CRIMES: The Vanishing Judge

Summary

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Conspiracy Theories, Cults, & Crimes

Episode: CRIMES – The Vanishing Judge
Host: Vanessa Richardson
Date: January 16, 2026

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Overview

This episode explores the mysterious disappearance of Joseph Force Crater, a prominent New York Supreme Court judge who vanished without a trace in 1930. Vanessa Richardson peels back layers of criminal intrigue, political corruption, and rumor to ask: Did Crater vanish to escape scrutiny, or was he silenced forever by powerful enemies? Nearly a century later, the case still stands as one of America's most enduring unsolved mysteries.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Who Was Judge Crater? [04:43–07:17]

• Background:
  • Sworn in as New York Supreme Court justice on April 17, 1930; "He was already something of a local celebrity, a well-dressed man about town." [06:31]
  • Ambitious and well-connected: friend to politicians (including FDR), Broadway stars, gangsters.
  • Deeply involved with Tammany Hall—New York’s notoriously corrupt political machine.
• Quotes:
  • "He was so popular with the group that in 1929 he was named the president of the Cayuga Democratic Club, which was an important branch of Tammany Hall." – [05:47, Vanessa Richardson]

The Lead-Up to Disappearance [07:53–11:14]

• Personal Life:
  • Married to Stella for 13 years, but known to have a mistress.
  • "She was just glad to have him all to herself for the next month. But then, a few days later, on August 3rd, Joseph received another phone call." – [09:23]
• Unusual Behavior:
  • Multiple unexplained trips back to NYC from a Maine vacation in July/August 1930.
  • Joseph told Stella he needed to "straighten out a few people." [09:38]
  • Last seen acting unlike his fun-loving self.

Joseph’s Last Day – August 6, 1930 [11:56–14:47]

• Events:
  • Arrived at his chambers, agitated, gathered documents, withdrew approx. $5,000 (about $100,000 today).
  • Met with friends at Broadway ticket agency and dined with attorney William Klein and showgirl Sally Lou Ritz, who observed odd behavior.
  • Seen leaving in a cab, never went to the theater as planned, and was never seen again.
• Quote:
  • "He was acting like a man whose life was on the line." – [11:17, Vanessa Richardson]
  • "Joseph Force Crater never showed up to claim his ticket, which meant William and Sally were the last ones to see him, dead or alive." – [14:49, Vanessa Richardson]

The Immediate Aftermath & Investigation [15:20–21:44]

• Delayed Reporting:
  • Stella waited until it was clear Joseph missed a court session before investigating; she hoped to avoid a scandal [15:24–15:33].
• Press & Police:
  • Massive manhunt began almost a month later, but the trail was already cold.
  • Ties to Tammany Hall focused suspicion on political corruption and possible involvement in job-buying scandals.
• Corruption Angle:
  • Crater was implicated in the Tammany Hall bribery investigation; withdrew large sums in suspicious patterns [21:07–21:30].
  • Quote: "He was a suspect in a conspiracy." – [20:24, Vanessa Richardson]

Theories and Suspects [21:49–32:41]

• Ran Off with a Showgirl?
  • Debunked: Sally Lou Ritz simply returned to Ohio; never eloped with Crater [25:22–25:42].
• Political Silencing:
  • Informant Vivian Gordon, who planned to testify about Tammany corruption, was murdered with rumors tying Crater to the same circles [22:56–23:17].
• Corruption, Threats & Cover-up:
  • His wife, Stella, later told reporters Crater was summoned by Martin Healy of Tammany Hall the day he disappeared [23:25–23:40].
  • Quote: "If he wanted to gain the popular vote of the country, he couldn't be associated with dirty politics." – [24:07, Vanessa Richardson]
• Murder by Mobsters:
  • Polly Adler’s unpublished memoir alleged Crater died of a heart attack with his body dumped in the Hudson, but this is uncorroborated hearsay [26:07–26:52].
  • Butcher Henry Krause claimed Crater was killed in a Westchester house over embezzled money, but his credibility was dubious [27:16–29:59].

Modern Leads and the Case's Legacy [30:07–32:41]

• "Pulling a Crater":
  • Became slang for disappearing suddenly [21:49–21:51].
• 2005 Revelation:
  • After Stella Ferrucci Good's death, a letter surfaced accusing her husband, a cab driver, and a police officer (with mob ties) of killing Crater and burying him under Coney Island’s boardwalk (now the New York Aquarium site).
  • Remains unearthed during aquarium construction are unidentified due to lack of usable DNA and dental records [32:07–32:34].

