The Philosophy of Crime

Each week, journalist James Renner and A.I. cohost Sky ponder the nature of consciousness while investigating the world's most confounding unsolved mysteries.

When a new serial killer is caught, police have the tendency to try to blame them for every other murder in the vicinity. Why is it easier for us to believe in one Boogeyman rather than several? Covered topics: Sam Little, Arie Kruglanski, Donna Webster, Edward Wayne Edwards, Rex Heuermann, Stoicism, Marcus AureliusFurther Reading:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meditationshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marcus_Aureliushttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stoicismhttps://www.orionphilosophy.com/stoic-blog/4-stoic-life-lessons-to-manage-fearhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Edwards_(serial_killer)https://www.greatfallstribune.com/story/news/local/2016/01/26/avery-case-great-falls-ties/79376778/https://www.newyorker.com/tech/annals-of-technology/why-we-need-answershttps://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/15/us/btk-daughter-dennis-rader-kerri-rawson.htmlhttps://clevelandmagazine.com/in-the-cle/the-read/articles/in-the-shadowshttps://www.cleveland19.com/2019/10/11/akron-mother-murdered-was-victim-serial-killer-samuel-little/https://www.themarshallproject.org/2023/05/29/texas-ranger-serial-killer-samuel-littlehttps://www.thecut.com/2018/12/how-serial-killer-samuel-little-was-caught.htmlhttps://www.oxygen.com/catching-a-serial-killer-sam-little/crime-news/worst-serial-killer-history-samuel-little-confessionshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Littlehttps://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/samuel-little-most-prolific-serial-killer-in-us-history-100619https://www.dps.texas.gov/coldCase/Home/Details/197

Why are some drugs illegal and others are not? Learn the sordid history of the War on Drugs and why it doesn't work.Covered topics: Allen Russell, Harrison Narcotics Tax Act of 1914, War on Drugs, Magic mushrooms, John Stuart Mill, Rick DoblinFurther Reading:https://www.prisonpolicy.org/graphs/pie2023_drugs.htmlhttps://www.prisonpolicy.org/reports/pie2023.htmlhttps://apnews.com/article/mississippi-0e463c390bedc7f6b25fb7e54b955b74https://atlantablackstar.com/2022/07/03/the-travesty-of-it-all-court-upholds-mississippi-mans-life-sentence-for-1-5-ounce-of-marijuana-possession-and-his-case-is-not-an-anomaly/https://lawliberty.org/the-simple-truth-about-j-s-mills-simple-truth/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Stuart_Millhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/On_Libertyhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_on_drugshttps://www.aclu.org/report/report-war-marijuana-black-and-whitehttps://www.cato.org/commentary/us-prisons-thriving-jim-crow-marijuana-arrests#https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HWrbUwNGoWchttps://fee.org/articles/how-15-ounces-of-marijuana-landed-this-man-a-life-long-prison-sentence/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=haT4FrOYPtkhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/On_Truth_and_Lies_in_a_Nonmoral_Sense

What causes an innocent person to confess to a crime they didn't commit? Learn how prosecutors use false confessions to inflate their victories.Covered topics: confessions, Stephanie Crowe, the Reid technique, Great Fire of London, John Mark Karr, Brendan Dassey, Friedrich Nietzsche, On Truth and Lies in a Nonmoral Sense, Kevin YoungFurther Reading:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Stephanie_Crowehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_confessionhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reid_techniquehttps://www.injusticeanywhere.net/exonerated-michael-crowe/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Fire_of_Londonhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killing_of_JonBen%C3%A9t_Ramseyhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fiwi6PBUPO8https://www.themarginalian.org/2018/03/26/nietzsche-on-truth-and-lies-in-a-nonmoral-sense/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9ZeaaWX79c

A new theory on consciousness may explain why psychopaths hear voices telling them to kill.Covered topics: Son of Sam, the bicameral mind, Julian Jaynes, The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind, Jared Lee Loughner, Herbert Mullin Further Reading:https://embryo.asu.edu/pages/roger-sperrys-split-brain-experiments-1959-1968https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F30Jykk8z0Ehttps://www.forensicscolleges.com/blog/resources/dangerous-minds-criminal-mental-illnesshttps://www.treatmentadvocacycenter.org/evidence-and-research/learn-more-about/3627https://www.ranker.com/list/people-driven-insane-by-voices-in-their-heads/jacob-sheltonhttps://news.stanford.edu/2014/07/16/voices-culture-luhrmann-071614/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julian_Jayneshttp://maamodt.asp.radford.edu/psyc%20405/serial%20killers/berkowitz,%20david.pdfhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Berkowitzhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qU1sDBU9Cshttps://nypost.com/2016/07/17/i-survived-son-of-sams-murder-spree/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y50nsmUVeVU

