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Breakdown

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188 episodes · showing the newest 188

The Final Tally, Pt. 2: Integrity 

38 min

An FBI raid. Boxes of ballots. And an affidavit that pulled Georgia back into the battles of 2020. In Episode 2, AJC reporters follow the evidence behind the Fulton County investigation and unpack how skeptics, activists, lawmakers, and election officials have spent years fighting over what really happened. The result is a story about how Georgia became ground zero in America's struggle over election trust, and why that fight is still shaping the future of voting. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Final Tally, Pt. 1: Flipped

43 min

It had been almost three decades since Georgia backed a Democratic presidential candidate. Then, in 2020, it flipped. As Joe Biden's narrow victory emerged, false claims of voter fraud spread across the state, turning Fulton County into the center of a national firestorm. AJC reporters Greg Bluestein, Patricia Murphy, David Wickert and Tia Mitchell take listeners inside the recounts, conspiracy theories, threats against election workers, and the pressure campaign that culminated in Donald Trump's infamous call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger. It's the story of how Georgia became the epicenter of "Stop the Steal" and why the fight didn't end when the votes were counted.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Introducing: AJC Flagship

35 min

AJC Flagship is your front-row seat to the Substance and Soul of the South. Each week, this show brings you a mix of what makes The Atlanta Journal-Constitution special. Here, the stories have a flavor all their own, and you never know where the conversation’s gonna go.  In our first episode, we’re talking risky medical procedures, Honey pie, and TI’s rockstar son.    If you love this podcast ... there’s more where that came from. Go to AJC Flagship and follow the show! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Who Blew Up The Guidestones? Ep 7: Down the Rabbit Hole

55 min

The team uncovers glaring red flags unknown to the GBI. The deeper they go, the harder it becomes to understand how they were ever missed.   If you like this series, you’re only scratching the surface. Go to ajc.com, become a subscriber, and find out for yourself.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Who Blew Up The Guidestones? Ep 6: Revelations

30 min

The AJC locates the long‑hidden remains of the Guidestones. The culture war around the monument erupts, and the team identifies people the GBI should have talked to. The question now is whether they ever did?   If you like this series, you’re only scratching the surface. Go to ajc.com, become a subscriber, and find out for yourself.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Who Blew Up The Guidestones? Ep 5: Jesus, Guns and Babies

34 min

The AJC uncovers evidence the GBI overlooked. The swatting of Kandiss Taylor reveals blind spots, missteps, and a shocking lack of urgency from the GBI.  Can the team solve this crime on their own? Has too much time passed?  A wild hunt of car records leads to a surprising discovery. What we choose to ignore has bigger ripple effects than we understand.  If you like this series, you’re only scratching the surface. Go to ajc.com, become a subscriber, and find out for yourself.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Who Blew Up The Guidestones? Ep 4: We Bring the Boom

37 min

When sources go quiet, the data starts talking. AJC data journalist Charles Minshew follows a hidden trail through records and digital clues—pushing the investigation further than anyone has before.    If you like this series, you’re only scratching the surface. Go to ajc.com, become a subscriber, and find out for yourself.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Who Blew Up The Guidestones? Ep 3: Prophets and Fanatics

37 min

How did a roadside oddity become a culture-war flashpoint? During the 2022 governor’s race, the Guidestones move from roadside curiosity to political target—and conspiracy theories start becoming marching orders.    If you like this series, you’re only scratching the surface. Go to ajc.com, become a subscriber, and find out for yourself.    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Who Blew Up The Guidestones? Ep 2: Monuments Men

38 min

The mythology of the Georgia Guidestones begins to crack. As journalists pursue the mysterious man known only as “R.C. Christian,” a hidden past starts to emerge—raising unsettling questions about the ideas that shaped the monument.   If you like this series, you’re only scratching the surface. Go to ajc.com, become a subscriber, and find out for yourself.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Who Blew Up The Guidestones? Ep 1: The Granite Capital of the World

34 min

A man with a fake name shows up in Elberton, Georgia and commissions six massive granite slabs inscribed with 10 “commandments” for society. Deals are made, The Guidestones appear, and the conspiracies begin…  If you like this series, you’re only scratching the surface. Go to ajc.com, become a subscriber, and find out for yourself.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Who Blew Up the Guidestones?