Closing Thoughts and Enduring Mystique [32:41–34:15]

• Debate and Uncertainty:
  • Did Crater run away to escape prosecution, or was he murdered to keep him silent?
  • Vanessa leans toward a Tammany- or mob-orchestrated murder, but recognizes myths and gaps abound.
• Quote:
  • "For a man whose primary goal was to achieve true political influence, it's ironic that he created a lasting legacy for himself in his own absence." – [34:06, Vanessa Richardson]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Good Time Joe was exactly the type of person you'd expect to disappear from his marriage for a week. But before long, that theory became harder to believe.” [10:38, Vanessa Richardson]
• “He was acting like a man whose life was on the line.” [11:17, Vanessa Richardson]
• “To pull a Crater became common slang for disappearing in the same way that we use ghosted today.” [21:49, Vanessa Richardson]
• “If they had her silenced before she could testify, who’s to say they hadn’t done the same thing to Joseph?” [23:17, Vanessa Richardson]
• “Every August 6, she went to a Greenwich Village bar, ordered two cocktails, and toasted her late husband. Good luck, Joe, wherever you are.” [30:18, Vanessa Richardson]
• “75 years after it began, the case hit its final dead end.” [32:38, Vanessa Richardson]

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Timeline & Timestamps for Major Events

• [01:10–03:36] Case introduction and cultural context
• [04:43–07:17] Crater's rise and entanglement with Tammany Hall
• [07:53–11:14] Marital strife, secret trips, prelude to disappearance
• [11:56–14:47] August 6, 1930: The last day, strange behavior, final cab ride
• [15:20–21:44] Aftermath, police investigation, grand jury, connections to political corruption
• [21:49–32:41] Tabloid rumors, possible mob hits, informant killings, debunked disappearance with showgirl, unresolved leads into the 21st century
• [32:41–34:15] Reflection, competing theories, Judge Crater’s legacy

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Tone & Style

The episode melds noir-style narrative with rigorous historical reporting. Vanessa’s voice is measured, curious, and inviting, threading suspense through a tangle of fact and fiction without sensationalizing the tragic fate of Joseph Force Crater.

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Summary

Vanessa Richardson’s investigation into Judge Crater’s disappearance is a chronicle of 20th-century corruption and power—a mystery tangled with mobsters, mistresses, and political backrooms. Every logical path, from romantic escapade to Tammany silencing, runs up against dead ends and faded memories. While the identity of Crater’s killer and his final resting place may never be known, his story remains a sobering legend at the crossroads of ambition, danger, and the American justice system.

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"So what do you think happened to the missing judge? Let us know in the comments, wherever you listen."
—Vanessa Richardson [32:41]

Transcript

[Vanessa Richardson]

Exciting news. Conspiracy Theories, Cults and Crimes is leveling up. Starting the week of January 12th, you'll be getting two episodes every week. Wednesdays we unravel the conspiracy or the.

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Cult, and on Fridays we look at a corresponding crime. Every week has a theme. Tech, bioterror, power, paranoia, you name it.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Follow Conspiracy Theories, Cults and Crimes now.

[Co-host/Producer]

On your podcast app because you're about.

[Vanessa Richardson]

To dive deeper, get weirder, and go.

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Darker than than ever before.

[Narrator/Intro Voice]

This is crime house.

[Vanessa Richardson]

There are many reasons people go into.

[Co-host/Producer]

Politics, but whatever their motivations, one thing is true across the board.

[Vanessa Richardson]

If someone wants to hold public office.

[Co-host/Producer]

They need to be prepared to become a public figure.

[Vanessa Richardson]

But what if that person decides they.

[Co-host/Producer]

Don'T want that kind of life anymore?

[Vanessa Richardson]

Is it possible for them to reverse.

[Co-host/Producer]

Course and truly become anonymous?

[Vanessa Richardson]

On August 6, 1930, a prominent new.

[Co-host/Producer]

York judge may have done just that. Joseph Force Crater was serving as a justice on the New York State Supreme Court.

[Vanessa Richardson]

But only four months into his tenure, he he stepped onto the streets of New York City, hailed a cab and disappeared. Nearly a century later, we're still not.

[Co-host/Producer]

Sure what happened to Joseph. Some say he chose to vanish. But others think he had enemies who wanted him gone. And they were powerful enough to make sure that no one ever learned the truth. From UFO cults and mass suicides to secret CIA experiments, presidential assassinations, and murderous doctors, these aren't just theories. They're real stories that blur the line between fact and fiction. I'm Vanessa Richardson and this is Conspiracy Theories, Cults and Crimes. A crime House original powered by Pave Studios.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Every Wednesday I'll explore the real people at the center of the world's most.

[Co-host/Producer]

Shocking events and nefarious organizations.

[Vanessa Richardson]

These cases are wild and I want to hear what you think at the end of each episode. Leave a comment wherever you listen.

[Co-host/Producer]

Be sure to rate, review and follow.

[Vanessa Richardson]

So we can continue building this community together. And for early ad Free access to every episode. Subscribe to Crime House plus on Apple Podcasts. Today I'm talking about one of New.

[Co-host/Producer]

York City's most enduring mysteries.

[Vanessa Richardson]

In 1930, a 41 year old Supreme.

[Co-host/Producer]

Court justice named Joseph Force Crater disappeared from the streets of Manhattan.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Joseph was well known and well connected. He was friends with Broadway stars, senators.

[Co-host/Producer]

And even the governor at the time, Franklin D. Roosevelt. But he also had some more sinister connections.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Despite Joseph's position as a high ranking.

[Co-host/Producer]

Judge, he allegedly had ties to mobsters and criminals. And he might have been one too. Which makes a lot of people wondering.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Did Joseph disappear to avoid coming face.

[Co-host/Producer]

To face with the truth. All that and more coming up.

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[Co-host/Producer]

On April 17, 1930, 41 year old Joseph Force Crater was sworn in as.

[Vanessa Richardson]

The newest justice on New York City's Supreme Court. He took his oath in a courthouse.

