Set in 1920s Chicago, The Perfect Crime tells the shocking story of Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb; wealthy college students who had planned to abduct and kill a child at random just to prove they were smart enough to get away with it. Their lawyer summoned experts to show that the murderers had been shaped by childhood trauma, setting off a national debate about morality, individual responsibility, and capital punishment.
American Experience: The Perfect Crime
The murder of a fourteen-year-old boy by two wealthy college students was shocking enough, their motive more so. Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb had planned to abduct and kill a child at random to prove they were smart enough to get away with it. Their lawyer Clarence Darrow summoned experts to show that the murderers had been shaped by childhood trauma and physical defects, and that it was society and its barbaric death penalty that deserved to be put on trial. Set in 1920s Chicago - a city of gin joints, gangsters, and political corruption - The Perfect Crime tells a story that set off a national debate about morality, individual responsibility, and capital punishment.
Producer: Cathleen O'Connell
Executive Producer: Mark Samels
Production Company: Desert Penguin Pictures, LLC for American Experience
Production Year: 2016
Copyright Year: 2016
Rating: TV-14
Narrator: Oliver Platt
Writers: Michelle Ferrari
Number of Discs: 1
Length: 52 minutes
Subtitled: Y
Subtitle Languages: English (SDH)
DVI: N
Audio Format: 5.1 Surround
Aspect Ratio: 16x9 Widescreen