Small Town Dicks

In part two of this two-part case, Detective Bre works to connect her current investigation to a years-old cold case that could reveal more about the suspect and his pattern of behavior.

As she digs deeper into the evidence, additional victims begin to emerge. Bre must navigate a frustrating legal system, build a case strong enough to hold the suspect accountable, and fight for justice and closure for the victims and their families.

Detective Bre has been in law enforcement for two decades as both a detective and a member of the...

In part one of this two-part case, a teenager makes disturbing allegations about a trusted neighbor. Detective Bre begins an investigation that quickly reveals the situation may be far bigger than it first appeared.

As Bre follows the evidence, a pattern of grooming, secrecy and manipulation begins to emerge. Then the investigation uncovers a possible connection to a years-old death that had once been ruled justified, forcing detectives to take a closer look at what really happened.

Detective Bre has been in law enforcement for two decades as both a detective and a member of...

When a woman suddenly stops showing up for work, a welfare check at her home raises more questions than answers. Detective Sergeant Laura arrives to find a guarded husband whose account is filled with inconsistencies.

As the missing person investigation deepens, Laura must trust her instincts, keep a potential suspect talking, and carefully piece together what really happened in a case that shocked a small, tight-knit community.

Laura Price spent her law enforcement career asking questions, following clues, and discovering that on a small island, things are rarely as simple as they first appear. Her 23...

During a volatile period in Edinburgh, Deputy Chief Constable Tom is called to the scene of a shooting, a rare crime in the UK. The victim is a low-level criminal, and police fear the killing could signal the beginning of a gang war.

Investigators put pressure on local criminal networks, but the effort produces no new leads. With the case stalled, Tom changes course and takes a closer look at the people who witnessed the shooting.

What they reveal sends the investigation in a direction Tom never expected.

Ret. Deputy Chief Constable Tom...

Detective Greg is called to a shooting at a home in a rural community. While investigators are still processing the scene, a stranger suddenly appears in the bushes with a gun to his head.

Greg brings the man in for questioning and quickly discovers something unsettling: he’s had several encounters with law enforcement in just the past week, and each time, he’s given officers a different name.

As Greg works to uncover the stranger’s real identity and determine what brought him to the scene of a shooting, the case becomes one he’ll never...

A group of teenage boys are hanging out when a reckless bet turns deadly. Brian is dared to push another boy, Michael, from a three-story train trestle on a freezing winter night. 

Prosecutor Kristin is assigned to the case as her jurisdiction pursues felony murder charges against the teenagers involved. But the controversial prosecution quickly turns into a complicated legal battle, leaving Kristin fighting largely on her own to hold the group accountable for Michael’s death.

Kristin takes us inside the investigation, the felony murder prosecution, and the difficult question at the center of it...

Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Akil Baddoo joins Yeardley Smith for a candid and joyful conversation about confidence, resilience, and learning how to stay grounded through the inevitable highs and lows of professional baseball. Akil traces his love of the game back to hitting baseballs with his dad in the backyard, breaking a window before he was even old enough for Little League, and hitting his first home run at five years old. He talks about the confidence his mother instilled in him, knowing from a young age that he wanted to play professionally, and why he never believed in having...

A quiet summer night takes a terrifying turn when a woman discovers someone she knows has broken into her home, intent on hurting her. What follows is an hours-long, harrowing fight for survival and an all-hands-on-deck search for a dangerous suspect. 

Our own Detective Dan shares this chilling home invasion case, taking us inside the meticulous police investigation, the race to find the suspect and one woman’s extraordinary determination to survive.

Detective Dan was formerly a K9 handler and Violent Crimes detective at the same Small Town police department as his brother, Dave. Dan...

In the finale, a new DNA tool, often referred to as genetic genealogy, has finally led investigators to Joseph DeAngelo’s doorstep. Paul walks us through the aftermath of finally identifying the Golden State Killer. For the victims, it brings long-awaited answers. For Paul Holes, it brings relief, attention, and a void, much like you’d expect when your 24-year obsession finally comes to an end. 

Want to hear the entire series right now?

Join Super Duper Fam at ⁠⁠⁠⁠smalltowndicks.com/superfam⁠⁠⁠⁠ for access to the full ad-free binge feed, and use promo code GSK for yo...

Welcome to the premiere episode of Firehouse Files, hosted by Steve Buscemi, Marian Fontana, and Dennis Gordon. Firehouse Files features firefighters and first responders sharing firsthand accounts of the calls that have stayed with them.

Today’s special episode, “Never Forget,” commemorates the 25th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks and honors the firefighters who were lost that day and in the years since.

Steve, Marian, Dennis, and their guest, former FDNY Fire Commissioner Dan Nigro, were all in New York City on September 11 and each experienced the tragedy from a diff...

