Sinéad O'Connor · OMitB · NYPD
Plus: A small town bad cop longread
the true crime that's worth your time
Here’s where we usually talk about what we’re watching this weekend. And there is good stuff, to be sure — The Lady of Silence looks especially exciting to me, and I am sure I’ll make time for it before Monday rolls around.
But with the passing of Sinéad O'Connor — and with that, the many wiser-in-retrospect takes on her principled stand against the abusive elements of the Catholic Church — I find myself wanting to dedicate some of my true-crime time this weekend to mulling Vatican-related coverups and allegations.
Here are some properties and reading I’m mulling this weekend. If you have picks or recommendations, please do add them to the list!
The Keepers
Netflix
This Emmy-nominated series from 2017 on the slaying of Sister Catherine Cesnik is seven episodes long, and I can’t promise I’ll watch them all — but I’ll definitely dive in and see how much I remember from my initial viewing. As I recall, this is well-executed, principled true crime that doesn’t offer a perfect conclusion. But what cold case truly does?
Deliver us from Evil
FreeVee
This 2006 doc from Amy Berg sees The Keepers’ Emmy nom and raises with an Oscar nod. It’s about Oliver O’Grady, termed “the most notorious pedophile priest in the modern history of the Catholic church,” whose decades of abuse were enabled from the very top of the organization. As I recall, it’s infuriating and frustrating, and I still wonder if much has changed in the years since it was made.
The Missing Children
The Roku Channel
Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea after all. With so many legitimately horrifying crimes as part of its recent history, it feels like every property I’m considering this weekend is made of the saddest, darkest stuff. The Missing Children, a series that first ran on Topic last year, is no exception — this is about a Catholic home for “unwed mothers” in Ireland at which the remains of many, many children were found.
Those three on-screen properties are just the tip of the Catholic Church crime iceberg, of course, but I also started feeling that if I pulled one more trailer depicting such sad and horrible things, I, too, might go on TV to tear up a pope’s photo. That said, I’m also giving a long and hard look at Exhibit B.’s “Church Shenanigans” category today, to see what authors and books I can also lend some support to. After all, we owe it to Sinéad to fight the real enemy, right? — EB
How can I choose between these amazing options for Sarah’s August bonus review? Luckily, I don’t have to, as she’s constructed the poll to allow multiple picks, avoiding a Sophie-style choice. Voting opens today, so get to it.
Hearsay
The trailer for the next season of Only Murders in the Building dropped yesterday. Its return swiftly approaches: The first two eps drop August 8 on Hulu. Subsequent episodes will stream weekly. Meryl! — EB
New Police Body Cam Data Exposes the True Scale of NYPD Violence Against Protesters [Wired]
A recent settlement against NYPD — the largest amount paid to protesters in US history — will cost taxpayers like Sarah $13 million. In question were how police treated people demonstrating following the slaying of George Floyd in 2020; with answers found via the cops’ own cameras. This longread explains how attorneys used a new tool called Codec to “quickly categorize and analyze terabytes of video footage from police body cams, helicopter surveillance, and social media.” Created by a civil liberties-focused design agency, Codec is now being used to prosecute state-backed violence against protesters in courtrooms around the world. — EB
A Small-Town Paper Lands a Very Big Story [New Yorker]
On yesterday’s Docket, BE reader and contrib Dan Cassino allowed me to pontificate on local news. This piece from Paige Williams on the McCurtain Gazette’s investigation into the McCurtain County Sheriff’s Office underscores the points that his question made regarding the importance of reporting when it comes to holding truth to power. Part media piece, part small-town portrait, part police misconduct reader, this beefy piece deserves to be savored. — EB
Next week on Best Evidence: The July budget doc gets swept out the door.
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