Death in the West

Death in the West
  • 4.9 (371)
  • TRUE CRIME
  • SERIES

A history and true-crime podcast dedicated to the American West's strange crimes and historically resonant intrigues.

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  1. Episode 1: The Taking of United Flight 855

    EPISODE 1

    Episode 1: The Taking of United Flight 855

    In episode one, we meet Richard Floyd McCoy Jr., a Mormon Sunday school teacher and Vietnam veteran who friends said had become obsessed with skyjacking and D.B. Cooper in the months after Cooper's famous crime, committed during Thanksgiving weekend, 1971. By April 1972, McCoy's fascination led him to his own skyjacking--a caper that bore striking resemblances to what Cooper had pulled off, but had a very different outcome.

    38 min
  2. Episode 2: Death is My Postage

    EPISODE 2

    Episode 2: Death is My Postage

    In episode two, Richard McCoy caps his audacious skyjacking plan by parachuting from the rear stairs of United Flight 855--but the jump does not go as planned. We also trace McCoy's journey back to his two tours of duty in Vietnam and examine the myriad ways flight revolutionized the lives of everyday Americans.

    47 min
  3. Episode 3: A Half Million Dollars in Cash

    EPISODE 3

    Episode 3: A Half Million Dollars in Cash

    On episode three, after dodging searchlights and slipping through roadblocks, Richard McCoy makes it home, where he and Karen face a brand new problem: where to hide the cash from the skyjacking of United Flight 855? Elsewhere, Richard's plan begins to unravel. His friends are asking questions. The FBI is snooping around. Will the story of McCoy's crime ultimately end with him spending the rest of his life in federal prison? Not if he can help it.

    49 min
  4. Episode 4: The Cooper Vortex

    EPISODE 3

    Episode 4: The Cooper Vortex

    More than fifty years after his legendary crime, people still gather--online and in person--to puzzle over the identity of the mysterious skyjacker who came to be known as D.B. Cooper. In episode four, Death in the West goes on location to Portland, Ore., for CooperCon, the annual summit of the subculture's most prominent voices, characters and scholars, to rub elbows with the people of the so-called "D.B. Cooper Vortex." What is it about this unsolved caper that still resonates? And how does it fit into the larger outlaw mythology of the west?

    49 min
  5. Episode 5: Nothing Ever Happens in Happy Valley

    EPISODE 5

    Episode 5: Nothing Ever Happens in Happy Valley

    On episode 5, we trace what we can of Richard McCoy's early life, from his rebellious childhood in North Carolina to his time as a restless but involved student at Brigham Young University. Death in the West co-producer Erika Fredrickson travels to present-day Provo, Utah to explore the town where McCoy planned and executed his skyjacking. Meanwhile, back in the 1970s, Richard makes a daring escape from federal prison.

    51 min
  6. Episode 6: The Unusual Suspects

    EPISODE 6

    Episode 6: The Unusual Suspects

    In episode six, we follow Richard McCoy and partner in crime Melvin Dale Walker from their daring prison escape in Pennsylvania to their surprisingly posh outlaw hideout along Tobacco Road. As the FBI close in, McCoy and Walker indulge themselves in the finer things while planning their next move. Escape to Europe? Or another skyjacking, perhaps? Plus, we take a wild ride into the DB Cooper vortex, exploring some of the more out-there conspiracy theories around the legend. Was DB Cooper a CIA agent? Buckle-up for a bumpy ride.

    51 min
  7. Episode 7: The Real McCoy

    EPISODE 7

    Episode 7: The Real McCoy

    On episode seven, Richard McCoy has his final encounter with law enforcement. Unfortunately, the end of his story leaves more questions than answers. Though he is often dismissed as a copycat, this week we entertain the theory that McCoy may actually have been the original man of mystery himself: DB Cooper.

    45 min
  8. Episode 8 Family Ties

    EPISODE 8

    Episode 8 Family Ties

    After 50 years of complete silence, Richard McCoy's family suddenly starts talking -- and the story they tell puts a new spin on the theory that McCoy could secretly have been the mysterious DB Cooper. But does the family's opinion substantively change anything? We'll go through the evidence pointing AWAY from McCoy pulling off the Cooper crime. Plus, we look at some of the newsest evidence in the Cooper investigation, including theorist Eric Ullis' efforts to turn up new suspects.

    56 min
  9. Episode 9: Departure Lounge

    EPISODE 9

    Episode 9: Departure Lounge

    As season two reaches its final destination, we separate the fact from fiction in the West's sometimes problematic obsession with noble outlaws. We also reveal what we discovered about the surprsing life of Karen Burns-McCoy following the traumatic aftermath of her husband's 1972 skyjacking. Before it's time to say goodbye for this season, we make one more pass through the DB Cooper vortex, ask an expert about the future of the investigation and give our best guess about the true identity of the legendary mystery man.

    1h 18m
  10. Season Two Trailer

    SEASON 2 TRAILER

    Season Two Trailer

    Season two of Death in the West officially begins 1/4/22, but we have a special episode marking the 50th anniversary of DB Cooper's legendary skyjacking coming on 11/23/21. Stay tuned, as we trade our whiskey tumblers and hardboiler mining hats for martini glasses and platform shoes. It's going to be a ride.

    3 min
  11. DB Cooper 50th Anniversary Episode

    BONUS

    DB Cooper 50th Anniversary Episode

    Before season two kicks off in earnest on 1/4/22, here's a quick primer into the legendary case that will be part of our focus during the upcoming series. Fifty years ago this week, on 11/24/1971, a man calling himself "Dan Cooper" hijacked a Northwest Orient flight from Seattle, Washington to Portland, Oregon and demanded a $200,000 ransom from the airline. What happened next would make the mystery man--who would be remembered as "DB Cooper"--an iconic figure in the outlaw history of the west and inspire half a century's worth of investigation and speculation: he jumped.

    30 min
See All Season 2 (11)

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A history and true-crime podcast dedicated to the American West's strange crimes and historically resonant intrigues.

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