A new kind of DNA analysis changes everything. After learning how genetic genealogy helped identify an unknown victim in a kidnapping case, Paul Holes begins to wonder whether the same method could be used to find the Golden State Killer. Working with a small team, he uses an SNP profile to identify distant relatives and build family trees that may ultimately lead to a name. After decades of dead ends, the case begins to move with astonishing speed - culminating in, at last, the arrest of Joseph D’Angelo.

Want to hear the entire se...

Years after stepping away from the case, Paul is pulled back in. The files are still there. The case is still unsolved. And a suspect emerges who seems to fit. Paul Holes spends years chasing this man he believes could be the Golden State Killer, only for DNA to prove him wrong. We learn all about false leads, investigative humility, and the emotional toll of a case that followed Paul into every part of his life.

Want to hear the entire series right now?

Join Super Duper Fam at ⁠⁠⁠⁠smalltowndicks.com/superfam⁠⁠⁠⁠ for access to th...

The crimes continue in Southern California, with the murders of Manuela Witthuhn and Janelle Cruz. Paul Holes explains how the offender’s violence evolved, how patterns emerged across cases, and how investigators eventually linked the East Area Rapist attacks in Northern California to the Original Night Stalker homicides in the south. For a moment, Paul believes the case may finally be solved. Instead, the investigation enters another long silence.

Want to hear the entire series right now?

Join Super Duper Fam at ⁠⁠⁠smalltowndicks.com/superfam⁠⁠⁠ for access to the full ad-free binge feed, and use...

After the East Area Rapist disappears from Northern California, an attack with a similar MO happens hundreds of miles away in Goleta. At the time, investigators had no reason to connect it to the Sacramento series. Paul Holes helps us understand the shift into Southern California, the jurisdictional gaps, and the violence of the Lyman and Charlene Smith case. Years later, evidence from this phase will become critical to identifying the Golden State Killer.

Want to hear the entire series right now?

Join Super Duper Fam at ⁠⁠⁠⁠smalltowndicks.com/superfam⁠⁠⁠⁠ for access to the full ad-f...

The East Area Rapist did not stop terrorizing victims when he left their homes. Paul Holes walks us through the phone calls, threats, and psychological cruelty inflicted on the victims long after the attacks. This episode explores fear as part of the offender’s pattern. Paul also traces the final Northern California attacks and the moment the series abruptly stops in the north before starting up again somewhere else in the state.

Want to hear the entire series right now?

Join Super Duper Fam at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠smalltowndicks.com/superfam⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for access to the full ad-free binge fee...

As fear spreads through Sacramento, the public demands answers. Communities hold meetings. Newspapers cover the case. And all the while, Paul Holes believes the East Area Rapist was likely watching closely. In this episode, we examine a chilling turning point in the series: the first known attack with a man present in the home, and the possibility that the offender targeted that couple after a town hall comment. The case draws more public attention, and the crimes become more calculated.

Want to hear the entire series right now?

Join Super Duper Fam at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠smalltowndicks.com/superfam⁠⁠...

The case moves into Cordova Meadows, a Sacramento-area neighborhood that became key to understanding the East Area Rapist. Through maps, geography, victimology, and old case files, Paul Holes explains how the offender’s movements revealed familiarity, planning, and confidence. What may have looked random from the outside begins to look very different when Paul studies the streets, fences, backyards, and anchor points that help shape the investigation.

Want to hear the entire series right now?

Join Super Duper Fam at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠smalltowndicks.com/superfam⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for access to the full ad-free binge feed, and use promo code GSK for...

The crimes move north, and a new name emerges: the East Area Rapist. Paul Holes explains how the offender’s behavior changed after Visalia, how early attacks in the Sacramento area unfolded, and how investigators struggled to understand whether they were dealing with a new offender or just someone who had evolved. As the crime spree expands, Paul begins to unpack one of the most disturbing facts of the case: Joseph DeAngelo was a police officer.

Want to hear the entire series right now?

Join Super Duper Fam at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠smalltowndicks.com/superfam⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for access to the full...

Paul Holes begins the story in 1970s Visalia, California, when the Golden State Killer was just beginning to make a name for himself. Before the East Area Rapist, before the Original Night Stalker, there was the Visalia Ransacker, a prolific offender breaking into homes and leaving fear behind. Paul walks Yeardley, Dan, and Dave through the early crimes, the killing of Claude Snelling, the shooting of Officer McGowan, and the case files that first pulled Paul into what would become a career-defining 24-year pursuit.

Want to hear the entire series right now?

Join Super...

In the final part of this three-part series, retired FBI agent Scott brings us to the end of one of the most significant domestic terrorism cases in American history. Justice is served for the people of Oklahoma City. But for Scott, closing a case like this doesn't mean leaving it behind. Some cases stay with you. This is one of them.

