Once Upon a Crime
Once Upon a Crime

Once Upon a Crime

Esther Ludlow

Overview
Episodes

Details

Once Upon A Crime is a weekly true crime podcast that tells “the story behind the story” of real life crime. Told in a storytelling style, host Esther Ludlow digs into the details of each case to bring listeners the facts and information they won’t hear anywhere else. Esther calls on her background in criminal psychology and includes biographical details of both victims and perpetrators to fully explore the circumstances and motivations behind the most heinous crimes.

Recent Episodes

S8 Ep320: Manipulated to Murder: Darin Schilmiller
APR 29, 2024
S8 Ep320: Manipulated to Murder: Darin Schilmiller
<div> <strong>In the last chapter of the series “Manipulated to Murder,” I’ll share a story about a predator who hid behind a false identity to manipulate young and impressionable teens into committing the senseless murder of a vulnerable young woman. <br> </strong><br> <br> <strong><br> Sources: </strong><br> <strong><a href="https://law.alaska.gov/press/releases/2024/011124-Schilmiller.html">https://law.alaska.gov/press/releases/2024/011124-Schilmiller.html</a> <br> </strong><br> <strong><a href="https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/6154251/Schilmiller-Court-Docs-061419.pdf">https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/6154251/Schilmiller-Court-Docs-061419.pdf</a><br> </strong><br> <strong><a href="https://lawandcrime.com/crime/catfished-killer-takes-plea-deal-in-2019-death-of-best-friend-murdered-in-exchange-for-9m-from-fake-millionaire/">https://lawandcrime.com/crime/catfished-killer-takes-plea-deal-in-2019-death-of-best-friend-murdered-in-exchange-for-9m-from-fake-millionaire/</a> <br> </strong><br> <strong><a href="https://law.alaska.gov/press/releases/2024/021224-Brehmer.html">https://law.alaska.gov/press/releases/2024/021224-Brehmer.html</a> <br> </strong><br> <strong><a href="https://www.alaskasnewssource.com/content/news/Who-is-accused-killer-Darin-Schilmiller-Cynthia-Hoffman-murder-suspect-511444111.html">https://www.alaskasnewssource.com/content/news/Who-is-accused-killer-Darin-Schilmiller-Cynthia-Hoffman-murder-suspect-511444111.html</a><br> </strong><br> <strong><a href="https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/crime-courts/2023/07/13/indiana-man-pleads-guilty-to-child-porn-charge-linked-to-anchorage-teens-killing-in-catfishing-scheme/">https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/crime-courts/2023/07/13/indiana-man-pleads-guilty-to-child-porn-charge-linked-to-anchorage-teens-killing-in-catfishing-scheme/</a> <br> </strong><br> <strong><a href="https://medium.com/the-legal-beagle/astonishing-case-in-the-unusual-murder-by-denali-brehmer-of-best-friend-beginning-with-social-media-b6ad8c827830">https://medium.com/the-legal-beagle/astonishing-case-in-the-unusual-murder-by-denali-brehmer-of-best-friend-beginning-with-social-media-b6ad8c827830</a><br> </strong><br> <strong><a href="https://www.the-sun.com/news/10406051/cynthia-hoffman-murder-hire-plot-denali-brehmer-sentenced/">https://www.the-sun.com/news/10406051/cynthia-hoffman-murder-hire-plot-denali-brehmer-sentenced/</a><br> </strong><br> <br> <br> <strong><br> Links: <br> Our Website - </strong><a href="http://www.truecrimepodcast.com/"><strong><a href="http://www.truecrimepodcast.com">www.truecrimepodcast.com</a><br> </strong></a><strong><br> Travel with me! Click on the link to take a 2-minute survey to help me plan our first adventure! <a href="https://trovatrip.com/host/profiles/esther--fr746">https://trovatrip.com/host/profiles/esther--fr746</a><br> </strong><br> <strong><a href="http://www.crimecon.com">www.crimecon.com</a>  - Get your tickets for CrimeCon 2024 in Nashville happening May 31 to June 2. Use my discount code ONCE for 10% off your registration! <br> </strong><br> Dr. Phil interview - <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XCBOXtwHVg4&amp;ab_channel=Dr.Phil">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XCBOXtwHVg4&amp;ab_channel=Dr.Phil</a> <br> <br> </div>
