Unjust & Unsolved

Obsessed Network

The Innocence Project estimates that there are currently over 20,000 innocent people locked away in US prisons. These cases remain unsolved. Each week, Investigative Journalist Maggie Freleng tells the story of one of those people and takes a deep dive into the crime they were convicted of. Through her original interviews with the convicted, their lawyers, families, and friends, Freleng chronicles each inmate’s fight for exoneration and their hope that justice can still be served. read less

Our Editor's Take

The Unjust & Unsolved podcast investigates unsolved crimes. Not only are these crimes unsolved, but an innocent person may have been wrongly convicted. Investigative journalist Maggie Freleng explores whether the right person is in prison. Each week, she focuses on one crime and one prisoner. Through interviews with the convicted and their loved ones, she investigates what happened. In each episode, Freleng tries to conclude whether an unjust conviction occurred.

Understanding a potential wrongful conviction is complex. Freleng speaks to each convicted individual and listens to their story. She explores coincidences and inconsistencies. Then, she presents a case. She explains why she believes this person may be unfairly convicted. The podcast explores many cases, and each episode focuses on one case.

Episodes share a broad range of different types of cases. Freleng discusses Cheri Hayden. She believes Hayden was wrongly convicted of murder in 2008. She also speaks to Ralph Trent Stokes, who has been on death row for over 40 years. Freleng believes Stokes is not guilty of a triple murder from 1982. In another episode, she speaks to Diamantina Salinas Kolojaco. The guest did 20 years in prison for the murder of her husband. A serial killer later confessed he was the real killer.

Another podcast episode features the case of Tracy Alan Zornes. He went to prison for alleged murder and arson. Later, investigators found evidence that he was not to blame. He is still serving a life sentence for the crimes.

Freleng is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and producer. She is an Adjunct Professor at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY. Her work focuses on criminal justice and social issues. In Unjust & Unsolved, her passion for justice is evident. She uses detailed interviews to investigate some of America's most controversial crimes of the century. Her main question is-did the correct person receive a conviction?

Unjust & Unsolved releases new episodes weekly. Each episode is around 40 minutes long.

read less
True CrimeTrue Crime
Play Trailer
PREVIEW: Unjust and Unsolved
Aug 14 2020
PREVIEW: Unjust and Unsolved
From journalist Maggie Freleng and the Obsessed Network The Innocence Project estimates that there are currently over 20,000 innocent people locked away in US prisons. These cases remain unsolved. Each week, Investigative Journalist Maggie Freleng tells the story of one of those people and takes a deep dive into the crime they were convicted of. Through her original interviews with the convicted, their lawyers, families, and friends, Freleng chronicles each inmate’s fight for exoneration and their hope that justice can still be served. This preview features portions of Maggie's interview with J.J. Velasquez whose story will be featured in Season 1. Full episodes of "Unjust and Unsolved" premiere on September 10, 2020

