The Fall Line: True Crime

In part two of this two-part series, we cover the cold-case homicides of Birmingham, Alabama nail-salon owners Jacky Nguyen and Nhut Phan, who were killed in their store just after Christmas in 2010; their daughters, Linda and Thao, discuss possible theories in their parents' case, and what they've learned from authorities in the past 12 years. Thao and Linda want to know: who killed Jacky and Nhu...

In part one of this two-part series, we cover the cold-case homicides of Birmingham, Alabama nail-salon owners Jacky Nguyen and Nhut Phan, who were killed in their store just after Christmas in 2010; though their children have long hoped for movement in the case, they've been waiting for answers for over a decade. Rumors and lack of communication became a hallmark for their parents' case: Thao and...

Eric Carter-Landin didn't set out to be an advocate; but as the family member of a murder victim whose case was closed, he watched other disturbing cases unfold in his home state of New Mexico, and he felt called to do something about it: to help families, to shine a light on the failings in the system, and, eventually, to seek justice for his own brother, who was was killed at only nine months ol...

After her biological mother, Janice "Becky" LaPlant disappeared during a July 2011 cookout in Lincoln, Alabama, Tracy took on the responsibility of pursuing Becky's case--and enlisted social media in her search for answers. During the production of this two-part series, Tracy receives news, in real time, that might change everything. Tracy discovered a Jane Doe in Knoxville, TN and was unexpectedl...

After her estranged biological mother, Janice "Becky" LaPlant disappears during a July 2011 cookout in Lincoln, Alabama, Tracy takes on the responsibility of pursuing Becky's case--and enlists social media in her search for answers. During the production of this two-part series, Tracy receives news, in real time, that might change everything.  Pre order Laurah's book LAY THEM TO REST: https://www....

In this updated, new, and compact version of our original telling of the case of an unidentified woman discovered in Jenkins County, Georgia, in February 1988, we release details that, prior to our GBI interview and visit in 2019, had never been shared with the public, discuss possible avenues to identification, and even a suspect who was named early on in the investigation.  Photos on our website...

In this remastered re-release of our 2019 episode on the 1988 Ware County Jane Doe known as "Christmas Doe" and the now-identified former John Doe known as "Dennis Doe," William DaShawn Hamilton, found in Dekalb County, GA, in 1999. Listen for just-released updates in his case and the full details of both investigations.  Remastered by Scott Stronach  Pre order Laurah's book LAY THEM TO REST: http...

We provide updates on our coverage of Julie Doe, an unidentified decedent and probable homicide victim found along a Florida highway in 1988. Julie was a trans woman assumed to be cisgender until 2015; since its inception, the Trans Doe Task Force has worked to amplify her case and actively seek her loved ones and chosen family in hopes of resolving her case. In addition, The DNA Doe Project is ac...

Arrests have been made in the 2006 murder of NiShan Huff, whose cold case we covered in the 2020 series Carolina Girls (Episode 3).  Sources at our website: https://www.thefalllinepodcast.com/sources Pre order Laurah's book LAY THEM TO REST: https://www.hachettebooks.com/titles/laurah-norton/lay-them-to-rest/9780306828805/ Submit a case to The Fall Line: https://www.thefalllinepodcast.com/case-sub...

Carlos Delgado disappeared in 1997, but there's no formal record of this fact—at least, not one his family can access. Although ICE allegedly holds that information in their internal records, there is no listing for Carlos, who was in the US on a temporary residency visa, with NamUs or any other state or county agency. And that has made tracking him, and publicizing his case, extraordinarily diffi...

Across the United States, major cities are faced with dozens, if not hundreds, of cases of unidentified decedents: Doe cases who, whether they are homicide victims or have died of other means, are people who may represent more than one of DPD's cold cases: there are many missing-persons reports which could be resolved by matching the deceased to reports of the missing. The problem lies in a lack o...

We continue our fascinating discussion on ethics in true crime with Sarah Turney, on topics ranging from leaks in the Delphi case, parasocial relationships in true crime, web sleuthing, family-member creator content, and the future she envisions for true-crime media.  Sarah Turney is the sister of Alissa Turney, an advocate, creator--host of Voices for Justice and Disappearances--and one of the fi...

