A suspected murder-suicide in Mendocino County, Calif., in 2018 killed at least seven members of a lesbian-led family of eight. One of the mothers, Jennifer Jean Hart, was determined to have been under the influence when she drove her family off a cliff on the Pacific Coast Highway and into the ocean more than 100 feet below. Now, the documentary Thread of Deceit: The Hart Family Tragedy delves into the story of Jennifer, her wife, Sarah Hart, and their six foster children. Among those immediately identified after the crash were the mothers of the family, both 38, and their foster children -- Martin, 19, Abigail, 14, and Jeremiah, 14. It was determined that Jennifer had a blood alcohol level of .102, while her wife and the three kids found at the time had been dosed with diphenhydramine, the active ingredient in Benadryl. The bodies of Hannah, 16, and Sierra, 12, were found later. Only Devonte, 15, remains missing.
Hex Hollow: Witchcraft and Murder in Pennsylvania (2015)
A documentary film investigating the 1928 murder of a Pennsylvania farmer and the allegations of witchcraft that shocked the nation.
James Bulger: The New Revelations (2018)
25 years after the verdict in the Jamie Bulger murder trial, we reveal what the jury, public and press never heard, and what his two killers, Thompson and Venables, said during their time in custody from arrest to release.
The Murder of Gabby Petito: Truth, Lies and Social Media (2021)
Examines Gabby's life through the curated lens she created and immerses the viewer in the world of social media sleuthing that was crucial to the case.
Der Al Capone vom Donaumoos (1986)
The autobiographical portrait of Theo Berger, who gained notoriety as the king of burglaries and escapes and spent most of his life in prison. His criminal career includes over 150 crimes committed since the age of 18. Theo Berger was sentenced twice to 15 years and twice to preventive detention. The film was made during his parole, which he received after contracting leukemia. But less than six months after filming was completed, Theo Berger was arrested again. Unprepared for a life in freedom, he was involved in a bank robbery. He was sentenced to a further 12 years in prison.
Confessions of a Psycho Killer (2023)
When the body of 63-year-old vicar, Anthony Crean, was discovered in the quiet village of Shorne, Kent in March 1975, the community were shocked. Father Crean hadn’t died of natural causes; he had been hacked to death with an axe and left in a bath of blood. One detective was certain the killer was 22-year-old career criminal named Patrick Mackay, but he had no proof.
The Kidnapping of Elizabeth Smart (2005)
In June of 2002, Salt Lake City was the setting for a chilling kidnapping. An angelic young girl is stolen from her bedroom in the middle of the night. The most unlikely of victims in a seemingly motiveless crime. The abduction of Elizabeth Smart was so bizarre and unique that it transfixed America.
Missing: The Lucie Blackman Case (2023)
July 1, 2000. British 21-year-old Lucie Blackman goes missing in Tokyo, sparking an international investigation — and an unyielding quest for justice.
The Lie: The Murder of Grace Millane (2024)
The shocking murder of 21-year-old British backpacker, Grace Millane, in New Zealand grabbed headlines around the world in 2018, as did the ensuing investigation and trial. This chilling true-crime documentary revisits the night of her tragic murder with previously unseen footage and expert analysis, exploring the alarming, regressive attitudes laid bare in the subsequent trial, and highlighting important, broader issues of violence against women in today’s society.
Amanda Knox (2016)
This gripping, atmospheric documentary recounts the infamous trial, conviction and eventual acquittal of Seattle native Amanda Knox for the 2007 murder of a British exchange student in Italy.
The Murder of Lyn Dawson: The Teacher, the Groomer, the Killer (2023)
In January 1982 Lynette Dawson, a loving wife and mother, disappears. Days later her husband, Christopher Dawson, a school teacher and famous footballer, moves their teenage babysitter into the family home. He claims his wife called him and told him she needed time away, but those closest to Lynette know his story doesn’t add up. They know what the police don’t– that Christopher Dawson was in a secret sexual relationship with the babysitter. And above all, they know that Lynette, a devoted mother, would never abandon her two little girls. That simple conviction propels them on a forty year fight for justice.
Murder Trial: The Killing of Dr Brenda Page (2024)
A look at one of Scotland’s most high-profile murder trials, the brutal killing of Dr Brenda Page. It was part of the Scottish criminal justice system’s 45-year quest for answers.
The Disappearance of Renee and Andrew MacRae (2023)
On the 12th November 1976, Renee MacRae, a glamorous 36-year old mother of two and wife of a wealthy building firm owner, vanished after leaving her home in Inverness. Later that night, Renee’s burnt out BMW was found in a lay-by on the roadside of the A9. Neither she nor her three-year-old son Andrew have ever been seen again.
The Russell Murders (NaN)
On 9 July 1996, three bodies were found in a little leafy copse beside a country lane in Chillenden, Kent. Dr Lin Russell, 45, and her two daughters, Megan, six and Josie, nine, had all suffered brutal head injuries caused by a blunt instrument. They had been tied up and their family dog, Lucy, was also found dead nearby.
Normalization (2013)
The film is a Slovak version of The Thin Blue Line, recounting the unsolved disappearance and murder of a young woman that happened thirty years ago. It was a case that was paraded in the communist media at the end of which seven individuals were found guilty of this heinous crime. They are the same individuals who at present proclaim their innocence.
Unraveled: Experts on Trial (2021)
Billy and Alexis expose serious problems with forensic experts’ testimony in the U.S. court system, citing multiple cases in which people were charged with murders they didn’t commit, based largely on an expert’s opinion.
Killer Teens (2012)
Killer Teens is a one-hour crime series exploring the frightening phenomenon of murder committed by teenagers.
Power’s War (2015)
On the evening of February 9th, 1918 three local lawmen and one federal officer rode into the Arizona wilderness to apprehend four men on counts of draft evasion and murder. The violence that followed has been so steeped in legend, lies, and hearsay, that the facts of what occurred at that remote cabin and why were almost lost to history. Contemporary interviews with historians and family members, archival footage, and original artwork tell the story of the events leading up to and following the deadliest shootout in Arizona's history.
Interview With A Murderer (2016)
A famed criminologist reexamines the evidence in this powerful interview with murderer Bert Spencer, suspected in the killing a paperboy in 1978.
Dead Asleep (2021)
Did a remorseful Randy Herman Jr. really commit a brutal murder in his sleep, or was it a convenient cover story? Exclusive access to Herman and his family, the defense and prosecution attorneys, journalists who covered the case, forensic psychiatrists and world experts in violent parasomnia (sleep-walking) give an inside look at the shocking twists and turns of the controversial crime.
Ricochet (2021)
When a young woman is shot by an undocumented immigrant on Pier 14 in San Francisco, the incident ignites a political and media furor that culminates in Donald Trump’s election as President of the United States. In the eye of this storm, two public defenders fight to reveal the truth.