Episodes

Introducing "Murder in Alliance: Ep. 1 Dead in the Water"
May 13 2021
Introducing "Murder in Alliance: Ep. 1 Dead in the Water"
Hey, Unjust and Unsolved listeners! We're so excited to bring you the new show from the Obsessed Network, "Murder in Alliance." The new show dives deep into an episode we covered in "Unjust and Unsolved," reinvestigating the case in real time.  We've got the first episode here for you in this feed, and two more available right now wherever you get your podcasts. Listen to the first three episodes and follow "Murder in Alliance" on your favorite podcast player HERE (https://lnk.to/98BXWuip). In the podcast, investigative journalist Maggie Freleng reinvestigates the 1999 murder of Yvonne Layne. Though her ex-boyfriend David Thorne was convicted of the murder, evidence points to his innocence. Now, twenty years later, Maggie travels to Ohio to talk with people involved in the case, explore new leads, and try to identify who killed Yvonne. Follow "Murder in Alliance" on Twitter and Instagram: @Murder_Alliance
22: Cheri Hayden
Feb 4 2021
22: Cheri Hayden
On Feb 23, 2008 a botched robbery took place leaving 68-year-old Patricia Landry dead. Witnesses said the driver of the vehicle that ran her over was a blonde woman in her 20s. Despite the age discrepancy, Cheri Hayden, a 45-year-old woman with deep facial wrinkles, clearly not 20, was arrested, tried and convicted with no evidence other than eyewitness testimony. In fact, if the police had done a proper investigation they would have found multiple people who said the real killer confessed...and she was blonde and in her 20s. For more information and a complete list of sources for this episode, visit: https://www.unjustandunsolved.com/ Join us on Patreon to support the show and access exclusive content: patreon.com/unjustandunsolved
21: Brandon Spencer
Jan 28 2021
21: Brandon Spencer
Halloween night 2012, 19-year-old Brandon Spencer and his girlfriend were on the University of Southern California campus in Los Angeles attending a Halloween party. Suddenly, shots rang out and it was pandemonium. Everyone scattered, ducked, and hid. There was screaming...it was chaos and Brandon Spencer a smart kid from a well-to-do supportive family, with a good job getting ready to enter an EMT program wound up being pinned for it. Family, friends, police, even the former mayor of Inglewood vouched for Brandon, but the jury bought the prosecution's theory, that Brandon was a hardcore gangbanger and Brandon was sentenced to 40 years to life for four counts of attempted murder. However, years later, the star witness recanted and without his testimony...there is no evidence linking Brandon to the shooting. So why is Brandon still in prison? And if he's innocent, why was he railroaded? For more information and a complete list of sources for this episode, visit: https://www.unjustandunsolved.com/ Join us on Patreon to support the show and access exclusive content: patreon.com/unjustandunsolved
20: Sara Bennett
Jan 21 2021
20: Sara Bennett
Former appellate attorney and author Sara Bennett captures stunning, honest portraits of women serving life sentences in prison. She and Maggie talk about how women doing time differs from men, re-entry for women, and the humanity of the people we lock up. Sara’s art has been widely exhibited and featured in publications like The New York Times, The New Yorker Photo Booth, and Variety & Rolling Stone’s “American (In)Justice.” Right now she has art up in New York City at MOMA PS1 in the “Art in the Age of Mass Incarceration” exhibit along with folks who have made art from inside prison. For more information and a complete list of sources for this episode, visit: https://www.unjustandunsolved.com/ Join us on Patreon to support the show and access exclusive content: patreon.com/unjustandunsolved
19: Andre Brown
Jan 14 2021
19: Andre Brown
1990’s Bronx, New York: The most violent decade in the city’s history in one of the most impoverished areas in the nation at the time, and college student Andre Brown was right in the middle. A drug turf war, teens with guns, and a corrupt mob lawyer for the Bonanno crime family - what could possibly go wrong? For more information and a complete list of sources for this episode, visit: https://www.unjustandunsolved.com/ Join us on Patreon to support the show and access exclusive content: patreon.com/unjustandunsolved
18: Ralph Trent Stokes
Jan 7 2021
18: Ralph Trent Stokes
On March 11, 1982 three people were murdered during a robbery of a famous Philadelphia restaurant. 19-year-old Ralph Trent Stokes was arrested three days later and at trial after only 45 minutes of deliberation, Ralph Stokes was convicted of three counts of first degree murder and sentenced to death. Roger King was the prosecutor. He held the record for most death sentences achieved in the state of Pennsylvania when he retired. He’s also infamous for prosecutorial misconduct and having multiple overturned convictions. King used made up physical evidence placing Ralph at the location of the crime and his star witness who fled the jurisdiction dressed as a woman - could have been the real killer all along. For more information and a complete list of sources for this episode, visit: https://www.unjustandunsolved.com/ Join us on Patreon to support the show and access exclusive content: patreon.com/unjustandunsolved
