Today in True Crime
There’s never an ordinary day in true crime history. Flip back the calendar and see how one fateful day can ripple through time. Today in True Crime is a Spotify Original from Parcast.
1026
November 8, 1954: Carolyn Wasilewski
On this day in 1954, 14-year-old Carolyn Wasilewski was murdered.
12 min
1027
November 7, 1908: Butch and Sundance
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid are reportedly killed in San Vicente Canton, Bolivia on this day in 1908.
12 min
1028
November 6, 1985: Palace of Justice Seized
On this day in 1985, a group of militants seized the Palace of Justice in Bogota, Colombia.
11 min
1029
November 5, 1605: Guy Fawkes Arrested
On this day in 1605, Guy Fawkes was arrested in connection with the Gunpowder Plot, a failed attempt to assassinate King James I.
13 min
1030
November 4, 1921: Hara Takashi
Japanese Prime Minister Hara Takashi was assassinated in Tokyo on this day in 1921.
13 min
1031
November 3, 1883: Black Bart’s Final Robbery
On this day in 1883, infamous western outlaw "Black Bart the Poet" gets away with his last stagecoach robbery, leaving behind a clue that would eventually lead to his capture.
10 min
1032
November 2, 1960: Penguin Books Verdict
On this day in 1960, Penguin Books is found not guilty of obscenity in the trial of Regina V. Penguin Books Ltd.
16 min
1033
November 1, 2018: Edmund Zagorski
On this day in 2018, 63-year-old Edmund Zagorski was executed by electrocution in Tennessee for two counts of first-degree murder.
11 min
1034
October 31, 1977: The Hillside Strangler Strikes
On this day in 1977, the body of 15-year-old Judith Lynn Miller was discovered in a flowerbed in the Los Angeles neighborhood of La Crescenta.
16 min
1035
October 30, 1959: Sybille Niemans Murdered
On this day in 1959, a popular Dutch sex worker nicknamed “Blonde Dolly” was strangled at her home in The Hague.
11 min
1036
October 29, 1982: Lindy Chamberlain Convicted
Alice “Lindy” Chamberlain was convicted of killing her 9-week-old daughter during an Australian camping trip, on this day in 1982.
12 min
1037
October 28, 1919: The Volstead Act
On this day in 1919, Congress passes the Volstead Act (National Prohibition Act) which establishes the definition of illegal liquor and the punishments for making it.
12 min
1038
October 27, 1921: Harold Jones Confesses
On this day in 1921, 15-year-old Harold Jones confesses to the murder of 11-year-old Florence Little one week before his case went to trial. But it wasn’t just Florence he’d killed.
11 min
1039
October 26, 1965: Sylvia Likens
On this day in 1965, teenager Sylvia Likens dies of the injuries inflicted by her foster mother.
13 min
1040
October 25, 1965: Maury Travis
On this day in 1965, notorious St. Louis-area serial killer Maury Travis was born.
11 min
1041
October 24, 1949: Robert Pickton
Canadian serial killer Robert Pickton, who was convicted of killing six women, was born on this day in 1949.
12 min
1042
October 23, 1981: The Monster of Florence Strik...
On this day in 1981, engaged couple Stefano Baldi and Susanna Cambi became the serial killer’s next victims—shot and stabbed to death in the vicinity of Calenzano.
12 min
1043
October 22, 1966: Sims Family Murdered
Robert, Helen and their daughter Joy Sims were bound, gagged, stabbed and shot to death. Found by the couple’s oldest daughter, Jeanie, on this day in 1966.
10 min
1044
October 21, 2014: Oscar Pistorius Sentenced
On this day in 2014, former Olympian Oscar Pistorius is sentenced to 5 years in prison for the death of his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp.
13 min
1045
October 20, 1944: Georgette Bauerdorf Inquest
On this day in 1944, a jury of nine men found that Bauerdorf's death was a homicide, and proposed a thorough investigation to apprehend her killer.
13 min
1046
October 19, 2002: DC Sniper Shootings Continue
On this day in 2002, Jeffrey Hopper is shot in a parking lot in Ashland, Virginia, 83 miles south of Washington.
12 min
1047
October 18, 1954: Sam Sheppard’s Trial Begins
Sam Sheppard's trial for the murder of his wife, Marilyn Reese Sheppard, begins on this day in 1954.
13 min
1048
October 17, 1941: Theodore Coneys
On this day in 1941, “The Denver Spiderman” Theodore Coneys bludgeons Philip Peters to death—the man whose attic he’d secretly been living in for a month.
15 min
1049
October 16, 1869: “The Cardiff Giant” Hoax
A 10-foot-tall “petrified man”—the Cardiff Giant “discovered” on this day in 1869.
15 min
1050
October 15, 1793: Marie Antoinette Convicted
On this day in 1793, Queen Marie Antoinette of France is tried and convicted, and condemned to death the following day.
13 min