Listen Now - Empire City: The Untold Origin Story of the NYPD

At a time when we’re debating where policing is going, we’re going to tell you where the police came from. Guided by Peabody award-winning host Chenjerai Kumanyika, Empire City will provide the first accessible narrative history of the American police and its place in popular culture. Who are the police? And why were police departments created in the first place? To find answers, we’re going to tell the origin story of the largest police force in the world: The NYPD. We begin in the late 1800’s at a moment when the entire police force was on trial. It’s the biggest corruption scandal in the history of the NYPD, and it all plays out like a high stakes courtroom drama. What follows is the action-packed account of how the NYPD got to this point and what happened next. It involves Black abolitionists fighting slave patrols in the courts of Gotham; two rival police forces duking it out for power at City Hall; the origins of the true crime genre; and how the NYPD spread their tactics worldwide. Listen to Empire City wherever you get your podcasts: Wondery.fm/Empire_City. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Om Podcasten

The Hollywood & Crime series explores notorious true crime stories from the heart of Hollywood, delving into the dark underbelly of fame and uncovering infamous murders, scandals, and unsolved mysteries.Season 8: The Cotton Club Murder: On June 10th, 1983, the decomposing body of a well-dressed man was found in a desolate canyon near Los Angeles. John Doe #94 would soon be identified as missing variety show producer Roy Radin. He'd last been seen after meeting with a mysterious woman in a gold dress. Her name was Lanie Jacobs.Jacobs and Radin were obsessed with becoming Hollywood movie producers. And when their paths collided, it led them to a tantalizing film deal promising fame and fortune. But then, a twisted script unfolded, plunging them into a million-dollar cocaine and cash heist, a tangled web of lies, and ultimately – murder.The trail led investigators right to Hollywood's doorstep, linking former golden boy producer Robert Evans to the case and dredging up Radin's own troubled past.But the case turned ice cold. It would take more than five years of dogged pursuit by the L.A. Sheriff’s Department detectives, a secret undercover witness, and another murder almost 3,000 miles from Hollywood – to unlock the truth.This is the story of a doomed Hollywood partnership, a grisly murder and the search that stretched across the country for a killer – or killers.Season 7: The Execution of Bonny Lee Bakley - The story of the toxic relationship between actor Robert Blake and his wife Bonny, her shocking murder, and the chaotic trial that followed.Season 6: Billionaire Boys Club - In 1980s LA, a group of prep school boys, led by Joe Hunt, formed the "Billionaire Boys Club" but spiraled into kidnapping, torture, and revenge.Season 5: The Wonderland Murders - In 1981, a drug-fueled gang and a crime kingpin were involved in a brutal quadruple murder in the Hollywood Hills.Season 4: Death of a Starlet - The tragic tale of Playboy Playmate Dorothy Stratten, caught between three men - Hugh Hefner, Peter Bogdanovich, and her husband Paul Snider.Season 3: The Dating Game Killer - The story of Rodney Alcala, a serial killer who appeared on The Dating Game while in the midst of a cross-country murder spree.Season 2: Young Charlie - The dark journey of Charles Manson, from his troubled childhood to orchestrating the infamous Tate-LaBianca murders.Season 1: Murder in Hollywoodland - The investigation into the 1922 murder of famed director William Desmond Taylor, revealing scandalous affairs and underground drug dens. (edited)