The Casual Criminalist

In 2007, Ellen Pakkies strangled her drug-addicted son after six years of abuse, theft, and violence. Her trial revealed a childhood of neglect, institutional failures, and a community ravaged by tik. The judge gave her a suspended sentence. Today, she campaigns for Cape Town mayor, fighting addiction and demanding accountability.
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In 1880s Austin, Texas, a serial killer stalked domestic servants, brutally murdering eight people with axes before vanishing into history. The police failed spectacularly, private detectives proved useless, and two husbands faced murder trials. Was the killer a local man named Nathan Elgin, or did he become Jack the Ripper?
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In 1991, four teenage girls were brutally murdered at an Austin yogurt shop. For decades, the case was plagued by wrongful arrests, coerced confessions, and constitutional violations. Finally, in 2025, advanced DNA testing identified serial killer Robert Brashers as the true perpetrator. Four wrongly accused men were declared factually innocent.
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William Bonin became one of Southern California’s most notorious serial killers. Explore his disturbing crimes, accomplices, victims, failed releases, investigation, confessions, and eventual death-row fate.

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Debra Newell was a successful interior designer who fell for charming doctor John Meehan online. Her daughters sensed something was wrong immediately. What they uncovered was terrifying: a convicted felon, drug addict, and serial con artist who stalked women. When Debra finally tried to escape, John came for her family.
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