Retired FBI agent R. Scott Crabtree was born in Herington, KS and raised in Omaha, NE. After high school, he enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps before getting his college degree in accounting, aconomics, and...

In part two of this three-part series, retired FBI agent Scott comes face to face with a key second suspect in the Oklahoma City bombing. What follows is an hours-long interview that requires as much patience as it does skill. The suspect's story shifts and changes, and Scott has to navigate every contradiction carefully, pushing just enough without pushing too far. One wrong move and it all falls apart. Scott needs this to hold up in court.

Retired FBI agent R. Scott Crabtree was born in Herington, KS and raised in Omaha, NE. After high school, he...

The Oklahoma City Bombing was one of the most devastating attacks in American history, and its story has been told many times. But never like this.

Retired FBI agent Scott was on the case in the chaotic hours after the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. In part one of this three-part series, Scott takes us through the turbulent days immediately after the bombing, as he races to pin down a suspect.

Retired FBI agent R. Scott Crabtree was born in Herington, KS and raised in Omaha, NE. After high school, he enlisted...

Paul Holes has never told the full story of the Golden State Killer case like this before. 

This summer, Small Town Dicks presents a special 10-part limited series: Chasing the Golden State Killer with Paul Holes. 

Across the series, Paul will tell the full story of his 24-year pursuit of the Golden State Killer, from the earliest case files to the DNA breakthrough that helped identify Joseph DeAngelo. 

Chasing the Golden State Killer with Paul Holes premieres July 10, with new episodes every Friday on the Small Town Dicks podcast feed. 

To join...

A young woman's body is found in a remote, rural area with little to go on and no way to identify her. Captain Chris and his team do the only thing they can and start going through the trash around her. A single receipt changes everything. It leads them to a man named William and a complex love triangle involving his current girlfriend and his former fiancée. When Chris puts the pieces together, the identity of the woman in the woods becomes heartbreakingly clear. 

Captain Chris grew up in Springfield, OR, and has been working in La...

In January 2025, a 17-year-old opened fire in his school cafeteria, killing a teenage girl before turning the gun on himself. In the aftermath, Matt Kriner faces a different kind of investigation. His job is to dig through the suspect's vast digital footprint, a record rife with racist and violent rhetoric, and piece together not just what happened, but why. And what it might take to prevent it from happening again.

Matt Kriner has a background in intelligence analysis and is the Executive Director Institute for Countering Digital Extremism (ICDE), which he co-founded to provide guidance to government...

A man pulls a gun on his wife during an argument and refuses to surrender when law enforcement arrives. Lieutenant Ryan takes the scene and what follows is a tense, five-hour negotiation. As Ryan works to bring the situation to a safe resolution, the case becomes a window into how suspects behave in these moments and what it takes to reach them.

Lieutenant Ryan has worked in law enforcement for 15 years. He started his career as a patrol deputy and later moved into investigations as a detective, working in a unit that handled Crimes Against Children, including...

A young mother, six weeks pregnant, reaches out to Detective Alia after being attacked by her on-again, off-again partner. Alia takes the case and gets to work, determined to get justice for her and her unborn child. But before she can get there, the case takes a turn that is as devastating as it is unexpected.

Detective Alia has 12 years of law enforcement experience with her agency. She spent eight years on patrol, including five as a Field Training Deputy, mentoring and developing new deputies. She then served three years in the Training Division, where she oversaw...

Two elderly women are assaulted by the same CNA who was assigned to care for them. Detective Robert picks up the case and sits down with the suspect for a lengthy interview, walking away with a confession. But when Robert puts out a media release, the phones don't stop ringing. Victims come forward. Former coworkers admit they knew something was wrong. What emerges is bigger than one case. It's a picture of a broken system that allowed a predator to keep operating.

Sergeant Robert has been in law enforcement for over 20 years. Prior to becoming a detective...

Hector returns home from a work trip to find small things out of place. When Hector confronts his daughter, Sofia, she confesses to a secret relationship with a 68-year-old man she met swing dancing. Hector walks her straight to the police station, and that's how Lieutenant Ryan gets the case. A controlled call gives Ryan what he needs. But it's what Sofia says at the end of that call that changes everything and leads police to a search warrant that reveals just how deep this obsession goes.

Join the Small Town Dicks SuperFam for exclusive bonus content...

A teenager confides in a friend that a 45-year-old man has been secretly entering her bedroom at night. What she doesn't know is that he has been lying to her about his age and hiding a criminal past. When Detective Bre gets the case, she moves quickly, and with precision. Her goal isn't just to stop him. It's to make sure he never has the opportunity to do this again.

Join the Small Town Dicks SuperFam for exclusive bonus content & more:
https://smalltowndicks.com/superfam

Detective Bre has been in law enforcement for two...

