sandra Lison, was found in the Machickanee Forest in Green Bay, WI. She went missing from her bar the night prior. An autopsy showed that she was strangled and evidence suggested she was raped. Investigators interviewed the bar’s patrons, including brothers, 32-year-old David Bintz and 31-year-old Robert Bintz. No evidence suggest
#551 Lauren Bright Pacheco with Marvin Grimm Jr.
On November 22, 1975, a mother reported her three-year-old son missing after seeing him roaming in the vicinity of a wooded area behind their apartment complex in Richmond, VA. His body was found in the river nine miles from his home four days later. The murder garnered tremendous media attention and public outrage, yet the police failed to find a lead or suspect. 20-year-old Marvin Grimm Jr. live
#550 Lauren Bright Pacheco with Oscar Eagle
On March 14, 1998, 16-year-old Benjamin Urias was shot in the Pico-Union neighborhood in Los Angeles, CA. The shot was not fatal, but Urias was hospitalized for two days. Urius was member of the 18th Street Gang, and told investigators that the shooter walked with a limp and shouted “Burlington Locos,” the name of another Los Angeles gang. Four days before the shooting, Oscar Eagle tur
Introducing - Wrongful Conviction with Lauren Bright Pacheco | Season 2
Six new, inspiring episodes of Wrongful Conviction, hosted by Lauren Bright Pacheco, that celebrate the potential of human connection to empower ordinary people to overcome extraordinary odds and injustices. Real individuals who unexpectedly became one another’s personal heroes by turning tragedy into triumph. Wrongful Conviction with Lauren Bright Pacheco will be available every Thursday be
#549 Lauren Bright Pacheco with James Soto
Wrongful Conviction with Lauren Bright Pacheco is back November 13th with all new episodes. So today, we’re revisiting one of the most memorable episode from her last season, episode #454, James Soto:James “Jimmy” Soto was wrongfully convicted at age 20 for a 1981 double homicide in Chicago’s Little Village despite no physical evidence and multiple alibi witnesses. Jimmy an
#548 Jason Flom with Jeff Boppre
On September 19, 1988, drug dealer Richard Valdez and his pregnant girlfriend Sharon Condon were shot in their house near Scottsbluff, NE. Police quickly focused on Jeff Boppre based on a purported “dying declaration” that Valdez, after being shot multiple times, wrote parts of Boppre’s name in engine grease on the ground next to him. The investigation was built against Boppre an
#547 Jason Flom with John Restivo
On December 5th, 1984, the naked body of Theresa Fusco was pulled out of a wooded area in Lynbrook, NY - the 3rd in a string of recent disappearances, putting pressure on police to find the monster among them. The medical examiner determined that a rape lkely occurred and the cause of death was ligature strangulation. Dennis Halstead had been linked to one of the victims, and in a police interview
#546 Jason Flom with David Smith
On October 15, 2015, Quortney Tolliver was attacked with a hammer in her home in Ravenna Township, OH. She woke up from a medically induced coma weeks later with absolutely no recollection of the incident. Nevertheless, Portage County detectives pressed her to identify the person they “found out who did this” – 47 year old David Smith. Ms. Tolliver refused to identify Mr. Smith u
#545 Jason Flom with Fredrico Lowe-Bey
On May 21, 1988, about 5:00 a.m., the victim, after an argument with her boyfriend, left his parked car and walked alone toward her home in St. Louis, MO. Shortly thereafter, three males pulled their car alongside her, jumped out of the car, grabbed the victim by the hair, pulled her into an alley, pushed her to the ground, and tore her dress. Two of the men held her down, while the third man sodo
#544 Jason Flom with Maggie Freleng on Quincy Cross and Graves County
Jason Flom sits down for an interview with Maggie Freleng, the Pulitzer prize-winning producer, journalist and host of Bone Valley Season 3 | Graves County. In this special episode, Maggie talks with Jason about her experiences reporting this show from a small town in Kentucky for over 2 years, and how truth and justice can get lost in the pursuit of retribution. Graves County is out now in the Bo
#543 Jason Flom with Jonathan Parker
On April 9, 1997, shortly after midnight in Buffalo, NY, Officers Charles “Skip” McDougald and Michael Martinez were patrolling near Northampton and East Parade in Buffalo’s East Side when they observed what they described as a “suspicious person.” According to police accounts, when they approached, the individual produced a handgun and fired. Officer McDougald was st