[Co-host/Producer]

Looking Madison Square Garden, not far from where his legal career began. Joseph had always been an ambitious man.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He graduated from Columbia University law School in 1916 and worked as a law.

[Co-host/Producer]

Secretary for New York Justice Robert Wagner, a future senator. Joseph had learned a lot from Wagner and made a lot of powerful friends through him too, including those in a controversial organization known as Tammany Hall. Tammany hall was a fraternal group like the Freemasons, and it was the power behind the Democratic Party in New York City at the time.

[Vanessa Richardson]

It was also incredibly corrupt.

[Co-host/Producer]

Tammany had ties to the mob and regularly rigged elections to help get their chosen candidates in power. Joseph was a member himself. Tammany had helped propel his career forward many times.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He was so popular with the group that in 1929 he was named the.

[Co-host/Producer]

President of the Cayuga Democratic Club, which was an important branch of Tammany Hall. But Joseph wasn't the only prominent member. So was Franklin D. Roosevelt, governor of New York at the time.

[Vanessa Richardson]

And when it came time for Roosevelt to fill a vacancy on the state Supreme Court, he looked within his circle.

[Co-host/Producer]

And tapped Joseph for the job. It was a highly coveted position with a salary of $22,000 a year. Over $400,000 in today's money.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Which meant Joseph would be making as.

[Co-host/Producer]

Much as Roosevelt himself.

[Vanessa Richardson]

As soon as he got the job.

[Co-host/Producer]

Joseph hired a small household staff, including a cook, maid and chauffeur.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He was already something of a local.

[Co-host/Producer]

Celebrity, a well dressed man about town.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He was often spotted at clubs, Broadway.

[Co-host/Producer]

Shows and restaurants in New York City, rubbing elbows with politicians and flirting with showgirls.

[Vanessa Richardson]

His nickname on the streets was Good.

[Co-host/Producer]

Time Joe, and there were rumors he socialized with known gangsters, Arnold Rothstein and Legs diamond back in the 1920s. He wasn't just a party animal, though. He was a good lawyer and very ambitious.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He ran his own private legal practice.

[Co-host/Producer]

And lectured at both New York University and Fordham University. During his time on the State Supreme.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Court, Joseph ruled on two cases. But his mind probably wasn't on work.

[Co-host/Producer]

Chances were Joseph was thinking about the future. Joseph's appointment was a temporary one.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He'd be serving the remainder of the.

[Co-host/Producer]

1930 term, then would be up for re election that fall.

[Vanessa Richardson]

And the stakes were higher than ever.

[Co-host/Producer]

The public had reached a turning point. Throughout the 1920s.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Tammany hall had controlled the elections through.

[Co-host/Producer]

Bribes and kickbacks, and everyone knew it.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Voters were getting sick of the blatant.

[Co-host/Producer]

Corruption, which meant that every Democrat who had ties to Tammany hall, including Joseph.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Would have to play a very careful.

[Co-host/Producer]

Game to secure their seats.

[Vanessa Richardson]

But Joseph had some time before he.

[Co-host/Producer]

Had to deal with all that. The courts recessed in June and Joseph was eager to take a vacation and get away from the hustle and bustle of the city. In mid July, Joseph and his wife.

[Vanessa Richardson]

42 year old Stella, went to their.

[Co-host/Producer]

Summer cabin in Belgrade Lakes, Maine.

[Vanessa Richardson]

They planned to spend most of their.

[Co-host/Producer]

Summer there before returning to New York when the Courts reconvened on August 25th.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Stella and Joseph had been married for over 13 years.

[Co-host/Producer]

In fact, Joseph was the lawyer who represented Stella in her divorce from her previous husband. Friends said their marriage was a happy one, but it was also an open secret that Joseph had a mistress.

[Vanessa Richardson]

It's not clear if Stella knew about.

[Co-host/Producer]

These affairs, but we know she wasn't as social as he was and she.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Rarely attended political functions with him.

[Co-host/Producer]

So there's a good chance that they had some sort of understanding and kept parts of their lives separate. This became apparent early into their trip.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Although they were supposed to be on vacation, Joseph frequently had to leave the.

[Co-host/Producer]

Cabin, which didn't have a phone, to take work calls.

[Vanessa Richardson]

After one of these calls in late July, Joseph told his wife he needed to go back to the city.

[Co-host/Producer]

He said he'd be back soon. Stella was used to this sort of thing, so she didn't put up a fight. And Joseph was true to his word. He returned two days later. He never said what urgent business had called him away. And Stella didn't ask.

[Vanessa Richardson]

She was just glad to have him.

[Co-host/Producer]

All to herself for the next month. But then, a few days later, on August 3rd, Joseph received another phone call.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He had to go back to New York again. He told Stella he had to, quote.

[Co-host/Producer]

Straighten out a few people this time.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Stella was annoyed, but Joseph promised he'd.

[Co-host/Producer]

Be back by her 43rd birthday. On August 9th. Stella waited and waited and waited.

[Vanessa Richardson]

On her birthday, she received a gift that Joseph had ordered for her.

[Co-host/Producer]

A red canoe. But she didn't get what she really wanted. Her husband.

[Vanessa Richardson]

The fact that Joseph hadn't contacted her yet was unusual.

[Co-host/Producer]

Despite his long absences because of work, he always kept Stella updated.

[Vanessa Richardson]

So when she still didn't hear from.