3 min

For decades, the Georgia Guidestones were nothing more than kitschy roadside Americana…a curiosity people visited for fun, intrigue…and the occasional pagan ritual. But something changed in 2022. The Guidestones became a flashpoint. How did a kitschy southern oddity become the site of an act of domestic terrorism?  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Breakdown Season 11 Bonus

45 min

Looking back on seasons past with Bill Rankin and what's next for Albert and Ashley. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ep 6: A Very Dangerous Argument

1 hr 5 min

Ashley and Albert's attorneys have fought all the way to the Georgia Supreme Court. The stakes couldn't be higher. Ultimately, the justices find fault with what happened at the couple's trial and vacate their sentences. But they aren't free  hanging over their heads is the chance the district attorney will try them again. But an unexpected turn once again changes the couple's lives forever.  And they each must adapt to a new life, one haunted by loss. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ep 5: The Dream Team

55 min

Wisconsin Innocence Project attorney Carrie Sperling has a specialty: freeing people wrongly convicted of child abuse. When she receives a letter from Ashley Debelbot and reads the case file, she decides to take the case. A team of skilled Georgia attorneys and medical experts join her to find out what really happened to baby McKenzy. What they discover lands them in court, arguing their clients' innocence. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ep 4: Hitting the Floor

34 min

A jailhouse snitch says Albert told him a shocking story. Ashley and Albert take the stand in their own defense but they're no match for a hard-charging prosecutor. They're convicted and sentenced to life in prison. But the couple makes a vow: they will fight. They will prove their innocence. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ep 3: Speedy Trial

41 min

Charged with murder, Ashley and Albert find themselves with few resources. Ashley's lower-middle class family hires a local attorney while Albert gets a public defender. The couple maintains their innocence, but they're up against tough odds: their attorneys are at loggerheads and the judge in the case has a concerning past. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Isolated

25 min

In a matter of a few days, Ashley and Albert have gone from excited new parents to a couple utterly devastated. Their infant has died. And as the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and local police close in on them, the couple makes a critical decision to remain united. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mack

35 min

In their 20s and in love, Georgia military couple Ashley and Albert Debelbot are overjoyed to welcome their baby girl, McKenzy. After a 15-hour labor, she arrives. The couple take her home and settle in for the night only to be awakened by a disturbing sound. Ashley and Albert then make a startling discovery…kicking off a series of events that will turn into a living nightmare. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The jury panel is assembled

27 min

Jury selection isn’t fast, but it is fascinating. Prospective jurors in the Harris case speak of magical powers, preconceived notions and their favorite TV shows. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A long winter for Tex McIver

17 min

Neither the prosecution nor the defense is ready. The prosecution asks for a continuance, saying it would be unfair to proceed because the defense is unprepared. The defense calls the move "transparently disingenuous," saying it's really the prosecution that wants more time. Meanwhile, prosecutors get slammed for continuing to search for a motive long after they indicted Tex McIver for murder. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Breakdown: The Tex McIver Murder Case: The trial begins

47 min

The state opens the Claud "Tex" McIver murder trial by detonating some new bombshells. McIver, the prosecution says, provided six different versions of what happened to his wife on the night she was shot. Or did he? Among the first prosecution witnesses was Emory University Hospital ER physician Suzanne Hardy, who treated Diane McIver the night she died. Yes, Hardy testified, Diane told her the shooting was an accident. And no, Hardy testified, Diane did not want to see her husband before she was intubated and rendered unable to speak. Diane McIver died shortly afterward. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Back to the Tex McIver Murder case

5 min

After a long winter’s delay, the murder trial of The State v. Claud “Tex” McIver is to begin on March 5. Tex says his wife Diane’s death was a tragic accident; the district attorney says he intentionally shot her in the back. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Bill Rankin returns to bring you Season 5 of the newspaper’s Breakdown podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Breakdown Season 7: Judgment Call

5 min

Anthony Hill was a loving son, talented musician and an Afghanistan War veteran. In 2015, Hill was shot and killed by DeKalb County Police officer Chip Olsen, who was responding to a 911 call of a naked man wandering an apartment complex. Hill was unarmed and off of his medications. Olsen claims he acted in self-defense. In our new season of Breakdown, hosts Bill Rankin and Christian Boone tell the story of Hill's life and death, and will follow the trial of Officer Olsen, who is charged with murder. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Breakdown Season 6: A Jury of HIs Peers

4 min

Reginald "Reggie" Coicou was 24. Quincy "Fat" Wytche was 22. Both were killed in a sudden outburst of gunfire in the parking lot of an Atlanta Burger King in the spring of 2016. Kevin Riley, editor-in-chief of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, gives you an extraordinary inside view of this horrific double homicide, the investigation by the Atlanta police and the prosecution of the man accused of pulling the trigger. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Tex McIver Murder Case

4 min

Coming soon: Season 5 of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Breakdown podcast. This season, the AJC's Bill Rankin and Craig Schneider take you deep inside the case against Atlanta lawyer Tex McIver. He says his wife's death was a tragic accident; the district attorney says it was murder. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Coming Soon: A New Season of Breakdown

4 min

On July 17, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution will launch Murder Below the Gnat Line, season four of our award-winning Breakdown podcast. Bill Rankin returns to explore a murder case with many unresolved questions.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

He ran. And ran. And ran.