#542 Jason Flom with Nicholas Allen
On the night of February 4, 2011, Avalisa Morris was shot and killed at a birthday party in the basement of a two-family home in Queens, NY. The fatal gunshots were fired from outside the party, through the closed door of the entrance to the basement. Even though no eyewitnesses placed Allen at the door with a weapon, he was tried under an acting-in-concert theory, and convicted of second‑degree m
#541 Guest Host Maggie Freleng with Quincy Cross
18-year-old Jessica Currin’s burned and decomposing body was discovered on August 1, 2000 behind Mayfield Middle School in Mayfield, KY. Jessica had lacerations on the back of her head, nose and chin, and stab wounds. The medical examiner also believed she had been strangled but there was no evidence to support this theory. The case went cold for a few years, until a couple of supposed eyewi
#540 Jason Flom with Joe Berlinger on the West Memphis 3
In the late 80’s and early 90’s, the US found itself wrapped up in the “Satanic Panic” - a general state of fear revolving around Satanism and satanic ritual, real or imagined. On May 5th, 1993, in West Memphis, AR, three 8-year-old boys—Steven Branch, Michael Moore, and Christopher Byers—were reported missing. Their lifeless bodies were found the following day
#539 Jason Flom with Cal Harris
Calvin "Cal" Harris was charged with the murder of his estranged wife Michele Harris, who disappeared in September 2001 from their home in Spencer, NY. Despite no body being found, Cal was tried four times and eventually acquitted in 2016. He later filed federal and state lawsuits alleging malicious prosecution and evidence fabrication. His case highlights investigative tunnel vision, suppressed e
#538 Jason Flom with Kendrick Gillum
On February 1, 1997, Charles Newsome, a member of the 18th Street Group was murdered while driving through the Mayfair Apartments in West Memphis, AR. The city was caught in a wave of retaliatory violence between two groups: Foxwood and 18th Street. Kendrick Gillum, who was loosely affiliated with Foxwood, became a suspect based on inconsistent and coerced witness testimony from a single eyew
#537 Jason Flom with Johnny Berry
On August 10th, 1994, a man and a woman were in a van in West Philadelphia, when two males approached. One blocked the passenger door, while the other shot the man before he could get out of the van. The witness identified 16 year old Johnny Berry from a photo, but rescinded the ID at a preliminary hearing. Inexplicably, Johnny was re-arrested and sent back to juvenile detention, where he met Tauh
#536 Jason Flom with the Virginia 3
On July 12, 1994, 19-year old Steven Smith was killed after being struck by a single bullet to the head in Newport News, VA. Within weeks three individuals, two teenage boys, and one in his twenties, were arrested for the crime. Darryl Hunter, his older brother Nathaniel Pierce, and his friend Reginald Fletcher, were each tried and convicted solely on witness testimony. They were sentenced collect
#535 Ben Bowlin with Reynaldo Munoz
On September 8, 1985, dozens gathered on Keeler Avenue in Chicago, IL for a friend's birthday party. In the early morning hours, while walking back to the party after getting cigarettes, 19-year-old Ivan Mena and 21-year-old Bouvier "Bobby" Garcia broke up a fight between 16-year-old Reynaldo “Scooby" Munoz and another partygoer. Munoz walked home after that fight, but Mena and Garcia return
#534 Ben Bowlin with Robert Johnson
In the evening of April 14, 1996, Edward Binion was shot in the head during a home invasion in Chicago, IL. After a series of arrests, since-disgraced Cook County Detectives William Moser and James O’Brien were led to 16-year-old Robert Johnson. Johnson was with his grandmother at the time of the shooting and no physical evidence implicated him. Nevertheless, he was convicted and sentenced t
#533 Maggie Freleng with Selma Butler
This week, we are bringing to you a special episode of Wrongful Conviction with Maggie Freleng featuring Selma Butler. Maggie has returned to share this remarkable story with you, and to set the stage for another special announcement next week alongside Pulitzer Prize-winning author and creator of the Bone Valley podcast, Gilbert King. So please make sure and check in next Wednesday, July 16th. On
#532 Jason Flom with Clay Chabot
In recognition of July 4th we want to highlight Clay Chabot, a Navy veteran who served almost 2 years on the USS Saratoga CVA-60 before he was honorably discharged. Veterans, even those who served their country honorably, are not immune to the shortcomings of our criminal justice system. On April 19, 1986, the body of a 28 year old woman was found in her bedroom in Garland, Texas. She had been tie