[Co-host/Producer]

Him, she reached out to one of his colleagues. They didn't know where he was.

[Vanessa Richardson]

In fact, nobody had seen Joseph for the last week. But some of his friends had an.

[Co-host/Producer]

Idea about where he might be.

[Vanessa Richardson]

They assumed he was with a mistress.

[Co-host/Producer]

Of course, they didn't say that to.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Stella or whatever the case, they didn't.

[Co-host/Producer]

Think it was anything serious or that.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He was in trouble. Good Time Joe was exactly the type.

[Co-host/Producer]

Of person you'd expect to disappear from his marriage for a week. But before long, that theory became harder to believe.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Eventually, Stella got in touch with someone.

[Co-host/Producer]

Who had seen her husband recently. His law clerk, Joe Mara. Mara was surprised to hear that Stella hadn't heard from Joseph.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He thought his boss had already gone.

[Co-host/Producer]

Back to Maine several days ago.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Mara had last seen him on the morning of August 6th.

[Co-host/Producer]

And he wasn't the only one.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Throughout the day, Joseph had been spotted.

[Co-host/Producer]

Several times in New York City. But he wasn't acting like Good Time Joe.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He was acting like a man whose.

[Co-host/Producer]

Life was on the line.

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[Co-host/Producer]

By August 9, 1930. 43 year old Stella Crater hadn't heard from her husband Joseph for six, but a few other people had. Joseph's law clerk, Joe Mara, and his secretary Frederick Johnson both spoke to him in early August.

[Vanessa Richardson]

That's when the judge asked them to meet at his chambers on the 6th. He said he needed help with something but didn't specify. It was also the middle of a.

[Co-host/Producer]

Historic heat wave for New York. After a miserable commute, Mara and Johnson both made it to work before Joseph that day.

[Vanessa Richardson]

When he arrived, Joseph seemed on edge. He went straight to his office and.

[Co-host/Producer]

Shut the door behind him.

[Vanessa Richardson]

The two clerks could hear him rummaging.

[Co-host/Producer]

Around inside like he was gathering documents from desk drawers and packing them into his briefcase. When he emerged, Joseph asked Mara to go to the bank and cash a pair of checks for him. They were worth a total of $5,150, which is about $100,000 in today's money. When Mara returned with the cash, the.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Judge stuffed it into his suit pockets without comment. After that, Mara accompanied Joseph back to.

[Co-host/Producer]

His apartment where they dropped off the documents from Joseph's office.

[Vanessa Richardson]

As Mara turned to leave, Joseph mentioned that he was going up Westchester Way.

[Co-host/Producer]

And will be back in the office tomorrow. Mera didn't think much of the comment.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He assumed Joseph was just trying to.

[Co-host/Producer]

Escape the heat of the city. But the truth was far more complicated and Joseph's busy day was far from over.

[Vanessa Richardson]

That Evening, at around 6pm Joseph arrived.

[Co-host/Producer]

At a Broadway ticket agency run by his friend Joseph Gransky.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He asked Gransky to hold a ticket.

[Co-host/Producer]

For him at a musical called Dancing Partner that evening.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Gransky thought it was an odd request.

[Co-host/Producer]

Joseph had already seen that musical 10 days ago.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Then a few hours later, Joseph turned.

[Co-host/Producer]

Up at Billy Haas Chop House, a restaurant that he frequented in Midtown. He was all dressed up despite the heat.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He wore a double breasted suit, bow.

[Co-host/Producer]

Tie, spats and a panama hat.

[Vanessa Richardson]

To anyone watching, he looked like he.

[Co-host/Producer]

Was ready for a night on the town. Before long, an entertainment lawyer named William Klein spotted Joseph at the restaurant. William was having dinner with a showgirl.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Who went by the stage name Sally Lou Ritz.

[Co-host/Producer]

William invited Joseph to join them.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He agreed, but he didn't seem very excited about it. Like the clerks from Joseph's office, both William and Sally noticed that something was.

[Co-host/Producer]

Off about his behavior.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He didn't speak much.

[Co-host/Producer]

They finished their meal at around 9pm and parted ways.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Joseph said goodbye and William and Sally watched as he got into a cab.

[Co-host/Producer]

And drove off into the night.

[Vanessa Richardson]

But the theater Where Joseph was supposed.

[Co-host/Producer]

To see dancing partner was walking distance from the restaurant, only two blocks away. Plus, the show had started half an hour earlier. Joseph Force Crater never showed up to claim his ticket, which meant William and Sally were the last ones to see him, dead or alive. Nineteen days later, on August 25, 1930, the New York Supreme Court convened to find they were one member short.

[Vanessa Richardson]

They called Maine to see if Joseph.

[Co-host/Producer]

Was still at his vacation house with Stella.

[Vanessa Richardson]

This whole time, Stella had been hoping he'd just show up.

[Co-host/Producer]

And she probably didn't want to cause a public scandal, so she didn't alert the authorities.

[Vanessa Richardson]

But when she learned the other justices.

[Co-host/Producer]

Hadn'T heard from him either, it confirmed her worst fears. Something terrible had happened to Joseph. He would have never missed a Supreme Court meeting.

[Vanessa Richardson]

His new job mattered too much to him. On August 28th, she drove back to.

