CRIMEandSTUFF

172. Am I the A-Hole?

Posted on March 7, 2025 by maureenmilliken

What does the Karen Read case have to do with Brian Walshe (Episode 136) and Ingolf Tuerk (Episode 85)? Our update explains it all.

We also bring back fan favorite Am I the Asshole?

To cap it off, Maureen does an NNW review of the movie “American Fiction.”

If you’re interested in checking out Maureen’s Maine-based Bernadette “Bernie” O’Dea mystery novels, including the just-released Dying for News, click here.

Looking for a cool Crime & Stuff T-Shirt, or another cool shirt designed by Rebecca? Check out her Bonfire shirt site, by clicking here.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:52:03 — 72.7MB)

171. Bestselling author vs. coercive controller

Posted on February 20, 2025 by maureenmilliken

Emma Cline should’ve been thrilled — at 25, she’d achieved every writer’s dream. But her $2 million book deal for her bestselling debut novel “The Girls” was too much for her ex, who slut-shamed her, threw false plagiarism and cyber-spying charges at her, and dragged in friends in a years-long campaign to bring her down.

The media focus was on the plagiarism and the sex stuff, but the real issue was coercive control and male privilege, and how he was allowed to get away with it for years.

Rebecca also reviews the Sly Stone documentary “Sly Live.”

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 2:12:43 — 87.0MB)

170. The 2024 Maine Homicide List

Posted on February 6, 2025 by maureenmilliken

The state of Maine recorded 35 homicides in 2024, a pretty high number, though the rate has been steadily going up in recent years. Ages of victims ranged from 22 months to 90 years. We’ll take a look at some of their stories.

Rebecca gives NNW treatment to the classic movie 12 Angry Men.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:48:35 — 70.3MB)

169. Jon Pownall’s Fatal Final Scene Part 3

Posted on January 23, 2025 by maureenmilliken

A decade after he was acquitted — twice — of charges related to Jon Pownall’s murder, Truman Dongo finds himself at the wrong end of a gun. Dongo disappeared from his apartment in Falmouth, Maine, on Sept. 21, 1983. His body was found nearly a month later, in the woods of Stowe, Maine, nearly 60 miles away, dead from multiple gunshots.

The twisted tale of bizarre criminality that began with the fatal shooting of film director Pownall in Portland in 1973, comes to an end in this third and final episode. Rebecca tells the story.

Maureen also gives NNW treatment to the documentary “What the Hell Happened to Blood, Sweat & Tears?”

If you’re interested in checking out Maureen’s Maine-based Bernadette “Bernie” O’Dea mystery novels, including the just-released Dying for News, click here.

Looking for a cool Crime & Stuff T-Shirt, or another cool shirt designed by Rebecca? Check out her Bonfire shirt site, by clicking here.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 2:29:50 — 94.0MB)

A very special 2024 holiday episode!

Posted on December 22, 2024 by maureenmilliken

Like the Little Drummer Boy, we bring to you what we can — a holiday gift that includes a JonBenet mea culpa, some very special holiday Am I the Asshole discussions, some recommendations, some gripes, and lots of fun!

Happy Holidays and here’s to a great 2025!

If you’re interested in checking out Maureen’s Maine-based Bernadette “Bernie” O’Dea mystery novels, including the just-released Dying for News, click here.

Looking for a cool Crime & Stuff T-Shirt, or another cool shirt designed by Rebecca? Check out her Bonfire shirt site, by clicking here.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:28:26 — 55.9MB)

168. Jon Pownall’s fatal final scene Part 2

Posted on November 4, 2024November 4, 2024 by maureenmilliken

The Jon Pownall murder case didn’t end with the trial of Herb Schwartz and Truman Dongo. There was so much more… particularly with the prosecution’s star witness, who couldn’t stay out of trouble after he moved back to his native New Jersey. Rebecca continues to report.

Maureen gives the NNW treatment to the Netflix doc series Manhattan Alien Abduction.

If you’re interested in checking out Maureen’s Maine-based Bernadette “Bernie” O’Dea mystery novels, including the just-released Dying for News, click here.