17: The Prosecutors
Dec 31 2020
17: The Prosecutors
Brett and Alice are The Prosecutors. Both are real life prosecutors, co-workers, friends and co-hosts of the podcast "The Prosecutors." This week, Maggie interviews Brett and Alice about being on the other side of the cases Unjust & Unsolved covers. They talk specifically about Darrell Ewing's case from Episode 8. Maggie gave them the transcripts, appeals, and all the documents she had and they dive into how the case was prosecuted, what happened, why, and if Brett and Alice would do the same. For more information and a complete list of sources for this episode, visit: https://www.unjustandunsolved.com/ Join us on Patreon to support the show and access exclusive content: patreon.com/unjustandunsolved
Announcement
Dec 22 2020
Announcement
Hi everyone! We are off this week for the holiday break, but if still want to hear "Unjust & Unsolved", you can head over to Patreon for more bonus content:  patreon.com/unjustandunsolved Happy Holidays!
16: Tracy Alan Zornes
Dec 17 2020
16: Tracy Alan Zornes
On Feb 19 2010, Tracy Zornes and some friends were hanging out drinking. Tracy left to see his girlfriend and when he came back, the apartment he was at was on fire. Tracy, avoiding a previous warrant for burglary, fled. Two weeks later he was arrested and charged in the stabbing, beating and arson murder of his friends Megan Londo and John Cadotte. Years later, a cop and a PI discovered evidence that Tracy, a Native American from a nearby reservation, did not commit the crime, and they know who did. They believe Tracy was railroaded because of long-standing bias against Native Americans in the region and country. Learn more about Tracy's case and how to help:https://ww.change.org/tracy-allen-zornes For more information and a complete list of sources for this episode, visit: https://www.unjustandunsolved.com/ Join us on Patreon to support the show and access exclusive content: patreon.com/unjustandunsolved
15: Diamantina Salinas Kolojaco
Dec 10 2020
15: Diamantina Salinas Kolojaco
This week's episode is absolutely insane. Diamantina Salinas Kolojaco and her lover Andres Mascorro did almost 2 decades in prison for the murder of her husband, before Proclaim Justice took their case after one of the most notorious serial killers confessed to journalist Alex Hannaford before execution. For more information and a complete list of sources for this episode, visit: https://www.unjustandunsolved.com/ Join us on Patreon to support the show and access exclusive content: https://www.patreon.com/unjustandunsolved
Live Q&A Tonight with Ronnie Long
Dec 9 2020
Live Q&A Tonight with Ronnie Long
Ronnie Long is celebrating 3 months out of prison after serving for 44 years for a crime he did not commit. Join us live tonight at 8pm EST on GetVokl for a Q&A with Ronnie and his wife AshLeigh. Access the link by joining the Patreon now:  https://www.patreon.com/unjustandunsolved
14: Temujin Kensu
Dec 3 2020
14: Temujin Kensu
On the morning of November 5 1986, 21-year-old Scott Macklem, a student at St. Clair Community College, was gunned down near his car in the school parking lot. Almost immediately, Temujin Kensu was homed in on as a suspect. The victim's fiancé had dated Kensu months earlier. An eyewitness also identified Kensu, who was tried and convicted of first degree murder. However, Kensu has at least 10 witnesses stating that he was 450 miles away from the murder when it took place and there is no physical evidence linking him to the crime. He was convicted through a hypnotized witness, a jailhouse informant and an unsubstantiated plane flight theory. ​Since his conviction, a retired officer from the same department that helped convict him has now joined his team as a PI and says the more he digs into this case, the more red flags he sees. For more information and a complete list of sources for this episode, visit: https://www.unjustandunsolved.com/ Join us on Patreon to support the show and access exclusive content:patreon.com/unjustandunsolved
Live Q&A Tonight!
Dec 2 2020
Live Q&A Tonight!
We have a breaking news exclusive in John Brookins' case. Join us live tonight at 8pm EST on GetVokl for a Q&A with John's wife Karen Brookins as she reveals breaking updates in the case and takes listener questions. Access the link by joining the Patreon now:  https://www.patreon.com/unjustandunsolved
13: Marty Tankeleff
Nov 26 2020
13: Marty Tankeleff
At 6 AM on September 7, 1988 17-year-old high school senior Marty Tankleff found both of his parents brutally murdered; stabbed and beaten. Almost two years later, Marty was convicted and sentenced to fifty years to life for their murders. Marty did 17 years behind bars before his conviction was overturned. In this Thanksgiving special, Maggie talks to Marty, her hometown exoneree from Port Jefferson, NY, about his conviction, exoneration and the system that put him there. For more information and a complete list of sources for this episode, visit: https://www.unjustandunsolved.com/ Join us on Patreon to support the show and access exclusive content: patreon.com/unjustandunsolved
12: Nikki Zinger
Nov 19 2020
12: Nikki Zinger