A chaotic disturbance call comes in at 7 am. When Detective Aaron arrives, he finds a woman who says she has just escaped days of captivity at the hands of a violent ex-boyfriend, freshly released from prison. As Aaron and his team work to piece together what happened, the story she tells begins to reveal something much more troubling. Nobody saw it coming.

Detective Aaron (Retired) started his law enforcement career as an Explorer in Alaska at 13 years old. He then spent 21 years as a sworn police officer in Alaska and Oregon. During his career he was assigned...

In 1994, wealthy Newport Beach businessman Bill McLaughlin is shot and killed in his own kitchen. His girlfriend Nanette Johnston and her secret boyfriend, ex-NFL player Eric Naposki, are immediately suspicious…but the stories don't hold and prosecutors can't make charges stick. The case goes cold, leaving Bill's family without justice for over a decade. Fifteen years later, Orange County DA Matt Murphy picks it up, determined to finally prove what really happened and who arranged it.

Matt Murphy is a legal analyst for ABC News and an attorney in private practice in Southern California.  He was a Sen...

We'll be back very soon with a brand new season of Small Town Dicks.

Want to hear the first FOUR episodes of Season 18 RIGHT NOW? 

Visit smalltowndicks.com/superfam and join at the Super Duper Fam level for access to the latest BINGE drop.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This is part two of a two-part episode. As Detective Robert keeps digging into the case against Darren, more information comes to light and a disturbing picture begins to form. Darren isn’t just a womanizer with power. He’s a predator operating within the justice system. To stop him, Robert must take on not just the suspect, but the system protecting him.

Sergeant Robert has been in law enforcement for over 20 years. Prior to becoming a detective, he spent nine years on patrol, where he served as a Field Training Officer (FTO) and an FBI-trained hostage negotiator. As a...

Hey Small Town Fam! It's Thanksgiving in America so, as is tradition, we're taking a break from our usual episodes this week. Instead of an episode, please enjoy two ad-free bonus episodes that aired on our Super Fam feed; Fight Like Hell and AI Strikes Again.

If you like what you hear, become a Super Fam member at smalltowndicks.com/superfam , and use the promo code FREEMONTH for the first month on us! There, you'll find over 250 bonus episodes, with new bonus episodes every week (even between Small Town Dicks seasons!). You'll also get main episodes a day...

When Detective Robert opens an investigation into a fellow officer, he doesn’t yet realize the scope of what he’s about to uncover. The suspect, Darren, is a well-connected cop, and the woman accusing him is terrified to speak out. When she bravely comes forward, the race to stop Darren from continuing to offend is on. This is part one of a two-part episode about police misconduct, ending on a nail-biting cliffhanger.

Sergeant Robert has been in law enforcement for over 20 years. Prior to becoming a detective, he spent nine years on patrol, where he served as a Fi...

When Detective Constable Simon becomes the sole detective on the remote island of Rothesay, he sets his sights on cleaning up the town’s growing drug problem. But just months into his new role, his investigations begin to unravel. That’s when Simon starts to suspect someone inside the department is tipping off suspects.
His search for the source turns up nothing, and he’s left to face a chilling possibility: the leak might be coming from above.

Detective Constable Simon joined the force in 1978 and retired in 2006. During his tenure, Simon worked in the drugs and major...

Detective Lindsey is assigned a stack of cold cases, but one file stops her in her tracks: the brutal assault of a woman whose attacker was never caught. A DNA match points to a previously convicted offender.

As Det. Lindsey digs deeper, a pattern begins to emerge. The investigation leads to a disturbing possibility — there are more victims out there, still waiting for justice.

Lindsey served as a Tacoma Police Officer for twenty-one years. During her fourteen years as a detective, she investigated sexual assaults, child abuse, missing persons, and homicides. In 2010, Lindsey discovered serial killer Te...

It’s Deputy Alia’s day off, but instead of relaxing, she’s called in to negotiate with a barricaded suspect who has murdered his loved one. What follows is a tense and tragic police negotiation, as Alia uses her training and instincts to calm a panicked suspect and bring control to a chaotic barricade standoff.

Deputy Alia has served with her agency for just over 10 years. She spent about 8 years on patrol, five of those as a field training deputy. The last two years she has spent in the training division where she is responsible for cadet traini...

A man’s body is found face down with his hands zip-tied behind his back, launching Detective Aaron into a months-long homicide investigation to uncover the victim’s identity and the truth behind his death. This intense real crime case would become Detective Aaron’s final investigation before medical retirement, a case he calls “the straw that broke the camel’s back.”

Detective Aaron (Retired) started his law enforcement career as an Explorer in Alaska at 13 years old. He then spent 21 years as a sworn police officer in Alaska and Oregon. During his career he was assigned to patrol, Fiel...