United States of Crime

Wrongful imprisonment is one of the worst things that the American government can do to someone, but even with modern forensic technology and investigative techniques, it still happens. This is one such case, wherein four innocent African American men were charged and convicted for the horrific rape and double homicide of Carol Schmal and Lawrence Lionberg in Ford Heights, Illinois in 1978. Our theme music is a remix of “Post-Apocalyptic” by CO.AG music. Support CO.AG on Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/user?u=3550597 Our Interludes are from "Light" by Jorge Mendez You can donate to the show at https://anchor.fm/austyn-castelli/support Listen to Austyn’s other podcast, Hell and High Horror on Spotify, Apple Music, Stitcher, and Castbox. Follow the show on Instagram and Twitter Sources: http://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/Pages/about.aspx http://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/Documents/Exonerations_in_2019_Infographic.pdf https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Ford_Heights_Four https://www.nwitimes.com/uncategorized/first-witness-testifies-in-schmal-case/article_916c1f97-d9f3-5af8-acdc-60f6700ca790.html https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1997-04-26-9704260068-story.html https://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/Pages/casedetail.aspx?caseid=3433 https://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/Pages/casedetail.aspx?caseid=3561 https://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/Pages/casedetail.aspx?caseid=2982 https://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/Pages/casedetail.aspx?caseid=3744 https://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/Pages/casedetail.aspx?caseid=3439 https://law.justia.com/cases/illinois/supreme-court/1989/62845-7.html https://law.justia.com/cases/illinois/supreme-court/1995/73274-7.html https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1996-07-04-mn-21148-story.html https://www.idoc.state.il.us/subsections/search/inms_print.asp?idoc=K56043 “The Psychological and Legal Aftermath of False Arrest and Imprisonment” by Robert I. Simon, M.D. “Psychological Consequences of Wrongful Conviction and Imprisonment” by Adrian Grounds --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/austyn-castelli/support

During the summer of 1964, civil rights activists James Chaney, Michael Schwerner, and Andrew Goodman set out to register black Mississippians to vote. For this, they were murdered by Ku Klux Klan members. Chaney, Schwerner, and Goodman's murders set off a chain of events that called the racist culture of Mississippi, and of the nation as a whole, into question. You can support the fight for racial justice by visiting: NAACP Black Lives Matter National Lawyers Guild National Bail Fund Network Color of Change And Many More Organizations... Demand Justice for Breonna Taylor Support Change in Breonna Taylor's Name Check Out How To Contact Louisville Officials View The Black Lives Matter Master Doc Our theme music is a remix of “Post-Apocalyptic” by CO.AG music. Support CO.AG on Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/user?u=3550597 Our transition music is "Sad Emotional Piano" by DS Production https://soundcloud.com/user-2026388/sad-emotional-piano Listen to Austyn’s other podcast, Hell and High Horror on Spotify, Apple Music, Stitcher, and Castbox. Follow the show on Instagram and Twitter Sources: http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/price&bowers/Account.html https://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2004/jun/21/down-a-southern-road/ https://apnews.com/3d82e778b5d643088268c3214ae904f8 https://dickatlee.com/issues/mississippi/mississippi_eyewitness/valley_of_fear.html https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/freedomsummer-murder/ https://mscivilrightsproject.org/neshoba/event-neshoba/the-murder-of-chaney-goodman-and-schwerner/ https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2017/3/7/14456154/dehumanization-psychology-explained https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/out-the-darkness/201801/the-psychology-racism The Ascent of Man: Theoretical and Empirical Evidence for Blatant Dehumanization by Nour Kteily The Freedom Summer Murders by Don Mitchell The Psychology of Racism: An Introduction to the Special Issue by Jennifer A. Richeson --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/austyn-castelli/support

America is one of only five first world countries to still actively utilize the death penalty as a form of criminal punishment. Over the last century, certain protections have been put in place to protect underage and intellectually disabled offenders. But what happens when a state refuses to accept evidence of an offender’s mental disability? And what if that same offender may be innocent? In this episode, we examine the prosecution of Pervis Tyrone Payne for the 1987 murders of Charisse Christopher and Lacie Jo Christopher and the impending execution of Payne, despite doubts about his intellectual abilities and guilt. If you feel that Pervis Payne’s execution should be stopped, please call the office of Tennessee Governor Bill Lee at (615) 741-2001, you could tweet to him, his twitter username is @GovBillLee, or you can email him through the Tennessee Government website https://www.tn.gov/governor/contact-us.html. Our theme music is a remix of “Post-Apocalyptic” by CO.AG music. Support CO.AG on Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/user?u=3550597 Listen to Austyn’s other podcast, Hell and High Horror on Spotify, Apple Music, Stitcher, and Castbox. Episode Sources: https://scholarship.law.vanderbilt.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1336&context=vlr http://tncourts.gov/sites/default/files/docs/state_v._payne_-_m1998-00096-sc-dpe-dd_-_response.pdf https://murderpedia.org/male.P/p/payne-pervis.htm https://law.jrank.org/pages/23597/Payne-v-Tennessee-Defendant-s-Rights.html https://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/ascii/vfluc.txt https://core.ac.uk/reader/132196862 https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/policy-issues/innocence/executed-but-possibly-innocent#larry_swearingen https://www.pnas.org/content/pnas/111/20/7230.full.pdf --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/austyn-castelli/support

America is the school shooting capital of the world, but what is it about this country that leads to such crimes? In this episode, we’ll take a look at the Pearl High School shooting of 1977 and the perpetrator, Lucas Woodham. Our theme music is a remix of “Post-Apocalyptic” by CO.AG music. Support CO.AG on Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/user?u=3550597 Listen to Austyn’s other podcast, Hell and High Horror on Spotify, Apple Music, Stitcher, and Castbox. Follow the show on Instagram and Twitter --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/austyn-castelli/support