The Murder Book: A True Crime Podcast

BKC Productions

Each week, The Murder Book will present unsolved cases, missing persons, notorious crimes, controversial cases, and serial killers, exploring details of the crime scenes and the murderer's childhood. Some episodes are translated into Spanish as well. The podcast is produced and hosted by Kiara Coyle. 

  1. 5h ago

    Chandra Levy Part IV: A False Tip, A Real Body, And A Case That Never Settles

    Send us Fan Mail A single missing person case can turn into a national obsession, and the Chandra Levy story shows what that spotlight does to evidence, motives, and the people trying to find the truth. We walk through the moment former Metro Police homicide detective Joe McCann steps in as a private investigator and immediately treats the disappearance as a potential murder, even as the official investigation faces public pressure, criticism, and nonstop headlines. The result is a tense split between law enforcement and private detectives, with the media not just reporting the case but actively shaping the pace and perception of it. From the tip line that rings off the hook to the reward that attracts both real leads and pure fiction, we break down how rumors become “credible” when they match the public’s appetite for scandal. The wildest thread takes McCann and Dwayne Staten to California after an informant claims the Hells Angels helped dispose of Chandra’s body following an illegal abortion. The details are dramatic, the fear feels real, and the fallout is dangerous, but the truth reveals something darker about sensational false tips and the people willing to cash in. Then the case pivots again when Chandra’s remains are found in Rock Creek Park and basic questions refuse to settle: Was the park the crime scene or a dump site? What do knots, leggings, and missing keys suggest and what can’t they prove? We also connect the timeline to other Rock Creek Park assaults, the later spotlight on Ingmar Wandike, and how journalists at The Washington Post revisit the investigation with claims that police missed crucial patterns. If you care about true crime, Washington, DC history, media sensationalism, and how investigations actually work under pressure, this one will stick with you. Subscribe, share with a friend who loves unsolved cases, and leave a review with your theory: what do you think brought Chandra Levy to Rock Creek Park? Support the show

  2. 6d ago

    Chandra Levy Part III: The Condit Scandal

    Send us Fan Mail Support the show

  3. Aug 3

    Chandra Levy Part II: Inside the Media Frenzy of 2001

    Send us Fan Mail A missing person case can be tragic. It can also become a product. This chapter of the Chandra Levy case follows the exact moment the story stops being only an investigation and turns into a national media event powered by the early 2000s 24-hour news cycle. We walk through how CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, and the tabloids escalate the coverage, why every reporter wants the same scoop, and how the case becomes “must-watch” television while answers remain scarce. We dig into the reporting that sharpens public suspicion around Congressman Gary Condit, including the emails that suggest a secret relationship and the way those details ripple through headlines. From there, we pull back the curtain on crisis communications: the Levy family’s high-profile legal team, strict rules around who can speak, and a deliberate strategy to release information over time. At the same time, Condit’s camp fights back with denials and narratives that attempt to redirect blame, raising hard questions about reputation management during an active missing person investigation. Then the coverage gets uglier. We unpack how tabloids and even mainstream outlets slide into sexualized framing, “expert” speculation from people who never met Chandra, and a public appetite for judgment that turns a real person into a storyline. Behind the noise are the people living it: friends who retreat, relatives under siege, and parents trying to hold onto hope while the country debates who their daughter was. If you care about true crime ethics, media responsibility, and how narratives get manufactured, this is a crucial listen. Subscribe for the rest of the series, share this episode with a friend, and leave a review with your take: where should the line be between public interest and exploitation? Support the show

  4. Jul 27

    Chandra Levy Vanishes I

    Send us Fan Mail A 23-year-old intern lands her dream job in Washington, DC, builds a steady routine near Dupont Circle, and then disappears so completely that her open laptop becomes one of the last witnesses. Chandra Levy’s case isn’t just a true crime mystery, it’s a collision between ambition and secrecy, where a young woman’s private choices become a public storm. We walk through Chandra’s early life in Modesto, California, her determination to break out of a small-town script, and the careful career steps that take her to the Federal Bureau of Prisons on Capitol Hill. From gym visits and networking “field trips” to the pressure of making it in a competitive city, her timeline feels grounded and relatable, right up until the silence begins. Then the story tightens around the rumor Washington couldn’t stop repeating: a hidden relationship with Congressman Gary Condit. We unpack the rules of that secrecy, what friends and colleagues notice as her world narrows, and how a sudden job termination throws her plans into chaos. Finally, we follow the last known trail, including phone calls, messages, and the May 1, 2001 online searches that end with Rock Creek Park. If you care about missing person cases, political scandal, and the details that change how you read a timeline, listen now. Subscribe, share this episode with a friend, and leave a review with your theory: what matters most in Chandra Levy’s final week? Support the show

