EPTI came across a relatively new offshoot of the series, This American Life called Serial. So named due it being an on going series of stories, often referred to as serials when they were a common part of radio, TV and film, but I assume as well because of the words affiliation with murder. The podcast covers one journalist's interest in a murder case that happened in Baltimore in 1999, and her investigation into what happened in January of that year. The victim, Hae Min Lee, was found dead, having been strangled manually (with bare hands), that winter and her recently ex-Boyfriend, Adnan was tried and convicted of first degree murder.
So what makes this content worth checking out? A murder in Baltimore isn't exactly big news, at least not in some parts, and a jilted ex going down for the crime is so common it is a trope in pretty much every crime related TV show; what makes this podcast interesting, is that Sarah Koenig, our journalist is attempting to ascertain the guilt or innocence of the man currently imprisoned for the crime. No physical evidence was found, the prosecution relied heavily on witness testimony (of events leading up to the act, no witness actually was present for the act itself) and the time frame of the murder is ludicrously small.
Sarah does this by reaching out to the family of the convicted, witnesses from the trial, people who signed affidavits swearing one way or the other that their statement was true, even high school class mates who offered details to the police and gains a unique perspective on what is seemingly apparent from court documents, and what this trial looks like in retrospect to those most closely involved with the events in the court room.
What struck me most was how used to the whole, "fade to black," scene at least for me personally I've become. Trial concludes, justice is served or not served and the story ends or begins respectively but seldom are we the public (generally due to completely understandable concerns of privacy), allowed to play voyeur to the drama that can happen after someone's life is taken, and how that affects the people closest to all involved. Though they've not yet spoken with the Lee family, I can only imagine it is in the pipeline for later episodes.
While I doubt there is going to be a huge push coming out about the convicted's trial or his guilt or innocence as a result of the podcast, it is an interesting look into the American justice system with some amazing context laid out, and excellent detail.
If you like a good podcast every now and again, I can't recommend enough taking a listen to this one. Link to the show can be found below and there is about an hour and a half of content currently available with a new episode slated for this friday.
http://serialpodcast.org/