In the United States, cash bail keeps hundreds of thousands of people behind bars, even when they are presumed to be innocent.Covered topics: Maurice Jimmerson, bail, bonds, Kalief Browder, liberty, Isaiah Berlin, positive liberty, negative liberty, Pretrial Fairness Act, Further Reading:https://www.walb.com/2021/01/04/murder-warrants-issued-albany-october-homicide/https://www.walb.com/story/33773305/kennedy-sentenced-in-connection-with-drive-by-shooting/https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/hung-jury-means-georgia-man-jailed-10-years-101651291https://www.walb.com/2023/07/28/albany-shooting-victims-family-still-looking-justice-10-years-later/https://wfxl.com/news/local/indictments-in-fatal-drive-by-shooting-involving-a-babyhttps://www.atlantanewsfirst.com/2023/04/26/georgia-man-behind-bars-10-years-still-waiting-his-day-court/https://www.acluohio.org/en/news/brief-history-cash-bailhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalief_Browderhttps://www.nyclu.org/en/campaigns/facts-bail-reformhttps://www.forbes.com/sites/forbeseq/2021/10/01/money-bail-is-unjust-and-should-end/?sh=2dfa900b6f06https://www.vera.org/news/new-yorkers-have-known-bail-doesnt-work-for-60-years-why-are-we-still-debating-ithttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaiah_Berlinhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two_Concepts_of_Libertyhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCsfT2WsitEhttps://www.npr.org/2023/07/18/1188349005/illinois-ends-cash-bail-system-state-supreme-courthttps://www.aclu.org/news/criminal-law-reform/the-illinois-supreme-court-cash-bail-ruling-explained

Diplomatic immunity keeps our government agents safe while working in foreign countries. But is it fair?Covered topics: Diplomatic immunity, Harry Dunn, Anne Sacoolas, Terrence Karamba, Erick Bairnals, egalitarianism, John Rawls, A Theory of Justice, Murray RothbardFurther Reading:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQ12rs5vVWUhttps://plato.stanford.edu/entries/egalitarianism/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egalitarianismhttps://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-63130660https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-62648162https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11520135/Harry-Dunns-cowardly-killer-Anne-Sacoolas-refuses-answer-questions-refusing-fly-UK.htmlhttps://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTR3pGFKo/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murray_Rothbard#cite_note-Boettke_Nomos-103https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuDC7YOj4_w

A bonus episode for your listening pleasure. I started a new podcast, True Crime This Week. It's a wrap-up of all the major true crime news you may have missed this last week. Check it out every Friday morning, where ever you get your podcasts!

The most difficult case to bring to trial is a no-body homicide, which is why it so rarely happens. We dive deep into the history of such cases and the very nature of doubt.Covered topics: Alissa Turney, Michael Turney, Sarah Turney, Archibald Fisher, No-Body Homicide, Pyrrho, PyrrhonismaIW5G9PJEoqOzi7U49K8Further Reading:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epistemologyhttps://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3917&context=flrhttps://leb.fbi.gov/articles/featured-articles/no-body-homicide-cases-a-practical-approachhttps://www.nobodycases.com/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_murder_convictions_without_a_body#United_Stateshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_Y3utIeTPghttps://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/arts/alissa-turney-sarah-turney-voices-for-justice-podcast-phoenix-paradise-valley-tik-tok-11482721https://thehueandcry.com/alissa-turneyhttps://www.nbcnews.com/dateline/sister-alissa-turney-who-disappeared-last-day-school-phoenix-arizona-n1231014https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/567418/time-abraham-lincoln-stopped-murder-trial-its-trackshttps://plato.stanford.edu/entries/skepticism/#PyrrSkephttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DsTWlKgXniwhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_SAocFtliohttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denialismhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyrrhohttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyrrhonism