Homegrown: OKC

In 1978, Pope John Paul I was found dead in his bed just 33 days after he was elected. The official story is that he suffered a fatal heart attack. But in the years since his death, some have claimed he was murdered to cover up crimes in the Vatican. The question of the Pope’s death has never been definitively answered, but there is one man who claims to know the truth. A man from one of New York City’s crime families who has deep ties to the Italian mafia. He was there the day of the Pope’s death and witnessed his murder firsthand. Or, at least, that’s what he says. His name is Anthony Raimondi, and these are his confessions. From USG Audio and Truth Media in association with Clockwork Films. For more episodes of The Confessions of Anthony Raimondi, visit here. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Timothy McVeigh is executed. Three months later, to the day, was September 11th, 2001. Government concerns about the threat of homegrown terrorism evaporate into the air. Still, the right wing spreads conspiracy theories that the Oklahoma City Bombing was committed by foreign terrorists. McVeigh’s desire for a civil war and his belief in the legitimacy of violence lives on in mainstream American politics. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It was the largest number of murders prosecuted in a single case. The stakes for the trial of Timothy McVeigh were high and the media scrutiny was intense. Enter McVeigh’s smooth-talking defense attorney. McVeigh was an impossible client, and his attorney suspects others are involved in the bombing. But the defense falls apart before the trial begins. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Inside the White House, President Clinton immediately suspects that the bombing was a domestic attack on the federal government. That hunch proves to be correct, and the President tries to warn the American public about the threat from the far right. But the investigation is soon handed to a then-obscure lawyer inside the Justice Department named Merrick Garland. Garland narrows his focus down to a single case to try and to win. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

April 19th, 1995. The explosion in downtown Oklahoma City can be felt 55 miles away. 168 people, including 19 children, are killed. Immediately, a heroic rescue effort begins in the ruins of the Alfred P Murrah Federal Building. Meanwhile, Timothy McVeigh is speeding up a highway, getting away. Investigators work around the clock to find him. A lot of hard work (and a fair amount of luck) pays off. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.