  5. Jul 20

    Von Stein Family Tragedy: A Guilty Plea Does Not End The Fallout (Final Episode)

    Send us Fan Mail Support the show

  6. Jul 13

    Von Stein Family Tragedy XXIII: Sentencing Day For The Von Stein Murder

    Send us Fan Mail The most chilling part of a murder trial isn’t always the verdict, it’s the moment a courtroom has to decide what a life is worth after the facts are already settled. We walk through the Von Stein murder sentencing hearing as Bart Upchurch’s fate comes down to a jury weighing aggravating factors against mitigation, with every witness shaping how “responsibility” is defined under the North Carolina death penalty. We hear a former teacher describe Bart as bright, capable, and never aggressive, then watch the conversation veer into the era’s cultural lightning rod as Dungeons and Dragons gets pulled into court. A forensic psychologist adds another layer, reporting no psychosis, no brain damage, and no major mood disorder, while still explaining how denial and buried emotion can control someone’s inner life. The cross examination lands on the legal bottom line: he knew the difference between right and wrong. Then the episode hits a moral fault line that true crime rarely captures so clearly: the victim, Bonnie Von Stein, says she does not want the defendant put to death, and the judge rules the jury cannot hear it. From there, closing arguments collide, with the prosecution urging jurors to act as the community’s conscience and the defense pressing age, drugs, alcohol, and fairness compared with Christopher Pritchard’s deal. We also follow the related sentencing proceedings for co defendants, including testimony about conscience, cooperation, mental health, addiction, and how fantasy escape can blur into real world catastrophe. If you care about capital punishment, forensic psychology, and how courts shape narrative into sentence, listen now, then subscribe, share this episode, and leave a review. Where do you think justice lands when mercy is kept out of the record? Support the show

  7. Jun 22

    Von Stein Family Tragedy Part XXII : Closing Arguments In The Von Stein Murder Trial

    Send us Fan Mail The most dangerous part of a murder trial isn’t always the crime scene, it’s the moment a courtroom decides which story feels true. We’re near the end of the Von Stein family case, and everything narrows to closing arguments, jury instructions, and the crushing pause before the verdict forms come back. Bart Upchurch’s side argues the state’s 117 exhibits don’t physically connect him to the murders, and that the entire case depends on Chris Pritchard and Neil Henderson, two confessed participants who cut plea deals to avoid death row.  We walk through the defense’s final push for reasonable doubt, from timeline questions raised by medical testimony to attacks on credibility and motive. Then the district attorney answers with a blunt theme: greed, instant gratification, and a conspiracy that explains the violence. One of the most unsettling courtroom moments arrives when a burned map is turned into a symbol, held up like a mask, and used to argue what the evidence “really” shows.  After the speeches end, procedure takes over: the judge’s charge to the jury, the tense signals from deliberations, a jailhouse letter that can’t safely change the record, and finally the verdicts read aloud. If you follow true crime trials, North Carolina criminal justice, or how juries weigh cooperating witnesses, this chapter hits hard. Subscribe for the next installment, share this with a friend who loves courtroom breakdowns, and leave a review with your take: how much should uncorroborated testimony decide? Support the show

  8. Jun 15

    Von Stein Family Tragedy Part XXI: Inside the Trail Testimony

    Send us Fan Mail Support the show

See All (290)

4.1
out of 5
32 Ratings

About

Each week, The Murder Book will present unsolved cases, missing persons, notorious crimes, controversial cases, and serial killers, exploring details of the crime scenes and the murderer's childhood. Some episodes are translated into Spanish as well. The podcast is produced and hosted by Kiara Coyle. 

Information