Looking for a cool Crime & Stuff T-Shirt, or another cool shirt designed by Rebecca? Check out her Bonfire shirt site, by clicking here.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:42:12 — 64.3MB)

167. John Pownal’s fatal final scene Part 1

Posted on October 14, 2024November 4, 2024 by maureenmilliken

All Jon Pownall wanted was to make his own movies after two decades of filming marketing spots and commercials. It looked like it was all coming together, too, as production began on his film “The Salem Six.” It all ended, though, on August 30, 1973, when he was found shot to death in the Portland, Maine, office of his film company. Rebecca presents.

Also, Maureen gives the NNW treatment to Peacock documentary “Banished: Prince Andrew”

If you’re interested in checking out Maureen’s Maine-based Bernadette “Bernie” O’Dea mystery novels, click here.

Looking for a cool Crime & Stuff T-Shirt, or another cool shirt designed by Rebecca? Check out her Bonfire shirt site, by clicking here.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 2:04:14 — 77.9MB)

166. The Lewiston Shooting Report: So Many Red Flags

Posted on September 2, 2024 by maureenmilliken

We take a look at the official report on the Lewiston, Maine, Oct. 24, 2023, shooting, that killed 18 people, and injured many more. The report, released on Aug. 20 by a governor’s commission set up to look at the shooting spent nine months investigating, and it goes step by step through the months that led up to the tragedy, and the many missed opportunities for law enforcement and the U.S. Army Reserve to possibility stop it from happening.

Rebecca gives NNW treatment to the Netflix series LA Homicide.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:59:21 — 70.5MB)

165. Who is really the a-hole II

Posted on August 19, 2024 by maureenmilliken

Back by popular demand! Am I the asshole? Asks the guy who’s pissed because his wife wrote a “secret book” that netted a book deal. The woman who yelled at her boyfriend because he thought that it was emasculating to him that she talks to her cat. The guy who’s divorcing his wife because her psychic friend told her that he was having an affair, which he wasn’t, but she believed the psychic. And more!

You can’t make this up (or maybe you can) — we take a look at the questions people have no shame about going online and asking.

Also, Rebecca does an NNW review of Dirty Pop, the Netflix doc about Backstreet Boys and NSYNC creator Lou Pearlman.

Enjoy!

Looking for a cool Crime & Stuff T-Shirt, or another cool shirt designed by Rebecca? Check out her Bonfire shirt site, by clicking here.

If you’re interested in checking out Maureen’s Maine-based Bernadette “Bernie” O’Dea mystery novels, click here.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:25:55 — 50.2MB)

164. Three Dead in Portland Part 2

Posted on August 5, 2024 by maureenmilliken

Rebecca picks up the story with Sabato Raia’s trial. Will his self-defense strategy for shooting Nick Patenaude, Dana Matthews and Kevin Pinette pass jury scrutiny?

Maureen gives NNW treatment to the Amazon Prime doc series “Debi Marshal Investigates: Frozen Lies.”

Also, Maureen gives the NNW treatment to the Netflix doc How to Rob a Bank.

Looking for a cool Crime & Stuff T-Shirt, or another cool shirt designed by Rebecca? Check out her Bonfire shirt site, by clicking here.

If you’re interested in checking out Maureen’s Maine-based Bernadette “Bernie” O’Dea mystery novels, click here.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:24:12 — 48.8MB)

163. Three dead in Portland, Part 1

Posted on July 23, 2024 by maureenmilliken

On a hot June night in 1997, a dispute between Portland, Maine, bar owner Sabato Raia and three acquaintances – Nick Patenaude, Dana Matthews and Kevin Pinette – ended with the three men lying dead in the street in front of Raia’s apartment house. They’d all been shot in the head. Self-defense? Or just a pissed off guy with a gun?

In Part 1, Rebecca takes us through what happened and what people in Portland were saying as the case went to trial. It may be Maine’s largest city, but it’s still a small town where everyone knows everyone else, and that plays a part.

Maureen gives NNW treatment to the Hulu doc series “Mastermind: To Think Like a Killer.”

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:42:23 — 58.8MB)

162. Francis Drake and the West Coast: mystery, hoaxes & lies

Posted on July 8, 2024 by maureenmilliken

How did a simmering lead-up to war between England and Spain, a 16th-century government coverup, fake news about piracy, a likely hoax by a college professor, dismissal of indigenous culture, early American white Christian nationalism and misogyny (of course) influence California history and short- change Oregon? Our sister Liz, the college professor, guest-hosts to discuss the mystery behind Francis Drake’s 1579 visit to the West Coast. More than 350 years later, the questions about the location of Drake’s “fair and pleasant harbor” are still stirring the pot.