[Co-host/Producer]

The city, where she, an NYPD detective, and several of Joseph's colleagues began a quiet investigation.

[Vanessa Richardson]

They hoped to find Joseph without the whole city knowing, but there was no.

[Co-host/Producer]

Sign of him or where he might have gone.

[Vanessa Richardson]

The group finally brought the case to.

[Co-host/Producer]

The police commissioner on September 3rd.

[Vanessa Richardson]

As word spread about the disappearance, the.

[Co-host/Producer]

NYPD began their manhunt. And it wasn't off to a promising start.

[Vanessa Richardson]

It had been almost a month since Joseph was last seen.

[Co-host/Producer]

If the trail wasn't cold, it was at least lukewarm.

[Vanessa Richardson]

NYPD detectives tried to reconstruct the last.

[Co-host/Producer]

Day Joseph was seen, on August 6.

[Vanessa Richardson]

They interviewed as many people as they.

[Co-host/Producer]

Could, including his colleagues, other attorneys, and members of the Cayuga Club. Senator Robert F. Wagner, Joseph's mentor, returned from vacation the same day the investigation got underway.

[Vanessa Richardson]

As soon as he stepped off the steamship, he was surrounded by reporters who asked him about his friend's case.

[Co-host/Producer]

Wagner downplayed how close they were.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He might have suspected that Joseph's disappearance.

[Co-host/Producer]

Had something to do with his extramarital affairs and wanted to keep his name away from any scandals.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He did confirm that he'd seen Joseph.

[Co-host/Producer]

On August 1, but said that was the last time they spoke. Meanwhile, William Klein, the entertainment attorney, who.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Was one of the last people to.

[Co-host/Producer]

See Joseph, was a bit more helpful.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He told detectives he saw Joseph twice.

[Co-host/Producer]

Over those last few days. The first time was on August 4th.

[Vanessa Richardson]

William said that he and Sally the.

[Co-host/Producer]

Showgirl went out to dinner that evening, also at Haas Chop House. They ran into Joseph there that night, too. That time, Joseph was in a great mood.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He told William he was heading back to Maine the next day to spend.

[Co-host/Producer]

The rest of the summer with his wife.

[Vanessa Richardson]

And yet William said he saw Joseph.

[Co-host/Producer]

Again at the Chop House two days later. Clearly, he hadn't gone back to Maine.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Not only that, but he didn't seem like himself. William told police how Joseph was hesitant.

[Co-host/Producer]

To join them, only had one drink and didn't speak much during the meal. So what happened between August 4th and August 6th that made Joseph so upset and forced him to rethink his plans?

[Vanessa Richardson]

Police suspected it might have to do with Joseph's private life and the long.

[Co-host/Producer]

Evenings he spent partying with mistresses. Maybe he'd run away with a showgirl.

[Vanessa Richardson]

It turned out one of Joseph's trips.

[Co-host/Producer]

That summer had been a social one.

[Vanessa Richardson]

When he told Stella he had to leave Maine in July, it was because he'd gone to Atlantic City to party. But that still left his trip on.

[Co-host/Producer]

August 3rd unaccounted for.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Although it was just a theory, at that point, the tabloids had a field.

[Co-host/Producer]

Day with his double life. When Joseph's colleagues were asked for comment, they acted like they were shocked by his escapades. Like Robert Wagner, these denials came from men who wanted to preserve their own reputations. Everybody knew about Good Time Joe, and nobody cared until it could affect their careers.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Despite the intense public interest, the search.

[Co-host/Producer]

Stalled out within a week.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Detectives were sent to Maine, upstate New.

[Co-host/Producer]

York, Atlantic city and Washington, D.C. even Canada, anywhere the judge might have gone after Aug. 6. But nobody turned up anything concrete.

[Vanessa Richardson]

On Sept. 15, a grand jury conducted.

[Co-host/Producer]

An inquest into Judge Crater's disappearance.

[Vanessa Richardson]

They wound up summoning 95 witnesses. Many of these witnesses repeated what they.

[Co-host/Producer]

Told the police and reporters. Robert Wagner and others continued to downplay their relationships with Joseph.

[Vanessa Richardson]

At the end of the inquest, after.

[Co-host/Producer]

975 pages of testimony, the question of.

[Vanessa Richardson]

What happened to Joseph Force Crater was.

[Co-host/Producer]

Still a mystery and no official ruling was made.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Stella Crater refused to attend the proceedings.

[Co-host/Producer]

She never gave any reason why.

[Vanessa Richardson]

But it's possible it had something to.

[Co-host/Producer]

Do with another grand jury hearing going on at the same time as her husband's.

[Vanessa Richardson]

In early September, before his disappearance was public knowledge, a subpoena arrived on Judge.

[Co-host/Producer]

Crater's desk from the Attorney General's office.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Attorney General Charles Tuttle had been investigating.

[Co-host/Producer]

Any and all links to Tammany hall corruption that summer.

[Vanessa Richardson]

And Joseph Force Crater was more than.

[Co-host/Producer]

A person of interest in this case.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He was a suspect in a conspiracy.

[Co-host/Producer]

Back In May of 1927, the mayor had appointed a man named George Ewald as a magistrate for the city. Like Joseph, he was a member of the Cayuga Club, an important branch of Tammany Hall.

[Vanessa Richardson]

And within days of the appointment, George ewald had withdrawn $10,000 from the bank.