On March 10, 1991 Nikki Zinger's mother Linda Holley was found dead in her Magnolia, AR, home. The crime was brutal. She was stabbed 12 times, bludgeoned and left for dead. A month went by with no arrests, and then out of the blue 28-year-old Nikki and her boyfriend 24-year-old Daniel Rischer were arrested and convicted for her mother's murder. The prosecution said the motive was Linda's $90,000 life insurance policy. However, decades later new DNA evidence busts holes in the prosecution's theory. And circumstantial evidence is brought into question. It also turns out there was a similar murder that happened five days after Linda's that could point to the real killer. For more information and a complete list of sources for this episode, visit: https://www.unjustandunsolved.com/ Join us on Patreon to support the show and access exclusive content: patreon.com/unjustandunsolved
11: John Brookins
Nov 12 2020
11: John Brookins
On December 20th, 1990 26-year-old John Brookins went to his friend Sheila Ginsberg's house to help her clean. Sheila was an older woman, 58, and actually the mother of his on and off again girlfriend Sharon. When John arrived he says he found Sharon standing over her mother's dead body, stomping scissors into her chest. The crime scene was brutal. Sharon fled and then John, a young black man standing over a dead white woman, panicked and also fled the scene. Months later he was convicted for the murder of Sheila Ginsburg, based on Sharon's statements. But multiple people came forward saying Sharon actually confessed to the murder and was known to have a violent history with her.  The case is also riddled with police misconduct, ineffective council, and DNA that still needs to be tested.
10: DeMarco Wilson
Nov 5 2020
10: DeMarco Wilson
On February 1, 1997, Charles Newsome was shot while driving his car in a parking lot in West Memphis, AR. Newsome was a known gang member and according to witnesses there was gunfire between him and people in the parking lot. A passenger in his car, Frederick ‘Tyrone’ Ellis, gave a statement about the shooters. He changed his statement multiple times until he said the three defendants who were there: DeMarco Wilson, Antonio Williams, and Kendric Gillum. Ellis was facing criminal charges at the time and they were dropped with his testimony. Two jailhouse informants also got lesser sentences for their testimony. One has recanted and said the prosecution forced him into it. DeMarco also had a solid alibi. The three were convicted in Judge David Burnett’s courtroom who also presided over the infamous West Memphis 3 case. Jason Baldwin, one of the WM3, is working to help secure DeMarco’s freedom with his organization Proclaim Justice.
9: Jeffrey Havard
Oct 29 2020
9: Jeffrey Havard
On February 21, 2002 Jeffrey Havard was babysitting his girlfriend’s baby, Chloe Britt. Jeff was bathing her when she accidentally slipped from his hands and hit her head on the toilet. He put her to bed and everything was fine until she was later rushed to the hospital and died. Jeff was arrested, charged and sentenced to death in Mississippi for the sexual assault and murder Chloe. Changes in science behind “Shaken Baby Syndrome” caused an evidentiary hearing for Jeff in 2016. The original medical examiner in the case said that he specifically told prosecutors on more than one occasion prior to trial that he could not support a finding for sexual abuse. This information was withheld from the defense. He has also changed his initial findings and believes that this was indeed an accident, agreeing with many new experts. In September of 2018, Jeff's death penalty sentence was vacated, and he was re-sentenced to life without parole, but is still fighting for his freedom. Learn more about Jeffrey's case and how to help: http://www.freejeffreyhavard.org/ For more information and a complete list of sources for this episode, visit: https://www.unjustandunsolved.com/
Introducing "Crimes of the Centuries"
Oct 26 2020
Introducing "Crimes of the Centuries"
"Crimes of the Centuries" is a new podcast from the Obsessed Network featuring award-winning journalist (and crucial "Unjust and Unsolved" collaborator) Amber Hunt.  Each episode tells the story of a case that might not be remembered today, but was huge when it happened. The first two episodes are out today, and we're presenting a special preview of Episode 1.  Subscribe to "Crimes of the Centuries" wherever you get your podcasts.
8: Darrell Ewing
Oct 22 2020
8: Darrell Ewing
On December 29, 2009 two cars pulled up to a Detroit intersection. In one was J.B. Watson, his girlfriend LaRita Thomas, and his cousin Phillip Reed. In the other, two black men. One got out and fired multiple shots at the trio, killing Watson. The shooting was claimed to be gang related and Darrell Ewing and and his co-defendant Derrico Searcy were convicted of the murder. However, Darell had a solid alibi at a family funeral and Tyree Washington came forward repeatedly to confess to the murder, including under oath. In 2017, Darrell and Derrico were ordered a new trial based on jury contamination and lack of overwhelming evidence of guilt. Again in 2019 a judge ordered a new trial, but the prosecutor Kym Worthy has fought every decision and appeal. They have been in prison for almost a decade for a crime they did not commit. Learn more about Darrell's case and how to help: https://actualinnocentprisoners.com/darrell-ewing For more information and a complete list of sources for this episode, visit: https://www.unjustandunsolved.com/