Crimes of Passion

By the time Gerald Gallego was 30, he was already a lifelong predator whose twisted crimes reached back into his childhood. When he met Charlene Williams in 1977, she became the newest target of his abuse — until she proposed a plan that made her his accomplice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In 1990, Gregg Smart was murdered. Suspicion fell on 15-year-old Billy Flynn and his friends at first, but eventually the trail led back to Gregg's wife, 22-year-old Pamela Smart. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Pamela and Gregg Smart's romance started strong, but after Gregg had an affair, 22-year-old Pamela turned to 15-year-old Billy Flynn for validation. The once happy marriage ended in betrayal... and death. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Casting himself as a lovestruck Robin Hood, 27-year-old John Wojtowicz tried to rob a bank so he could pay for his estranged wife’s gender confirmation surgery. The heist didn’t go as planned — but it would change both their lives forever. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Volatile and brash, John Wojtowicz lusted after a vibrant transgender woman named Liz Eden in the 1970s. They had a passionate relationship, but it soured — leaving Liz doomed to a hospital’s mistreatment, and John with an outrageous plan to get her out. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Years of emotional abuse, combined with an addictive prescription from Dr. Herman Tarnower, led Jean Harris to become severely depressed. She decided to take her life in March 1980 — but not before seeing Herman one last time. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In the 1960s, Jean Harris and Dr. Herman Tarnower developed an unconventional open relationship. He strung her along as a romantic afterthought for years, while prescribing her methamphetamines — leaving her hopelessly devoted, dependent, and ultimately, doomed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dracula wasn’t the only frightful fiction conjured by Irish author Bram Stoker… In this retelling of “The Judge’s House,” a Cambridge student is overcome with curiosity — then dread — as he faces an evil man’s terrifying legacy. Listen to Part 1 right here, then search “Haunted Places: Ghost Stories” to hear Part 2, when the Judge himself comes calling…  Haunted Places: Ghost Stories is a Spotify Original from Parcast. Every Thursday, find a new tale of terror from some of history’s greatest authors. Listen free on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the third and final part of this series, we’ll look at three more infamous romances between prisoners and civilians. And how some of them seemed to work… but only for a while.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In part 2 of this series, we’ll look at three couples who risked everything to take their relationships to the next level… even if it meant facing jail time for them both. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Listeners, we have a special episode for you — and this one is a heart-warmer! Your host, Lanie Hobbs, teamed up with her husband Brett to share their relationship’s biggest milestones in Our Love Story, a Spotify Original from Parcast. Hear what happened when the cybersecurity pro won over the true-crime aficionado and how they’re living happily ever after. Then search “Our Love Story” to find more of your favorite Parcast hosts get real about romance. New episodes every Tuesday, free on Spotify! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Even the most sadistic killers have found love — or some distortion of it — in prison. Over the next three weeks, unravel the complicated dynamics that set these romances apart, and the high-profile cases of love gone right… and wrong.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On the morning of July 18, 1989, Bardo knocked on the door of Rebecca Schaeffer’s Hollywood home — not as a misguided fan, but a serial harasser. Their tragic encounter would change stalking laws throughout the U.S. for decades to come.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In 1989, after years of obsessing over actress Rebecca Schaeffer, 19-year-old Robert John Bardo boarded a bus and headed for West Hollywood. It wasn’t his first attempt at reaching through to the young star — but it would be his last.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Luring their friend deeper into Pennsylvania woods, Shelia Eddy and Rachel Shoaf prepared to carry out their sinister plot. But only one of them was prepared for the aftermath of Skylar Neese’s disappearance. In January 2013, Rachel was finally ready to reveal the full depths of the trio’s dysfunction.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices