In early 20th-century Rhode Island, love could be a crime inside the walls of state institutions. This episode unravels three real stories of relationships that turned volatile behind locked doors — where longing was pathologized, intimacy was policed, and the consequences were severe. Drawing from rare case files, newspaper archives, and institutional records, we explore how the state criminalized desire and turned heartbreak into violence.

Based on original research from the Ladd School Historical Society and Archives.
Music: “Endless Nightmare” by Oliver Garcia, licensed via Motion Array.