In our new season, Veteran reporter Joe Nocera investigates a 94-year-old crime that deserves a second look: the kidnapping and murder of Charles Lindbergh Jr. ---- The Free Press Investigates brings you gripping, deeply reported stories you can't find anywhere else—and the investigations others won’t dare to cover. You can also listen to our first series, The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling.
Latest episodes
-
41 min
EP06 | May The Best Conspiracy Win
In the final episode of The Lindbergh Conspiracies, Joe and Poppy revisit the case’s most compelling theories one last time—from Robert Zorn’s claim that a German immigrant named J…
-
2 min
EP05 | Suspect Number 1
In the decades after the trial, a conclusion that once seemed certain begins to collapse. As Charles Lindbergh’s legacy darkens and a postwar America grows more suspicious of offic…
-
51 min
EP04 | The Trial of the Century
If the kidnapping was the Crime of the Century, then the trial that followed was the Trial of the Century. At the center of it all stands the accused—a man who insists on the stand…
-
27 min
EP03 | Follow The Money
The investigation closes in on a German immigrant carpenter from the Bronx. When a chunk of the ransom money is discovered at his home, investigators think they’ve found a “smoking…
-
44 min
EP02 | The Great Aviator
Charles Lindbergh is not just the father of a kidnapped child—he is the most celebrated man on Earth, and increasingly the one shaping how the investigation unfolds. But behind the…
-
43 min
EP01 | The Broken Window
One night in March 1932, the infant son of aviator Charles Lindbergh is taken from his nursery. A warped window, a ladder, and a ransom note mark the beginning of a case that will…
-
45 sec
Season 3 Trailer | The Lindbergh Conspiracies
Veteran reporter Joe Nocera investigates a 94-year-old crime that deserves a second look: the kidnapping and murder of Charles Lindbergh, Jr. Little Lindy was the infant son of the…
-
49 min
Spiral | 5. A Beautiful but Imperfect System
A startling legal twist changes the case’s outcome, possibly forever. As we reflect on Samantha Woll’s legacy—especially that of a bridge builder between opposing views, her loved…
-
52 min
Spiral | 4. Bring It On
The prosecution believes the case is airtight, but when the defendant takes the stand, the case takes a turn. With alternate suspects introduced, the jury must decide what they bel…
-
39 min
Spiral | 3. Motive and Opportunity
Samantha Woll’s ex-boyfriend calls 911 in a panic. He tells the police he thinks he might have killed her. When they bring him in for questioning, he explains he was having a drug-…
-
42 min
Spiral | 2. Wrong Place, Wrong Time?
A man seen breaking into cars near the crime scene is arrested, and he lies to police about what he’s been up to. But does that make him a killer? As the case builds against him, h…
-
42 min
Spiral | 1. One of 36 Angels
Samantha Woll, 40, was a beloved Detroit Jewish community leader with her life ahead of her. Tragically, she is found stabbed to death outside her home exactly two weeks after the…
-
1 min
Season 2 Trailer | Spiral: Murder in Detroit
On October 21, 2023, beloved Detroit community leader Samantha Woll was found brutally stabbed to death outside her home—two weeks to the day after the October 7 attacks on Israel.…
-
1 h 00
The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling | 7. What If You're Wrong?
Host Megan Phelps-Roper asks J.K. Rowling to respond to pushback from some of her critics. The two also discuss the difficulty of discernment—why it can be so hard to know what’s r…
-
1 h 10
The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling | 6. Natalie and Noah
Transgender fans of Harry Potter share their criticism of J.K. Rowling—and the experiences that inform their views.Produced by Andy Mills, Matthew Boll, Megan Phelps-Roper, and Can…
-
57 min
The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling | 5. The Tweets
After years of observing the conflict between advocates for trans rights and women’s rights, J.K. Rowling weighs in.Produced by Andy Mills, Matthew Boll, and Megan Phelps-Roper, wi…
-
1 h 00
The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling | 4. TERF Wars
The movement for trans rights hits its stride in the early 2010s, but encounters fierce resistance from an unexpected source. J.K. Rowling watches the battle unfold with mounting u…
-
1 h 00
The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling | 3. A New Pyre
The early days of the internet collide with the feverish fandom of “Harry Potter,” and a sprawling, global community emerges. But the hopefulness of this new technology brings with…
-
54 min
The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling | 2. Burn The Witch
As "Harry Potter" becomes an international phenomenon, it coincides with the culture wars of the 1990s. In the backlash from Christians across America, author J.K. Rowling is accus…
-
45 min
The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling | 1. Plotted In Darkness
Host Megan Phelps-Roper writes a letter to J.K. Rowling—and receives a surprising invitation in reply: the opportunity for an intimate conversation in Rowling’s Scottish home.Produ…