42 min

Join host Bill Rankin on the one-year anniversary of Ahmaud Arbery's death as he explores who the man was in life. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The defense makes its case

50 min

During a hearing, the attorneys for the men accused in the death of Ahmaud Arbery formally asked a judge to allow evidence about the slain man's past before a jury. But that's not the only major update in the case. We have a federal hate crimes indictment, a change to Georgia's Citizen's Arrest Law, and a trial date. Join host Bill Rankin as he recounts the latest on the case. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Father and Son

44 min

Since Ahmaud Arbery's death, father and son Gregory and Travis McMichael have been condemned by many as racist vigilantes who targeted a Black man running down their street. Attorneys for the men claim that is far from true. Join host Bill Rankin as he explores the McMichaels' history prior to their fateful meeting with Ahmaud Arbery. Nothing could be further from the truth, lawyers for both Travis and Greg McMichael recently told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Elephant in the Room

37 min

Prosecutors building a case against the three men accused in the death of Ahmaud Arbery have passed several motions regarding what evidence can be submitted in court. Meanwhile, the contention that gunman Travis McMichael uttered a racial epithet while standing over Arbery's body remains the most explosive element of the case. However, jurors may never hear about it. Join host Bill Rankin as he explores how issues raised now could shape the outcome of a trial. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A fourth defendant is indicted

49 min

A grand jury has indicted a former Glynn County district attorney, saying she violated her oath of office while responding to Ahmaud Arbery's death. Join host Bill Rankin as he takes a closer look at the indictment and explores the events of a pre-trial hearing in the case. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Ahmaud Arbery murder trial begins

36 min

The trial for the three men charged in the death of Ahmaud Arbery will begin Oct. 18, almost 20 months to the day after he was shot and killed. Join host Bill Rankin ahead of what is expected to be one of the most closely followed trials in Georgia history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jurors express some strong opinions

36 min

Jury selection for the murder trial of the three men charged in Ahmaud Arbery's death is underway in Brunswick and many prospective jurors have expressed very strong opinions. Join host Bill Rankin as he unpacks the first week of jury selection and what it could mean for the upcoming trial. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re almost there

41 min

The second week of jury selection ended with the end in sight. It is expected that 64 Glynn County residents will be qualified into a pool from which 12 jurors and four alternates will soon be chosen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Tex McIver Case: Georgia Supreme Court strikes again

37 min

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Breakdown podcast drops a special episode on Friday for Season 5: “The Tex McIver Case.” McIver, an Atlanta lawyer, was convicted of murder during a trial in Fulton County for killing his wife on Sept. 25, 2016. The killing happened when Tex and Diane McIver returned home to Atlanta from their 84-acre ranch in Putnam County. Diane McIver’s best friend, Dani Jo Carter, was driving the Ford Expedition. Diane McIver was sitting in the front passenger seat, her husband sitting behind her in the back seat. After they exited the downtown connector on Edgewood Avenue, Tex McIver asks for his .38-caliber handgun that’s in the center console. He later says he thought they had come upon a Black Lives Matter protest. They leave the area without incident and drive along Piedmont Avenue toward Buckhead, with McIver still holding the revolver in his lap. When they get to an intersection, McIver fires a bullet through the backseat. It hits his wife in the back and she later dies during surgery at Emory University Hospital. McIver tells police that it was a tragic accident, that the gun went off after he had fallen asleep and was suddenly awakened. But he is eventually indicted for murder and convicted of it during a 2018 trial. Returning to Breakdown’s fifth season, Episode 12 follows the McIver case through its appeal to the Georgia Supreme Court which issued its opinion on June 30. Just eight days before, the state high court had reversed another high-profile murder case against Justin Ross Harris who had left his 22-month-old son Cooper in his hot car to die. This time, the court overturns McIver’s conviction in another momentous decision. You can download the Breakdown podcast from Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher or your favorite podcasting platform. You can also stream it on your computer from ajc.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A Momentous Decision