#531 Ben Bowlin with Trevor Mattis
On September 15, 1988, there was an argument inside of Philadelphia, PA row house. As one party tried to leave, Everton Meade Johnson followed while making threats and was fatally shot. The victim's brother only knew one man at the row house, Trevor Mattis. But Trevor maintained that he was just a bystander and another eyewitness corroborated Trevor’s story. But when Trevor was charged with
#530 Ben Bowlin with Duane Williams
On the morning of August 20, 2012, police and firefighters were called to a house fire in Detroit, MI. Bobby Cross and Darryl Simms died in the fire. Bobby’s long-term partner’s son, Duane Williams, was staying over the house that week, but he was not harmed in the fire. Rather, he was accused and ultimately charged with arson and felony murder. After some faulty expert testimony, an i
#529 The Wrongful Conviction of Leonard Peltier - Part 3
In part three of this three-part series, at Leonard’s trial in 1977 federal prosecutors changed the failed narrative from the Butler / Robideau trial, claiming that Leonard executed the agents with an AR15 that they claimed matched casings found near the bodies. Bruce Ellison and Ron Kuby explain how false evidence was used to secure a conviction that survived our appellate system and
#528 The Wrongful Conviction of Leonard Peltier - Part 2
Ben Bowlin, new co-host of Wrongful Conviction and host of the long-standing podcast Stuff the Don’t Want You to Know and Jason Flom from the Wrongful Conviction podcast had the honor of sitting down for many hours to speak with Leonard Peltier about his personal life, the historical context of the resistance movement and events that led to the attack on Jumping Bull Ranch in ‘75, as w
#527 The Wrongful Conviction of Leonard Peltier - Part 1
Ben Bowlin, new co-host of Wrongful Conviction and host of the long-standing podcast Stuff the Don’t Want You to Know and Jason Flom from the Wrongful Conviction podcast had the honor of sitting down for many hours to speak with Leonard Peltier about his personal life, the historical context of the resistance movement and events that led to the attack on Jumping Bull Ranch in ‘75, as w
#526 Ben Bowlin with Sonny Bharadia
On November 18, 2001, a woman returned home from church to a man burglarizing her apartment in Thunderbolt, GA. While wearing a pair of batting gloves, the man proceeded to sexually assault her and steal various items. In the days following, police found those items in the residence of a man named Sterling Flint. When the victim identified Flint as a possible perpetrator, Flint blamed a man named
#525 Jason Flom with Willie "Pete" Williams
On April 5, 1985, around 11 p.m., a woman exiting her car in her apartment complex parking lot just north of Atlanta, GA was approached by an African-American man. The man asked her if she could help him find "Paul." He then pulled out a gun and told her to move into the passenger seat. He drove to a nearby dead-end street where he raped the victim. After the attack, he drove her back to the parki
#524 Jason Flom with Clemente Aguirre
Coming of age in Honduras, Clemente “Shorty” Aguirre was faced with a choice: join MS13 or die. He moved to Nicaragua with his grandmother instead, but with no economic prospects, he chose to come to the United States as an undocumented immigrant. Life was calm for a while, as he worked as a cook and lived in a trailer park, where he had found a place in a nice community of friends. Th
#523 Jason Flom with Lerico Kearney
On November 21, 1997, Gene Artis and his sister Yvonne Giles were shot and killed at their apartment in Suffolk, VA. Six-year-old Travone Artis was the only witness who saw his mother and uncle get murdered, and he unequivocally told authorities that a relative of his was the shooter. Despite this, 18 year old Lerico Kearney became a suspect when police found out he and Gene gambled together.There
#522 SPECIAL EMERGENCY EPISODE: Jason Flom and Maggie Freleng with Andre Brown live from the UJC Summit
In this updated special edition of Wrongful Conviction with Jason Flom & Maggie Freleng, we revisit the case of Andre Brown, whose conviction was vacated in 2022 after newly presented evidence and witness testimony demonstrated he could not have committed the crime. Despite this, the Bronx District Attorney has shockingly overturned the vacated ruling—and Andre is now bein
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