Why is society so fearful of crime, but also fascinated by it? Why do the details of a gruesome murder, rape, or other heinous crime hold our attention?
If you loved the television series Mad Men, hanker for a time when jewel thieves were referred to as “gentlemen,” and wish all business lunches revolved around three or more martinis, then
Attributed to President Harry Truman, and perhaps paraphrased here, is the expression that “the only thing new is the history you don’t know.” In this case, there is considerable truth here.
Famed 18th century jurist William Blackstone once said, "It is better that ten guilty persons escape than that one innocent suffer." Theoretically, this is a bedrock principle of American criminal
In 2015 Netflix released the controversial documentary Making a Murderer, which explored the story of Steven Avery, a man from Manitowoc County, Wisconsin, who spent nearly two decades in
“Yes, I believe [Steven] Avery is innocent. This is my opinion, which I know is not worth very much, but my opinion is based on an assessment of the evidence.” —Jerome F. Buting
For those who enjoy reading a well-told tale of historical nonfiction, this could be that story. But be forewarned that it comes with at least two caveats to be explained below.
In February 2005, 14-year-old Mary (not her real name) was a naïve and impressionable teenager. She desperately sought out attention and wanted to make a good first impression.
It is hard to wrap one’s mind around a thirteen-year-old child in Victorian England killing his mother, and yet in Kate Summerscale’s book The Wicked Boy: The Mystery of a Victorian Child Murde
Serial killers mesmerize the public on many levels. Why did they do it? How did they do it? If they’ve not been apprehended, how did they escape detection?
