The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox

In 2019, Boulder, Colorado residents were shocked by the death by suicide of 24-year-old Alana Chen. The woman who once dreamed of being a nun had struggled with her sexual identity and was left scarred by conversion therapy. The reports intrigued Simon Kent Fung, who interviewed her mother and friends to learn more about Alana’s story. Exploring her inner life through the journals she left behind, Alana’s journey made Simon reflect on the parallels of his own struggles to reconcile his faith with his efforts to change his hidden sexuality.“Dear Alana,” from Tenderfoot TV, Aslept Audio, and the Center for Independent Documentary, traces the life of a young woman looking for acceptance in the Church by denying the truest part of herself. It’s also Simon’s self-study on the price he and Alana paid to balance the love of God with the love for themselves.OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "DEAR ALANA," BEGIN IN THE FINAL 11 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE. For exclusive podcasts and more, sign up at Patreon.Sign up for our newsletter at crimewriterson.com.This show was recorded in The Caitlin Rogers Project Studio. Click to find out more. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

21 Sep 202347min

America was introduced to Ohio’s Bishop Sycamore High School during a nationally televised football game. When they lost 58-0, people first questioned how a team so clearly bad made it on to ESPN. But there was a bigger twist: the high school they played for didn’t exist! Coach Ray Johnson had dreamed up Bishop Sycamore just so he could put together a football team. Along the way, he flouted safety rules and sporting codes, while taking financial advantage of the players, creditors, and the government.The HBO Originals documentary “BS High” tells the story of the scam around a fake school and its gridiron team, as well as the conman-turned-coach. We hear from officials who tried to sound the alarm on the scheme and from the many Black, impoverished players who were led astray. It also explains why, despite the evidence, there’s nothing officials can do about a fictitious football team.OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "BS HIGH" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 10 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.In Crime of the Week: The Big Sleep.   For exclusive podcasts and more, sign up at Patreon.Sign up for our newsletter at crimewriterson.com.This show was recorded in The Caitlin Rogers Project Studio. Click to find out more. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

18 Sep 202344min

In the 1990s, Carole Fisher started dating Doctor Bob Bierenbaum, but she broke it off with the charming physician after seeing his dark side. Carole created a kind of support group among Bob’s ex-girlfriends and talk soon turned to a strange part of his past: the doctor’s first wife disappeared under mysterious circumstances. Gail Katz vanished from New York City in 1985, around the time she told friends she was going to leave Bob. The case stayed cold for years, until detectives turned to Carole and her friends for help.The podcast “The Girlfriends” from Novel and iHeartMedia describes the sisterhood formed among Bob’s suspicious former lovers and how investigators used their knowledge to get an arrest. The women also meditate on their relationship with each other and the murder victim they never knew.OUR SPOILER-FREE EPISODES OF "THE GIRLFRIENDS" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 11 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.  For exclusive podcasts and more, sign up at Patreon.Sign up for our newsletter at crimewriterson.com.This show was recorded in The Caitlin Rogers Project Studio. Click to find out more. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

14 Sep 202346min

Teenager Sam Lipman-Stern started videotaping his eccentric co-workers at a chaotic New Jersey call center which raised money for police organizations. When his friend Pat Pespas discovered Civil Development Group was keeping most of the donations, the pair hoped to expose the fraud. Though the feds took down CDG, Sam and Pat wondered why the police organizations were never held accountable for their role in the scheme. A decade later, the pair resumed their investigation, only to meet resistance at every turn.The HBO Originals “Telemarketers” follows the ne'er-do-wells’ quixotic attempts to shake up a billion-dollar industry. It also shows Sam and Pat’s unconventional friendship from their wild days in the boiler room to their earnest demands for answers from police and politicians alike.OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "TELEMARKETERS" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 11 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.In Crime of the Week: wigged out! For exclusive podcasts and more, sign up at Patreon.Sign up for our newsletter at crimewriterson.com.This show was recorded in The Caitlin Rogers Project Studio. Click to find out more. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

11 Sep 202347min

A cult takes over an Oregon town, then resorts to violence to keep their community…built on love. We'll return to our March 28, 2018 review of Netflix's "Wild Wild Country."  For exclusive podcasts and more, sign up at Patreon.Sign up for our newsletter at crimewriterson.com.This show was recorded in The Caitlin Rogers Project Studio. Click to find out more. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

7 Sep 202340min

In 1984, a man shot four Black teens who approached him in a subway car, then vanished into the station. Reflecting New Yorkers’ growing anxiety about crime, the shooter was hailed by residents and the media as “The Subway Vigilante.” The unknown suspect was Bernie Goetz, who told investigators his unrelenting fear of city life fueled his actions. But as a more accurate portrait of the events emerged, a heated debate began whether his use of force was appropriate. And the case became a Rorschach test on crime, race, and justice that continues to resonate.Exclusively on Audible and slated soon for full release, “Fiasco: Vigilante” is the latest installment in the series by host Leon Neyfakh. It features interviews with witnesses, reporters, lawyers, and victims’ family members all touched by the infamous Bernie Goetz case. It also recounts the external factors that shaped public attitudes about the shooting that turned Goetz from populous hero to a cautionary tale of violent paranoia.OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "FIASCO: VIGILANTE" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 14 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.In Crime of the Week: graduation part-ly.To support our teachers by purchasing an item from their wish lists, go to this post  For exclusive podcasts and more, sign up at Patreon.Sign up for our newsletter at crimewriterson.com.This show was recorded in The Caitlin Rogers Project Studio. Click to find out more. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

4 Sep 202352min

How did a man get away with kidnapping his neighbors’ daughter not once - but twice? We'll revisit our January 28, 2019 review of the unforgettable true crime documentary "Abducted in Plain Sight." For exclusive podcasts and more, sign up at Patreon.Sign up for our newsletter at crimewriterson.com.This show was recorded in The Caitlin Rogers Project Studio. Click to find out more. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

31 Aug 202345min

Teenager Tina Resch made news in the 1980s with stories of supernatural disturbances in her Ohio home. The so-called “Poltergeist Girl” was the focus of academics who wanted to research her powers and skeptics who believed the whole thing was an act. As an adult now going by Christina Boyer, the young mother returned from work to find her three year old Amber fatally injured while in the care of her boyfriend. Though she maintained her innocence, Boyer accepted a life plea to avoid the death penalty.After three decades in prison, a group of Georgetown students dug into Boyer’s case, looking to expose a miscarriage of justice. Despite questions about the evidence used to convict her, officials remained unshaken the mother is deceptive and guilty of murder.The Hulu series “Demons & Saviors” from ABC News Studios digs into Boyer’s paranormal origin story, the circumstances around Amber’s death, and the effort to win her release. What role did her supernatural fame play in her prosecution? And can she find justice when authorities feel in the absence of solid evidence, she’s still criminally responsible just because the victim was her child?OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "DEMONS & SAVIORS" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 13 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.In Crime of the Week: a series of unfortunate events. For exclusive podcasts and more, sign up at Patreon.Sign up for our newsletter at crimewriterson.com.This show was recorded in The Caitlin Rogers Project Studio. Click to find out more. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

28 Aug 202352min