When two young girls began suffering from mysterious ailments in Salem, Massachusetts, in the late 17th century, townsfolk were baffled. The only explanation they could imagine was that the girls had been bewitched -- and over the next three months, no one in town would be safe from the label.

The notorious trials would go down in history as a cautionary tale about group hysteria, but its impact goes even deeper -- and still affects how our legal system works today.

"Crimes of the Centuries" is a podcast from Grab Bag Collab exploring forgotten crimes from times past that made a mark and helped change history.

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