[Co-host/Producer]

And transferred the funds to the personal bank account of Tammany hall leader Martin Healy. This was clear evidence of corruption.

[Vanessa Richardson]

The amount, $10,000, was equivalent to a.

[Co-host/Producer]

Year'S salary for a magistrate, which confirmed that Tammany hall was still in the business of selling government jobs for money.

[Vanessa Richardson]

And despite Joseph's attempts to distance himself.

[Co-host/Producer]

From the organization, he was the master of ceremonies at the party celebrating George Ewald's new position.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Not only that, but In May of 1990, in 1930, three months before his.

[Co-host/Producer]

Disappearance, Joseph withdrew around $20,000 from his personal bank accounts.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Attorney General Tuttle suspected that this money.

[Co-host/Producer]

Was also going to Tammany Hall, a payout for the judicial appointment. But without a paper trail, the evidence was circumstantial.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Still, it made people wonder. Had Joseph skipped town to avoid being.

[Co-host/Producer]

Implicated in Tuttle's investigation? Naturally, the press found this story appealing.

[Vanessa Richardson]

For a while, the phrase to pull.

[Co-host/Producer]

A crater became common slang for disappearing in the same way that we use ghosted today. But Joseph wasn't the only one pulling a crater. Late in 1930, Sally Lou Ritz, the showgirl who had dinner with Joseph on August 6, also went missing.

[Vanessa Richardson]

This happened right after she gave her.

[Co-host/Producer]

Two testimony to the grand jury. Many papers speculated the two had run off together. There wasn't any evidence confirming this.

[Vanessa Richardson]

But that didn't mean the answer to Joseph's fate didn't lie between the sheets.

[Co-host/Producer]

While some showgirls got away from powerful men unharmed, they weren't all so lucky.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Six months after Joseph's disappearance, a woman named Vivian Gordon was in the spotlight.

[Co-host/Producer]

For all the wrong reasons.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Vivian told her clients she was a.

[Co-host/Producer]

Sex worker, but in reality, she was an informant.

[Vanessa Richardson]

And around the same time that Tammany.

[Co-host/Producer]

Hall was under investigation, Vivian agreed to testify about corruption in New York City politics, with records of payoffs and names to go with them.

[Vanessa Richardson]

But then, on February 25, 1931, she.

[Co-host/Producer]

Was found dead in a park.

[Vanessa Richardson]

The rumor mill said that one of Joseph's jackets was found in her apartment and that the men who orchestrated her.

[Co-host/Producer]

Murder were involved with Tammany Hall.

[Vanessa Richardson]

If they had her silenced before she could testify, who's to say they hadn't.

[Co-host/Producer]

Done the same thing to Joseph?

[Vanessa Richardson]

Seven years later, Stella Crater herself alluded to this possibility.

[Co-host/Producer]

For the first time, she told the.

[Vanessa Richardson]

World why her husband had had been.

[Co-host/Producer]

Called back to the city on August 3, 1930. He'd gotten a phone call from Martin Healy, the head of Tammany Hall.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Healy wanted Joseph to come back to.

[Co-host/Producer]

New York immediately to discuss the Tuttle investigation.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Democratic politics was at a turning point at the time. Not only was there an upcoming gubernatorial.

[Co-host/Producer]

Election that fall, but the presidential election was coming up after that, in 1932, Tammany hall was becoming a liability.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Governor of New.

[Co-host/Producer]

York at the time, hoped to nab.

[Vanessa Richardson]

A seat in the White House, and.

[Co-host/Producer]

He was already distancing himself from the organization.

[Vanessa Richardson]

If he wanted to gain the popular vote of the country, he couldn't be.

[Co-host/Producer]

Associated with dirty politics.

[Vanessa Richardson]

In fact, as early as 1931, he was taking charge of corruption investigations himself.

[Co-host/Producer]

Himself, which meant that Tammany was in fight or flight mode.

[Vanessa Richardson]

There's a good chance that people like Joseph Force Crater were faced with a choice.

[Co-host/Producer]

Testify against their corrupt colleagues or go toe to toe with the Attorney General. If Joseph chose the first option, it's possible he paid with his life.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Nine years after his sudden disappearance from.

[Co-host/Producer]

New York City, Joseph Force Crater was declared legally dead in 1939.

[Vanessa Richardson]

But the mystery of what happened to.

[Co-host/Producer]

Him was alive and well. People wondered, did he elope with a showgirl?

[Vanessa Richardson]

Did he flee to avoid implication in.

[Co-host/Producer]

An anti corruption investigation? Was he murdered by gangsters or colleagues? At different points in time, each theory seemed possible. But as more evidence surfaced, some were ruled out.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Take the story about Sally Lou Ritz.

[Co-host/Producer]

The showgirl who disappeared in late 1930. Back then, tabloids speculated that she and Joseph had run off together. But the truth was far less dramatic. Sally Lou, whose real name was Ritzy, had gone home to Ohio to care for her alien, willing father.

[Vanessa Richardson]

After that, she decided to leave show business altogether.

[Co-host/Producer]

As New York papers speculated about her.

[Vanessa Richardson]

And the judge, she was living a.

[Co-host/Producer]

Modest life in the Midwest. But while Sally Lou Ritzy may not have known what happened to Joseph, it's.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Possible another woman did.