Liz also gives the NNW treatment to the Max documentary Six Schizophrenic Brothers

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:32:36 — 53.8MB)

161. Was Patricia Wing’s murder ever solved?

Posted on June 25, 2024 by maureenmilliken

When Everett Savage staggered out of the woods of Fairfield, Maine, on a June day in 1958, the Augusta businessman had been missing for two days and had quite a story to tell. But it took a while for him to get to the lead – that mother of five Patricia Wing, who’d also been missing for two days, from her Oakland home, was dead in the backseat of his car.

What really happened? We’ll tell you.

Also, Rebecca gives NNW treatment to the Hulu documentary Brats.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 2:20:34 — 82.5MB)

160. What made Stephen Marshall kill?

Posted on June 10, 2024June 10, 2024 by maureenmilliken

In the early morning hours of Easter in 2006, Joseph Gray was shot through the window of his living room in Milo, Maine. Several hours later, William Elliott was shot when he answered the door of his home in Corinth, Maine. What drove Stephen Marshall to kill two men he never met? The question spurred much bigger questions in Maine and beyond about the sex offender registry and more. Rebecca presents.

Also, Maureen gives the NNW treatment to the Netflix doc How to Rob a Bank.

Also, looking for a cool Crime & Stuff T-Shirt, or another cool shirt designed by Rebecca? Check out her Bonfire shirt site, by clicking here.

If you’re interested in checking out Maureen’s Bernadette “Bernie” O’Dea mystery novels, click here. [You can also ask your local book store or library to order them if that’s your preference – they’re available through Ingram as well].

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (69.5MB)

159. Lori Jane Kearsey mystery partially solved after 41 years

Posted on May 14, 2024May 14, 2024 by maureenmilliken

Many members of Lori Jane Kearsey’s family didn’t consider her lost, even though they hadn’t heard from her since November 1983. But the 21-year-old left behind a daughter when she “joined the witness protection program” eight months after marrying into the powerful Massachusetts Angiulo crime family. It turns out that there was much more to her going away than anyone realized. We discuss.

Also, Rebecca gives the NNW treatment to the movie Poor Things.

Also, looking for a cool Crime & Stuff T-Shirt, or another cool shirt designed by Rebecca? Check out her Bonfire shirt site, by clicking here.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:09:00 — 39.8MB)

158. Kenneth Eugene Smith: Troublesome justice

Posted on May 2, 2024May 6, 2024 by maureenmilliken

There’s no doubt that Kenneth Eugene Smith, along with another man, killed Elizabeth Sennett in Alabama in 1988, a murder paid for by her husband, Charles Sennett. But the long road to Smith’s execution, which took place in January 2024 by a new method, nitrogen hypoxia, raises troubling questions about the death penalty, how it’s administered and what justice actually is. We discuss.

Maureen does an NNW review of the book “Junk Science and the American Criminal Justice System,” by M. Christopher Fabricant.

Also, looking for a cool Crime & Stuff T-Shirt, or another cool shirt designed by Rebecca? Check out her Bonfire shirt site, by clicking here.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:53:24 — 65.8MB)

157. Who is really the a-hole?

Posted on April 2, 2024 by maureenmilliken

We explore the age-old question, “Am I the asshole?” with situations curated by Rebecca from the sub-Reddit world.

Maureen also does an NNW on the Max docuseries Onision In Real Life.

Enjoy!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:19:31 — 46.5MB)

156. Charles Terry, Shirley Coolen, and the Boston Strangler

Posted on March 25, 2024 by maureenmilliken

Charles Terry wasn’t a good guy, especially when it came to women. He liked to beat, rape and strangle them. He was convicted for several attacks and just out of prison in 1951 when Shirley Coolen, a Brunswick, Maine, single mother was found dead, strangled in a yard on the town’s fancy Park Row. But did he do it? And how about the Boston Strangler murders? He was a suspect in those, too. We discuss.

Rebecca gives the NNW treatment to the Kristin Hannah book “The Women.”

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:50:18 — 64.1MB)

155. ‘Justified’ injustice II: Katherine Hegarty, murdered by cops

Posted on March 4, 2024 by maureenmilliken

In our third episode looking at the “justified” killings of Maine citizens by the state’s law enforcement agencies, we go back to one that spurred a lot of changes over the past decade, but also — spoiler! — not some of the things that really matter. Katherine Hegarty, shot in her remote Maine cabin by three officers from two different agencies on May 15, 1992. We’ll tell you what happened.

