Episode 8: Confessions

In 1965, a series of swift maneuvers by Albert DeSalvo’s attorney, F. Lee Bailey, blocked investigators from closing in on their prime Strangler suspect. DeSalvo was more than ready to talk: he had given investigators nearly 60 hours of recorded confessions. But before fully understanding the crimes DeSalvo had committed, the State of Massachusetts agreed that DeSalvo’s testimony about the murders couldn’t be used against him in court. Bailey leads host Portland Helmich through his legal maneuvers as he battles to keep DeSalvo out of the electric chair. We also hear chilling details about the Strangler murders in excerpts from DeSalvo’s recorded confessions. Despite DeSalvo’s astonishing recall of the 13 stranglings, he gets the most important detail wrong. Could he in fact be lying?