[Co-host/Producer]

In the early 1950s, a retired brothel madam named Polly Adler wrote a memoir about her experiences in early 20th century century New York City.

[Vanessa Richardson]

According to a colleague of hers, an.

[Co-host/Producer]

Early draft of the manuscript contained an account of what happened to Joseph Force Crater.

[Vanessa Richardson]

The story goes that Joseph suffered a.

[Co-host/Producer]

Fatal heart attack during a rendezvous at her brothel.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Polly was worried that the death of.

[Co-host/Producer]

A prominent politician under her roof would.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Bring unwanted police attention. So she reached out to some underworld.

[Co-host/Producer]

Contacts who dumped Joseph's body in the Hudson River.

[Vanessa Richardson]

It's compelling, but this account has several holes in it. For one thing, Joseph never had any documented heart issues. Over the years, people have also pointed.

[Co-host/Producer]

Out that this story came from second and third hand sources, not Polly herself.

[Vanessa Richardson]

And the fact that Pauli's publisher decided.

[Co-host/Producer]

Not to include the anecdote casts doubt on its reliability.

[Vanessa Richardson]

But in 1954, a year after Pauli's.

[Co-host/Producer]

Memoir was published, another former acquaintance of Joseph's came forward.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Now that he was in his mid-80s and nearing the end of his life.

[Co-host/Producer]

He had a confession to make. He knew what really happened to Joseph Force Crater.

[Vanessa Richardson]

The man in question was a retired.

[Co-host/Producer]

Butcher named Henry Krause.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He said that back in 1930, he.

[Co-host/Producer]

Owned a vacation home in Bronxville, New.

[Vanessa Richardson]

York, which he frequently let the Kayak.

[Co-host/Producer]

Yuga Club use for parties.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Remember, the last thing Joseph said to his legal assistant on August 6 was.

[Co-host/Producer]

That he was going up Westchester Way.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Well, Bronxville is located in Westchester County. According to Kraus, he saw Joseph Tammany.

[Co-host/Producer]

Hall boss Martin Healy and Tammany member George Ewald bury $90,000 in cash and bonds in the backyard.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Krause claims claimed this happened in early.

[Co-host/Producer]

1930 and that this money allegedly came.

[Vanessa Richardson]

From a crooked deal involving the municipal building.

[Co-host/Producer]

Though he didn't say which municipal building.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Kraus went on to explain that the same week Joseph disappeared, Kraus's brother in.

[Co-host/Producer]

Law was staying at the Bronxville house.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Kraus tried to call there several times.

[Co-host/Producer]

But no one answered. So Kraus drove up that weekend.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He arrived to find the house a wreck.

[Co-host/Producer]

There were liquor bottles everywhere, broken glass and a large amount of blood in one of the rooms.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Not only that, but the cash in.

[Co-host/Producer]

The backyard had been dug up and taken. Not knowing what else to do, Kraus cleaned up the mess and went back to the city.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Then he received a phone call asking.

[Co-host/Producer]

Him to meet with Martin Healy.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Kraus claimed Healy said to deny ever having known Joseph and that if anyone asked to deny knowing anything about the.

[Co-host/Producer]

Money in the backyard too.

[Vanessa Richardson]

The police dug into the story and.

[Co-host/Producer]

Were able to verify that Kraus did know Joseph and owned a home in Bronxville. With that, they renewed the search. Although Joseph was legally dead, they still didn't have a body.

[Vanessa Richardson]

And they had a feeling it might be buried at the house in Bronxville. But before they could make any progress.

[Co-host/Producer]

Several other concerning details about Krauss emerged.

[Vanessa Richardson]

According to public records, Krauss never had.

[Co-host/Producer]

A brother in law.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Not only that, but Krauss was the.

[Co-host/Producer]

One living in the house during Joseph's disappearance.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Which meant that if there was a.

[Co-host/Producer]

Potential murder that took place there, Krauss was an accessory. Still, maybe that was why Krauss made up the story about the brother in law and waited so long to come forward, he was worried about getting caught up in a murder investigation. There were a lot of question marks around the former butcher.

[Vanessa Richardson]

And by 1959, the authorities had plenty.

[Co-host/Producer]

Of reason to doubt Kraus legitimacy as a witness.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Even so, there was enough public interest that Life magazine funded a limited excavation of the backyard.

[Co-host/Producer]

They did not find Judge Crater. Crater's remains. There were no other leads for decades.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Stella crater died in 1969 at 70.

[Co-host/Producer]

Years old, never knowing what happened to Joseph.

[Vanessa Richardson]

In place of answers, she came up.

[Co-host/Producer]

With her own ritual to honor him.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Every August 6, she went to a.

[Co-host/Producer]

Greenwich Village bar, ordered two cocktails, and toasted her late husband. Good luck, Joe, wherever you are.

[Vanessa Richardson]

A Decade later, in 1979, the NYPD.

[Co-host/Producer]

Officially closed the missing persons case. It stayed that way for a quarter of a century. But then, in 2005, the authorities got.

[Vanessa Richardson]

An unexpected new lead.

[Co-host/Producer]

A Queens resident named Stella Ferrucci Good had passed away at the age of 91. Her granddaughter had found a tin box among her belongings.

[Vanessa Richardson]

It contained several newspaper clippings about the.

