“Firecracker, a new true crime podcast from NJ.com's sister news site Syracuse.com, is a deep dive into a horrific 27-year-old crime. When police saw what was left of Carol Ryan’s body, dumped in the driveway of a suburban compost site in September of 1996, they wondered what weapon could cause that level of devastation. The truth was grislier than anyone imagined.

Carol’s only son blames police. After hundreds of interviews, investigators couldn’t make any leads stick. Three cops believe they know the man who killed Carol. He’s still out there. But they haven’t been able to prove it. The lead detective calls it the greatest regret of his career. 

This six-part podcast from syracuse.com explores the death and life of Carol Ryan and the chilling effect her unsolved murder had on a community. Reporter Katrina Tulloch spent over a year digging into the case, interviewing 30 people including law enforcement, medical professionals, industry experts, witnesses and people who knew Carol. 

 The podcast outlines how Carol spent the hours leading up to her murder, how first responders bungled the crime scene, the challenges police have faced in trying to find her killer, and how DNA technology could break open the case any day.

 “Firecracker” is available exclusively and ad-free on Wondery+, the premium podcast subscription from Wondery.

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The real story of The Watcher, Westfield’s other boogeyman, whose mysterious letters inspired the hit Netflix series.

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'Father Wants Us Dead' is a serial investigative true crime podcast from NJ.com and The Star-Ledger about John List, the accountant and Sunday school teacher who killed his mother, wife and three kids in their Westfield, New Jersey mansion 50 years ago. John List left behind a confession letter, explaining why what he'd done was right, and disappeared to start a whole new life, eluding authorities for nearly two decades. The loss of those innocent lives, the horror and the fear, forever scarred this quiet New Jersey community.

For more about the show or to see photos of the List family and the crime scene, visit www.fatherwantsusdead.com.

Check out Reeves Weideman's New York Magazine article from 2018 and his most recent update to the story.

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The hosts take you behind the scenes of the creation of the “Father Wants Us Dead” podcast and discuss never-before-heard interviews and outtakes from the show.

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'Father Wants Us Dead' is a serial investigative true crime podcast from NJ.com and The Star-Ledger about John List, the accountant and Sunday school teacher who killed his mother, wife and three kids in their Westfield, New Jersey mansion 50 years ago. John List left behind a confession letter, explaining why what he'd done was right, and disappeared to start a whole new life, eluding authorities for nearly two decades. The loss of those innocent lives, the horror and the fear, forever scarred this quiet New Jersey community.

For more about the show or to see photos of the List family and the crime scene, visit www.fatherwantsusdead.com.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our hosts answer your questions and reveal more surprising details from the cutting room floor.

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'Father Wants Us Dead' is a serial investigative true crime podcast from NJ.com and The Star-Ledger about John List, the accountant and Sunday school teacher who killed his mother, wife and three kids in their Westfield, New Jersey mansion 50 years ago. John List left behind a confession letter, explaining why what he'd done was right, and disappeared to start a whole new life, eluding authorities for nearly two decades. The loss of those innocent lives, the horror and the fear, forever scarred this quiet New Jersey community.

For more about the show or to see photos of the List family and the crime scene, visit www.fatherwantsusdead.com.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our hosts have some exciting news in store for “Father Wants Us Dead” fans.

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'Father Wants Us Dead' is a serial investigative true crime podcast from NJ.com and The Star-Ledger about John List, the accountant and Sunday school teacher who killed his mother, wife and three kids in their Westfield, New Jersey mansion 50 years ago. John List left behind a confession letter, explaining why what he'd done was right, and disappeared to start a whole new life, eluding authorities for nearly two decades. The loss of those innocent lives, the horror and the fear, forever scarred this quiet New Jersey community.

For more about the show or to see photos of the List family and the crime scene, visit www.fatherwantsusdead.com.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

50 years later, two reporters try to understand what drove John List to commit such atrocities — and the real cost.