43 min

This is the murder case against Justin Ross Harris, who left his 22-month-old son Cooper to die in a hot car on June 18, 2014. Harris, a Home Depot web developer, took Cooper that morning to Little Apron Academy, the in-house daycare center at work. They stopped at a Chick-fil-A for breakfast. But when they leave, Harris doesn’t make the turn to the daycare. Instead, he drives to work, parks his car and walks in to the office. Within hours, Cooper is dead of hypothermia. The intense publicity of the case went worldwide when it was disclosed at a preliminary hearing that Harris was sending sexually explicit texts to other women shortly before and after he left Cooper in the parking lot. It would be disclosed he was having extramarital affairs, sleeping with prostitutes and exchanging graphic texts with underage girls. Harris would be indicted for Cooper’s murder and other crimes. Because of intense pretrial publicity, the trial was moved from Cobb County to Glynn County in coastal Georgia. The jury in Brunswick would convict Harris of Cooper’s murder and he would be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Before and during the trial, Harris’ defense lawyers said what Harris did was a tragic mistake because he loved his son. They also tried to keep evidence of Harris’ deviant sexual behavior from being presented to the jury, arguing it was unfairly prejudicial. Prosecutors contended it showed Harris’ motive — to life a child-free life so he pursue sexual relations. Superior Court Judge Mary Staley Clark sided with prosecutors and let it all in. The jury heard days of testimony about the affairs, the graphic texts and the prostitutes. This became a major thrust of Harris’ appeal to the Georgia Supreme Court in his bid for a new trial. The case was argued this past January and the court released its decision on June 22. Breakdown’s Episode 18 of “Death in a Hot Car; Mistake or Murder?” covers the court’s momentous ruling and the aftermath. You can...

After a year’s wait, a concluding decision

39 min

Justin Chapman awaits the all-important decision from the state's prosecutors: will they put him back on trial for murder and arson or end the long-running legal drama that put him in state prison for eight years? This concluding episode has all the answers.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Could Justin Chapman Be Guilty?

38 min

Justin Chapman tells his side of the story. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A New Trial or a New Life?

36 min

The case goes back to the Georgia Supreme Court – and this time there would be a much different outcome. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Before You Listen

4 min

A state prosecutor is now deciding whether to put Justin Chapman back on trial for murder. His first trial ended in a guilty verdict after the jury deliberated about 40 minutes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

She Lost, but She Never Gave Up

41 min

Meet Jan Hankins, the public defender who lost Justin Chapman’s case and embarked on a personal crusade to free him. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Let’s Test the Evidence

46 min

Bill Rankin goes to Bremen in the dark of night, and with the help of an Army veteran, tests what you can see from "Stroupe's stoop." Could Gary Allen Stroupe have seen Justin Chapman from his front porch? Plus, Chapman experiences the appeal from hell. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The New Team Goes to Work

37 min

The Justin Chapman murder case attracts a new defense team full of heavy hitters and colorful characters. In this episode, we take a detour from the case in order to introduce you to some of the players who came to Chapman's aid, and learn why they took on the case for free. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Young Lawyers and Old Hands

41 min

Justin Chapman’s new defense team sifts through the evidence and uncovers critical breakdowns in the prosecution of Chapman, including several pieces of evidence that Chapman's public defender Jan Hankins says she never received, and the testimony of witnesses that Hankins never had time to visit. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Railroad Justice in a Railroad Town

34 min

Follow the twists and turns of a case in rural Georgia that some say landed an innocent man in prison. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Postscript

34 min

Justin Ross Harris returns to Cobb County and is sentenced for the murder of his 22-month-old son Cooper. We delve into the contradictions in the jury's verdict. We also hear from some Breakdown listeners who seem to know as much about the case as anyone -- and have completely divergent views on the outcome. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Leanna Taylor takes the stand

59 min

Ross Harris’ ex-wife, Leanna Taylor, took the witness stand on Monday and repeated her long-held belief that Harris never meant to leave their 22-month-old son Cooper to die in his overheated SUV. Taylor spent an emotional two days on the stand, ending her testimony with a dramatic flourish. Some of Harris’ relatives and closest friends then followed her and testified Harris loved his little boy. But in the end, Harris chose not to testify in his own defense, and both the defense and the state rest their cases.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The jury gets the case

57 min

The prosecution and the defense give impassioned, powerful closing arguments, wrapping up the trial. Prosecutor Chuck Boring insists Ross Harris lived a double life and intentionally killed his little boy. Defense attorney Maddox Kilgore contends Cooper’s death was a horrible accident and that police rushed to judgment without looking at evidence contrary to their theory. The six-man, six-woman jury then gets the case and, over the next three days, sends a number of questions to Judge Mary Staley Clark. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We have a verdict

42 min

After four days of deliberations, the jury in Brunswick returns with a verdict in The State of Georgia v. Justin Ross Harris. Cobb County's district attorney says this is no time for a celebration. Harris's lawyers, in an emotional interview, say they are stunned by the outcome.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s time to go to trial: Will Harris testify?

31 min

We’re just a few steps from the starting gate. In a matter of days, the 12 jurors will be seated, the lawyers will make their opening statements, and the murder trial of Justin Ross Harris will begin. Will he testify?  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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