Also, Rebecca gives an NNW review to the HBO series “True Detectives: Night Country.”

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 2:20:21 — 82.1MB)

154. ‘Justified’ injustice: Ambroshia Fagre and Kadhar Bailey

Posted on February 5, 2024 by maureenmilliken

Ambroshia Fagre was just 18 and likely an innocent bystander when she was killed by police in Maine in February 2017, along with Kadhar Bailey, 25, who police suspected of an armed home invasion. The two were among 13 people shot by police in Maine that year, nine of whom died. Maine police have shot to death nearly 200 people since 1990. Like all those before, and all those after — every police shooting in Maine since 1990 — the officers who shot Ambroshia and Kadhar were found to be justified by the state’s attorney general’s office.

We take a look at what happened that day and Maine’s narrow review system that has yet to find a law enforcement officer unjustified in a fatal shooting. Maureen presents.

Rebecca also has an NNW review of The Running Grave, the latest Robert Galbraith (JK Rowling) CB Strike mystery novel.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:48:16 — 62.7MB)

153. A double tragedy for the McKenna family

Posted on January 22, 2024 by maureenmilliken

One of Maine’s 2022 homicides was Drew McKenna, 24, accidentally shot by his older brother Shay. In 2023, the McKenna family suffered a second tragedy when the lost Shay, who was shot by police.

We also update the 2023 homicide list — it’s up to 54 now, and talk about the texts dismissed by police that warned police that Robert Card was going to do a mass shooting.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:50:01 — 64.2MB)

152. Maine 2023 Homicide List: 51 and counting

Posted on January 8, 2024 by maureenmilliken

We bring you our annual Maine homicide list with 2023’s 51 homicides, a record year and more than twice the average annual number. Even without the Lewiston shootings that killed 18, it was the worst year for homicide in Maine in decades.

The list wasn’t yet available from the Maine Department of Public Safety, but that wasn’t going to stop use. We compiled it ourself and got all 51, with some others still pending information from investigators.

Guns tell the tale this year, with 39 homicides by gun, including two mass shootings that accounted for 22 gun victims. Nine of the state’s 15 domestic homicides were also by gun, five of which were murder-suicides with the woman killed by a male partner or former partner (the suicide end is not counted in the overall tally).

Once again, the facts show the narrative of out-of-state drug dealers coming in and causing trouble is simply not true. Homicide in Maine is a Maine-grown problem.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 2:03:49 — 72.6MB)

Special holiday greeting and some recommendations

Posted on December 25, 2023 by maureenmilliken

Enjoy the figgy pudding, fireworks, airing of grievances, or however else you celebrate! Here are some recommendations on what to watch to get you through until our next episode in two weeks.

Happy holidays!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 24:41 — 14.4MB)

151. Miriam Stoltz: When memory is murdered

Posted on December 11, 2023 by maureenmilliken

Miriam Stoltz was found shot in the head on a cold February afternoon in the woods in New Hampshire, where she’d lain for 15 hours before being found by a runner. The next day, Roger Whittemore was found dead in Miriam’s Windham, New Hampshire, backyard, shot, stabbed and beaten. Miriam wasn’t expected to recover, but she did. And her memories of what happened the horrific night of February 15, 1989, would lead to an arrest and two trials. But there would be no justice for Miriam and Roger. Maureen, who as a young reporter worked with the man charged with the crimes, tells the story.

Rebecca gives the Netflix documentary Escaping Twin Flames the NNW treatment.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:59:07 — 69.3MB)

Episode 150: The Berwind, mutiny or just plain murder?

Posted on November 27, 2023 by maureenmilliken

Racial injustice on the high seas and in the courts plays out in a 1905 mass murder on a cargo ship, the Harry A. Berwind. Captain ER Rumill and three other crew members, all but one of them white, are killed, leaving just black crew members Henry Scott, Arthur Adams and Robert Sawyer to explain. The case ultimately involved two presidents and the U.S. Supreme Court. Rebecca tells the tale.

Also, an update on Episodes 117 and 118, the murder of Amy Fitzgerald, and what happened when her husband and killer, Greg Fitzgerald, came up for parole.

And Maureen gives the NNW treatment to the Netflix doc series Exposed: The Ghost Train Fire.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:46:09 — 61.0MB)