Sarah Turney is the sister of Alissa Turney, an advocate, creator--host of Voices for Justice and Disappearances--and one of the fiercest voices pushing for radical change in true-crime media.  Sarah knows what needs to shift--she saw the worst of true-crime "entertainment" and media attention, and the lack of it, when her sister disappeared in 2001, and has experienced every possible situation fa...

 In Part 2 of this series, Sonia Perez details the troubling discoveries she made that have left her with serious misgivings in the cause-of-death ruling in her mother's case. After Cherokee Finley was found on the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Flathead Reservation on April 29, 1998, hypothermia was listed as the primary cause, but what Sonia saw at the scene—and later heard around town—led her...

Lillie "Cherokee" Squeque Finley was found deceased on the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Flathead Reservation on April 29, 1998--her cause of death ruled to be hypothermia, and an accident--but her daughter Sonia, and the rest of her family, have long believed that her death was suspicious, and hope to see her cause reopened.    To donate to Cherokee's headstone fund: https://www.gofundme.com/f...

Where do you go to uncover the details of the world's cold cases and biggest mysteries? This week, we speak with the people who are in charge of one of the largest repositories for those discussions, and tackle the tough calls, hard choices, case solves, tips, and biggest moments they've experienced along the way.  Pre order Laurah's book LAY THEM TO REST: https://www.hachettebooks.com/titles/laur...

In this ALL NEW episode, citizen Samuel Little expert Bryan Worters updates us on the open cases of Samuel Little—including unmatched confessions, Jane Doe victims, and much more. Worters discusses previously unreleased case descriptions, possible solves, Little's death, and new details in a number of Southeastern cases that may help close the remaining open cases.  The Fall Line® is an investigat...

It's a question the families of the missing dream of asking; the families of homicide victims, too, but for very different reasons--because they're tracking down a perpetrator, just beyond their reach--someone standing close enough to touch, with just one vital detail missing, or the mere suggestion of a suspect, with a thousand doors of possibility open before them. In nearly five years of broadc...

In Collier County, Florida, investigators are working to identify a murder victim found in 1986--one whose only known name, 'Sebastian Pasqual,' was a pseudonym. And his homicide is not the only Doe case tied to an alias in Collier; in Florida, and across the country, there are hundreds of such victims waiting to be identified.  Pre order Laurah's book LAY THEM TO REST: https://www.hachettebooks.c...

We explore one of the world's most thorough indexes of Doe cases: Unidentified Wiki--and speak with its creator, who hadn't finished high school when he began to compile information on both the most well-known and the most obscure cases of the unidentified in the United States and beyond. Armchair detectives and experts alike use his site to trade information and seek the identities of John and Ja...

Timica James promised local authorities that she would keep her family from conducting their own investigation into the death of her son, Moses "Fat Man" Williams Jr., if local authorities solved his case within ten years; on February 5th 2022, that date will pass, with Moses' murder still unsolved.  In part two of our deep dive into the life and death of Moses Williams Jr, and the far-reaching ef...

On Super Bowl Sunday, 2012, a gunshot rang out across the darkened streets of Aiken, SC--and 19-year-old Moses "Fat Man" Williams Jr., a popular former high-school football star, slumped in the driver's seat of his car. Though his girlfriend and her sister were no more than a hundred feet away, and he was parked in a busy neighborhood, no one could—or would—say who'd shot the young father, who wor...

After her 2014 murder, on a bright weekday afternoon, the family of Grace Chen, the Austin community that had embraced her, and local investigators attempt to puzzle out her case--even as an art theft adds levels of complexity, and more questions than answers. In part two of this series, Grace's son, Jacky, community advocate, Amy Wong Mok, and the current detective assigned on to her case weigh i...

In Febuary of 2014, Grace Chen--mother, small-business-owner, talented teacher, and active member of her Austin community—was murdered just steps away from her own language school. In the seven-plus years since her murder, her son, Jacky, and community members, like advocate Amy Wong Mok, have attempted to piece together what happened on that bright, busy weekday afternoon, a woman well-loved by s...

In over a century's worth of investigation into the unsolved murders attributed to the unknown killer called "Jack the Ripper," little real attention has been paid to the five canonical victims--they've been treated as objects for dissection, not human beings with full lives.  Author and historian Hallie Rubenhold, who published The Five in 2019 and is releasing the podcast Bad Women: The Ripper R...