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'Father Wants Us Dead' is a serial investigative true crime podcast from NJ.com and The Star-Ledger about John List, the accountant and Sunday school teacher who killed his mother, wife and three kids in their Westfield, New Jersey mansion 50 years ago. John List left behind a confession letter, explaining why what he'd done was right, and disappeared to start a whole new life, eluding authorities for nearly two decades. The loss of those innocent lives, the horror and the fear, forever scarred this quiet New Jersey community.

New episodes will be released each Tuesday through June 21.

For more about the show or to see photos of the List family and the crime scene, visit www.fatherwantsusdead.com.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Back in New Jersey to stand trial, John List makes one last attempt to stay free.

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'Father Wants Us Dead' is a serial investigative true crime podcast from NJ.com and The Star-Ledger about John List, the accountant and Sunday school teacher who killed his mother, wife and three kids in their Westfield, New Jersey mansion 50 years ago. John List left behind a confession letter, explaining why what he'd done was right, and disappeared to start a whole new life, eluding authorities for nearly two decades. The loss of those innocent lives, the horror and the fear, forever scarred this quiet New Jersey community.

New episodes will be released each Tuesday through June 21.

For more about the show or to see photos of the List family and the crime scene, visit www.fatherwantsusdead.com.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

18 years after the murders, a tip from an unlikely source leads authorities to John List's doorstep.

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'Father Wants Us Dead' is a serial investigative true crime podcast from NJ.com and The Star-Ledger about John List, the accountant and Sunday school teacher who killed his mother, wife and three kids in their Westfield, New Jersey mansion 50 years ago. John List left behind a confession letter, explaining why what he'd done was right, and disappeared to start a whole new life, eluding authorities for nearly two decades. The loss of those innocent lives, the horror and the fear, forever scarred this quiet New Jersey community.

New episodes will be released each Tuesday through June 21.

For more about the show or to see photos of the List family and the crime scene, visit www.fatherwantsusdead.com.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With the trail gone cold, police try one last gambit to find their man.

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'Father Wants Us Dead' is a serial investigative true crime podcast from NJ.com and The Star-Ledger about John List, the accountant and Sunday school teacher who killed his mother, wife and three kids in their Westfield, New Jersey mansion 50 years ago. John List left behind a confession letter, explaining why what he'd done was right, and disappeared to start a whole new life, eluding authorities for nearly two decades. The loss of those innocent lives, the horror and the fear, forever scarred this quiet New Jersey community.

New episodes will be released each Tuesday through June 21.

For more about the show or to see photos of the List family and the crime scene, visit www.fatherwantsusdead.com.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As police frantically search for the mysterious killer, John List slips out of one identity and into another.

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'Father Wants Us Dead' is a serial investigative true crime podcast from NJ.com and The Star-Ledger about John List, the accountant and Sunday school teacher who killed his mother, wife and three kids in their Westfield, New Jersey mansion 50 years ago. John List left behind a confession letter, explaining why what he'd done was right, and disappeared to start a whole new life, eluding authorities for nearly two decades. The loss of those innocent lives, the horror and the fear, forever scarred this quiet New Jersey community.

New episodes will be released each Tuesday through June 21.

For more about the show or to see photos of the List family and the crime scene, visit www.fatherwantsusdead.com.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Step by terrible step, John List systematically kills each member of his family — and then confesses everything.

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'Father Wants Us Dead' is a serial investigative true crime podcast from NJ.com and The Star-Ledger about John List, the accountant and Sunday school teacher who killed his mother, wife and three kids in their Westfield, New Jersey mansion 50 years ago. John List left behind a confession letter, explaining why what he'd done was right, and disappeared to start a whole new life, eluding authorities for nearly two decades. The loss of those innocent lives, the horror and the fear, forever scarred this quiet New Jersey community.

New episodes will be released each Tuesday through June 21.

For more about the show or to see photos of the List family and the crime scene, visit www.fatherwantsusdead.com.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices