The 13th Step

By New Hampshire Public RadioSociety & Culture News True Crime

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Typical duration
54 min
per episode

Based on Podcast App listening data

The 13th Step episodes

February 12 Introducing: Safe to Drink
Introducing “Safe to Drink:” A New Hampshire town finds out its water has been contaminated by a chemical. The most basic question — whether the water is safe to drink — doesn’t have a clear answer. Nobody seems to know much about this so-called forever chemical, which is weird because… this has all happened before.

From the Document team at New Hampshire Public Radio, "Safe to Drink" is a four-part series about the water contamination story that keeps repeating in town after town — and about the people who fought for answers through a maze of chemistry, regulations, and illnesses.

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34 min
June 09, 2025 11: Feds Arrest Eric Spofford
Federal prosecutors now say the vandalism scheme was Eric Spofford’s idea all along. Spofford appears in federal court, and Lauren explains what this remarkable moment means for her and her sources.

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30 min
December 11, 2024 10: The Sentencing
A federal judge sentences Eric Labarge, the man who pled guilty to orchestrating the vandalism in retaliation for our reporting on Labarge’s friend, Eric Spofford. Lauren explains what went down in the courtroom – and how she navigated the experience as both a journalist and a victim of this crime.

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27 min
October 30, 2024 Emelia's Thing
A young police officer unexpectedly finds herself back in New Hampshire, and she’s not the same person she was when she left. Something happened to her – to all of us. But for Officer Emelia Campbell, this thing still lives in her brain and her body. This is her story of survival.
52 min
October 24, 2024 Introducing: What Remains from Outside/In
Introducing “What Remains,” a special series from NHPR’s Outside/In. A classroom display of human skulls sparks a reckoning at the Penn Museum in Philadelphia. A movement grows to “abolish the collection.” The Penn Museum relents to pressure. But there are more skeletons in the closet. To hear all three parts, including the prologue, subscribe to Outside/In.
4 min
July 09, 2024 Introducing: The Youth Development Center
Introducing the newest series from NHPR’s award-winning Document team: “The Youth Development Center.” New Hampshire has sent its most troubled kids to the same juvenile detention center for more than a century. It's a place that was supposed to nurture them, that instead hurt them – in some of the worst ways imaginable. It's now at the center of one of the biggest youth detention scandals in American history. How did this happen – and how did it finally come to light?
If you have suffered abuse and need someone to talk to, you can call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673. If you’re in a mental health crisis, call the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 9-8-8.
32 min
March 05, 2024 9: A New Bill and a Final Ruling
New Hampshire lawmakers consider a new oversight bill proposed in response to the podcast. And the judge issues his final ruling in Eric Spofford’s defamation lawsuit against NHPR and three of our sources.

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21 min
December 20, 2023 A Special Announcement
The 13th Step is going on tour with stops in New Hampshire, Boston, and Chicago. Host Lauren Chooljian will go behind-the-scenes of the podcast and take questions from the audience. For tickets and more information, visit 13thsteppodcast.org/events.
2 min
September 12, 2023 8: A Big Arrest
Federal prosecutors have charged a fourth person in the vandalism case, a man they describe as a “close, personal associate” of Eric Spofford.

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20 min
June 20, 2023 7: Vandalism Arrests
Federal prosecutors have charged three men for their alleged roles in the vandalism incidents. According to the feds, the vandalism was "solicited" by a "close, personal associate" of Eric Spofford's. Reporter Jason Moon goes to the arraignment at a Boston courthouse and tells Lauren what happened.

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14 min