play-circle
24 MIN
S8 Ep319: Manipulated to Murder: Pamela Smart
APR 22, 2024
S8 Ep319: Manipulated to Murder: Pamela Smart
<div> <strong>Pamela Smart became a household name - not for being the next Barbara Walters as she’d hoped but for orchestrating the cold-blooded murder of her husband - using her teenage lover as the trigger man. The case became a media sensation when it hit the news cycle in 1990.  It was such a high-profile case that millions watched the trial unfold live on television.  It was the very first time a murder trial in the U.S. received “gavel-to-gavel” coverage on a newly launched cable television channel dedicated to true crime content - Court TV. <br> </strong><br> <br> <strong>Sources: </strong><br> <strong><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20150215233410/http://www.crimelibrary.com/notorious_murders/family/smart/1.html">https://web.archive.org/web/20150215233410/http://www.crimelibrary.com/notorious_murders/family/smart/1.html</a><br> </strong><br> <strong><a href="https://www.nhmagazine.com/breaking-silence-cecelia-pierce-speaks/">https://www.nhmagazine.com/breaking-silence-cecelia-pierce-speaks/</a><br> </strong><br> <strong>“Do you remember Pamela Smart? She got four boys to kill her husband 29 years ago. Now, they’re free. She isn’t,” Manuel Roig-Franzi for The Washington Post, Jan 15, 2019.<br> </strong><br> <br> <strong><br> Links:</strong><br> <strong>Travel with me! Click on the link to take a 2-minute survey to help me plan our first adventure! <a href="https://trovatrip.com/host/profiles/esther--fr746">https://trovatrip.com/host/profiles/esther--fr746</a><br> </strong><br> <strong><a href="http://www.crimecon.com">www.crimecon.com</a>  - Get your tickets for CrimeCon 2024 in Nashville happening May 31 to June 2. Use my discount code ONCE for 10% off your registration! <br> </strong><br> <br> <br> </div>
play-circle
42 MIN
S8: The Bishop and the Butterfly. A conversation with author Michael Wolraich.
APR 8, 2024
S8: The Bishop and the Butterfly. A conversation with author Michael Wolraich.
<div>In this special bonus episode of Once Upon a Crime, I speak with Michael Wolraich, the author of a new true crime book, <em>The Bishop and the Butterfly: Murder Politics, and the End of the Jazz Age. </em><br> <br> In 1931, Vivian Gordon’s body was found in a gully in the Bronx’s Van Cortlandt Park. She’d been brutally strangled, her body dumped.  The investigation into her murder would uncover blackmail plots, sex scandals, and corruption at the highest levels of the New York government.  <br> <br> <em>The Bishop and the Butterfly </em>is a fascinating look into this true-life murder mystery from the Jazz Age. <br> <br> For more information about Michael Wolraich’s books and articles, go to <a href="http://www.michaelwolraich.com/">www.michaelwolraich.com</a>.  <br> <br> For a chance to win a copy of <em>The Bishop and the Butterfly </em>go to Once Upon a Crime’s Instagram page - <a href="https://www.instagram.com/onceuponacrimepod"><em><a href="https://www.instagram.com/onceuponacrimepod">https://www.instagram.com/onceuponacrimepod</a></em></a>.  Like the post for this episode and tag two friends in the comments for your chance to win. Good luck! <br> <br> <strong>Sponsor -</strong> Lume - <a href="http://www.lumedeodorant.com/"><strong><em><a href="http://www.LumeDeodorant.com">www.LumeDeodorant.com</a></em></strong></a> - Use code ONCE for $5 off a Lume Starter Pack. <br> <br> <strong>Links: <br> </strong><a href="https://www.crimecon.com/CC24">https://www.crimecon.com/CC24</a> Use promo code: ONCE for 10% off your ticket. <br> <br> Travel Survey: <a href="https://trovatrip.com/host/profiles/esther--fr746">https://trovatrip.com/host/profiles/esther--fr746</a> </div>
play-circle
44 MIN