When Clifford brokers a small drug deal he doesn’t know that the police are listening in. Clifford is arrested and when the case goes to trial, the recording of the deal is not allowed into evidence by the judge. But the testimony of the police officer is. This becomes the focal point of a courtroom drama that makes it all the way to the Supreme Court of Kentucky.

On this episode of Bad People, Dr Julia Shaw and Sofie Hagen are joined by our scientific advisor from the Open University, Dr Lara Frumkin. Her expertise on how the way you speak impacts verdicts, sparks a debate about how the Supreme Court Justices voted in Cliffords case. They examine how racism gets passed down through generations of court rulings and how aversive racism can go undetected.

Warning: This episode includes discussion of racism and strong language

This episode contain clips from ABCnews and CBS, The Late Late Show with James Corden.

CREDITS

Bad People is a BBC Audio Science Production for BBC Sounds.

Studies show that nearly half the UK population have experimented with bondage, discipline, sadism, masochism (BDSM). It is surprisingly common, so why did a group of men practicing BDSM end up in prison? Should we police what people do in the bedroom?

On this episode of bad people Dr Julia Shaw and Sofie Hagen discuss the “rough sex” defence. Is it an opportunity to get away with murder or a necessary part of the legal framework?

This episode contains audio from BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour and the documentary When Sex Games Go Wrong, produced by Caitlin Kelly.

CREDITS

Bad People is produced in partnership with The Open University and is a BBC Audio Science Production for BBC

Mary Linnen, a woman in her late 20s, had just gotten engaged and she wanted to lose some weight for the wedding. Her doctor prescribed a combination of drugs called Fen-Phen. And it worked instantly. She lost weight but then she also started to lose her breath a lot. Other agonising symptoms soon followed including swelling of legs and stomach. Mary becomes one of the first Fen-Phen victims of which there are thousands.

Dr Julia Shaw and Sofie Hagen discuss the extreme lengths and risks that people are willing to take to be thin and the industry that profits from fatphobia.

CREDITS

#BadPeople_BBC

Bad People is a BBC Audio Science Production for BBC Sounds.

On the 27th of August 2015, a chicken truck is abandoned in Austria when smugglers realise the worst has happened. The tragedy shook Europe and lead to changes in immigration policy.

In this episode of Bad People, Dr Julia Shaw and Sofie Hagen discuss the difference between human trafficking and people smuggling, the risk-reward ratio for the criminal networks involved, their estimated financial turnover, and why many people smugglers are both victims and perpetrators.

The episode also dissects the decisions the driver of the truck, his accomplice and their immediate superiors made that day, and the distorted rationale behind it.

Warning: This episode includes graphic descriptions, and mention of death, including the death of children.

CREDITS

23rd April 2018 was the date selected by John Doe as the day he would kill as many residents of Toronto as possible. Witnesses describe seeing a white van mount the pavement on busy Yonge Street and run down pedestrians. Ten people sadly lost their lives.

On this episode of Bad People, Dr Julia Shaw and comedian Sofie Hagen discuss why people become incels. Are incels dangerous? And what can be done to stop people subscribing to this ideology in the first place.

This episode contains audio from the documentary Inside the Secret World of Incels produced by BBC Three and audio from Ben Hurst’s TED talk.

Warning: This episode contains descriptions of violence, specifically targeted violence towards women, murder, and mentions of suicide.

CREDITS

#BadPeople_BBC

Bad People is produced in partnership with The Open University and is a BBC Audio Science Production for BBC Sounds.

When Robert Shafran arrives for his first day of college he is overwhelmed by the friendliness and familiarity of the other students. Dazed and confused, he soon discovers that he is identical to another boy who just left the college. Both are adopted.

Robert and his brother, Eddy, are thrilled to find each other and it doesn’t take long before – in an unbelievable twist – a third identical brother comes forward. Their feel-good story brings fame and huge media interests. But the story of long-lost brothers reunited soon turns sour when they discover that “those people” who checked in on them throughout their childhood might have had other motives than their wellbeing.

On this episode of Bad People, Dr Julia Shaw and comedian Sofie Hagen discuss how far is too far when it comes to psychological research.

This episode contains audio from the documentary Three Identical Strangers produced by CNN Films and RAW TV, directed by Tim Wardle.

Warning: This episode includes some descriptions of a sexual nature and some distressful scenes including a mention of suicide.

CREDITS

#BadPeople_BBC

Bad People is produced in partnership with The Open University and is a BBC Audio Science Production for BBC Sounds.

In 2009, Belle Gibson shared on her blog that she was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer and had only four months to live. She then began documenting her journey of healing via clean eating. When Instagram launched a year later, she quickly amassed a following of 200,000 people, becoming one of the very first wellness influencers. But was she just taking advantage of people's wishful thinking?

In this episode of Bad People, Dr Julia Shaw and Sofie Hagen discuss how “wellness” has been conceptualized as a concept that remains forever out of reach, why the veneer of credibility can be so hard to break through, and the famous sceptic Barry Beyerstein’s advice on how to identify pseudo-scientific health claims.

Warning: This episode includes descriptions of cancer treatment, and mentions a threat of suicide.

CREDITS

Earlier this year, hundreds of unmarked graves were discovered at Canadian residential schools. What is the truth behind what really happened at these schools?

On this episode, hosts Dr Julia Shaw and Sofie Hagen discuss how trauma can be passed from generation to generation and what can be done to heal the wounds caused by such poor treatment of Indigenous Canadians.

They debate whether or not intergenerational trauma should be taken into account in sentencing decisions. In Canada, sentencing judges officially have a “role in remedying injustice against Aboriginal peoples in Canada”, should other countries be following Canada’s lead?

This episode contains audio from: DW, Wion, CBS and CBC News' Stolen Children

Bad People is produced in partnership with The Open University and is a BBC Audio Science Production for BBC Sounds.

When 80-year old Kathleen is called up by a nice man from her computer company she does not suspect foul play. And when he tells her that she is owed a refund, she follows his instructions.

Scams costs victims millions every year and the problem is only growing. “Scam-baiter” Jim Browning has had enough of scam-calls and has decided to use their own tricks against them. It is illegal and dangerous work. What Jim discovers is chilling. Scams are a huge industry that involves large call centres and thousands of “employees” that are evaluated and promoted based on their ability to scam unsuspecting victims out of their life savings.

On this episode, hosts Dr Julia Shaw and Sofie Hagen discuss what might motivate someone to earn their living from scams; and what motivates others, like Jim Browning, to take the law into their own hands. We discover the chilling fact that even the most tech-savvy and internet literate can become the victim of a scam.

CREDITS

The UK’s most prolific rapist only targeted men, but the case is largely unknown.

He would wait outside clubs in Manchester and offer men who looked vulnerable a place to charge their phone or call a taxi. Then he would slip the men a drug and rape them while they were unconscious, meaning that the majority of his victims had no idea what had happened to them until they were contacted by the police.

On this episode of Bad People, hosts Dr Julia Shaw and Sofie Hagen debate whether or not the police should have told the victims. And they discuss male rape myths and what can be done to make it easier for men to speak up about sexual abuse.

Warning: This episode contains strong language and descriptions of violence

CREDITS

Commissioning Executive: Dylan Haskins