[Co-host/Producer]

Disappearance of Judge Crater, as well as.

[Vanessa Richardson]

A letter in a sealed envelope labeled.

[Co-host/Producer]

Do not open until my death.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Inside were the names of the men who allegedly killed Judge Crater.

[Co-host/Producer]

Ms. Ferrucci Good's husband, Robert, a Parks department supervisor who died in 1975.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Frank Burns, the cab driver who who picked Joseph Crater up, and Frank's brother Charles, who was a New York City police officer.

[Co-host/Producer]

According to the letter, Officer Burns also.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Had connections to the infamous Mafia organization.

[Co-host/Producer]

Known as Murder Incorporated.

[Vanessa Richardson]

The letter explained that after Joseph got.

[Co-host/Producer]

Into the cab on the night of August 6, 1930, the driver took him to Coney Island. There, the three men killed Crater and buried him under the boardwalk near West 8th Street.

[Vanessa Richardson]

The police quickly located the area in.

[Co-host/Producer]

Which Ms. Ferrucci Good claimed Joseph was buried.

[Vanessa Richardson]

But when they arrived, they realized it had already been excavated. It was now the site of the New York Aquarium. Depending on who you ask, construction crews.

[Co-host/Producer]

Did find skeletal remains while breaking ground for the aquarium in the early 1950s. However, those are still unidentified.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Matching dental records wouldn't work since Joseph wore dentures. Beyond that, DNA tests wouldn't be possible.

[Co-host/Producer]

Without any living descendants of the judge. He and Stella never had any kids. And as far as we can tell.

[Vanessa Richardson]

His closest living relatives are his brother's grandchildren.

[Co-host/Producer]

Which isn't a direct enough line for a definitive match.

[Vanessa Richardson]

75 years after it began, the case.

[Co-host/Producer]

Hit its final dead end. So what do you think happened to the missing judge? Let us know in the comments, wherever you listen.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Because even after all this time, there's.

[Co-host/Producer]

No shortage of theories he might have.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Skipped town to escape a corruption investigation. But it's hard to believe that such.

[Co-host/Producer]

An ambitious man would abandon ship when.

[Vanessa Richardson]

He was so close to achieving his career goals. He was just one election away from.

[Co-host/Producer]

Securing his seat on the judiciary.

[Vanessa Richardson]

From there, the sky would have been the limit. If he was murdered, what are the.

[Co-host/Producer]

Circumstances and possible suspects?

[Vanessa Richardson]

Was he killed by allies within Tammany.

[Co-host/Producer]

Hall who suspected him of turning on them?

[Vanessa Richardson]

The wreck at the house in Bronxville.

[Co-host/Producer]

Might indicate that he had an argument with Martin Healy and the others who.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Thought it was was better to silence.

[Co-host/Producer]

Him than face his testimony. It's possible that he never even made it to Bronxville. If anything in Stella Ferruci Goode's letter.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Is true, maybe he's still under the aquarium. And while her letter didn't name the people who ordered Joseph's death, it does.

[Co-host/Producer]

Identify his possible killers.

[Vanessa Richardson]

To me, I don't know why that.

[Co-host/Producer]

Seems like the most likely option.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Remember, Joseph socialized with with gangsters. If he'd crossed the wrong person, he.

[Co-host/Producer]

Could have paid the ultimate price.

[Vanessa Richardson]

The disappearance of Joseph Force Crater is.

[Co-host/Producer]

One of the most unique in American history.

[Vanessa Richardson]

For a man whose primary goal was to achieve true political influence, it's ironic.

[Co-host/Producer]

That he created a lasting legacy for.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Himself in his own absence.

[Co-host/Producer]

Foreign. Thanks so much for listening. I'm Vanessa Richardson and this is Conspiracy Theories, Cults and Crimes. Come back next week.

[Vanessa Richardson]

We'll decode this episode together and hear another story about the real people at.

[Co-host/Producer]

The center of the world's most notorious cults, conspiracies and criminal acts.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Conspiracy Theories, Cults and Crimes is a Crime House original.

[Co-host/Producer]

Powered by Pave Studios.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Here at Crime House, we want to.

[Co-host/Producer]

Thank each and every one of you for your support.

[Vanessa Richardson]

If you like what you heard today.

[Co-host/Producer]

Reach out on social media, rimehouse on TikTok and Instagram.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Don't forget to rate, review and follow Conspiracy Theories, Cults and Crimes wherever you get your podcasts.

[Co-host/Producer]

Your feedback truly makes a difference and to enhance your Conspiracy Theories, Cults and.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Crimes listening experience, subscribe to Crime Crime.

[Co-host/Producer]

House plus on Apple Podcasts.

[Vanessa Richardson]

You'll get every episode ad free.

[Co-host/Producer]

We'll be back next Wednesday.

[Vanessa Richardson]

Conspiracy Theories, Cults and Crimes is hosted by me, Vanessa Richardson and is a Crime House original.

[Co-host/Producer]

Powered by Pave Studios.

[Vanessa Richardson]

This episode was brought to life by the Conspiracy Theories, Cults and Crimes team. Max Cutler, Ron Shapiro, Alex Benedon, Natalie.

[Co-host/Producer]

Pertovsky, Lori Marinelli, Sarah camp. Robert Teamstra, Leah Roche and Michael Langsner. Thank you for listening.

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