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- [00:00]
Vanessa Richardson
Foreign this is Crime House. During the week of May 12, 1932, the 20 month old son of famed pilot Charles Lindbergh was found dead in the woods near his home. Nearly 60 years later, on May 16, 1990, actor Marlon Brando's son, the 32 year old Christian, shot and killed a man in his father's living room. Making this week's theme Celebrity Murders. Welcome to Crime House the show a Crime House original. I'm Vanessa Richardson. Every Monday we uncover crimes from this week in history. Serial killers, disappearances and murders all linked by a common theme. One case from the past, one closer to the present. Crime House is made possible by you, our community. Please rate, review and follow Crime House the show for early ad, free access and exclusive bonus content. Subscribe to Crime House plus on Apple Podcasts. This week's theme is Celebrity Murders. First we go back to 1932 when the high profile kidnapping of Charles Lindbergh Jr. Reached a chilling conclusion. Then we'll jump ahead to 1990 when Christian Brando took a page out of his father's movie the Godfather and killed a man in cold blood. Despite the decades between them, both cases revealed the dark reality of growing up in the spotlight. Because the truth is, having famous parents can be a blessing and a curse. All that and more coming up. Hey, it's Vanessa. And if you love Crime House the show the ultimate destination for true crime fans, then you have to check out Clues with Morgan Absher and Kaylin Moore. Every Wednesday. Kaylin and Morgan take you deep into the world of the most notorious crimes ever. Click clue by clue and what I really love about Clues is how they break down the ways that even the smallest pieces of evidence can crack a case wide open. From serial killers to shocking murders, Clues dives into all the forensic details and brilliant sleuthing of the world's most infamous cases. Clues is a Crime House original. Powered by Pave Studios, new episodes drop every Wednesday. Just search Clues wherever you listen to podcasts.
- [03:01]
Unknown Advertiser
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- [04:03]
Vanessa Richardson
On May 12, 1932, delivery truck drivers William Allen and Orville Wilson pulled over along a stretch of highway near Hopewell, New Jersey. Allen needed to go to the bathroom, but didn't want to wait for a rest stop. So he ventured into the woods less than 100ft from the road. As he went to relieve himself, something on the ground caught his eye. It was small and round, possibly a stone. But unlike the other rocks surrounding it, this one was pure white. Looking closer, Allen noticed delicate strands of blonde hair scattered next to it. That's when Allen realized this was no stone. It was a human skull. A child's skull. Allen kept up with the news. He knew a child was missing and the police were scouring the area for any sign of him. Allen couldn't believe it, but he was pretty sure he'd just found Charles Lindbergh's son. Five years before that tragic discovery, Charles Lindbergh had a very different kind of life changing experience. At 25 years old, he'd been working as an airmail pilot in St. Louis, Missouri, when he heard about a contest. A New York hotel owner was offering $25,000 to the first person to fly non stop from New York City to Paris, France. That's nearly half a million dollars in today's money and of course, a spot in aviation history. Charles couldn't resist. With the help of some investors, he built a custom airplane he named the Spirit of St. Louis. On May 20, 1927, Charles took off from New York. 33 and a half hours later, he touched down in Paris. Hundreds of thousands of people gathered to watch the historic landing. From that point on, Charles Lindbergh was an international sensation. In addition to the cash prize, he received several awards, including the first ever Distinguished Flying Cross from President Calvin Coolidge. Charles also published a book which became a bestseller and went on to receive the Pulitzer Prize. But even with all his success, Charles still craved adventure. And he used his newfound fortune to fly around the world and promote the aviation industry. In December of 1927, his travels took him to Mexico, where he visited the home of the US ambassador. The ambassador's daughter, 21 year old Anne Morrow, happened to be home from college at the time. She and Charles hit it off and started dating two years later, in May 1929. They got married when Charles was 27 and Anne was 23. For a time, they were known as the first couple of flight. Their days were spent meeting with prominent global leaders and making public appearances. But the newlyweds didn't want to be celebrities forever. They wanted a normal, quiet life. Most of all, they wanted to start a family. So in early 1930, they purchased an estate in Hopewell, New Jersey, away from the prying eyes of the media. A few months later, in June, Charles and Anne welcomed their first son, Charles Lindbergh Jr. Who they nicknamed Charlie. But nearly two years later, on March 1, 1932, the family was thrust back into the spotlight and for all the wrong reasons. At around 10pm that night, Charlie's nanny went into the nursery to check that he was asleep, only to discover the crib was empty. She immediately alerted the Lindberghs and Charles rushed into the nursery. He saw the empty crib and, and just beyond it, an open window. Charles snapped into action. He retrieved his rifle, then ran outside to search the ground below Charlie's room. He discovered a broken ladder and footprints in the mud. But the biggest piece of evidence was back in the nursery on the windowsill. Whoever kidnapped Charlie had left a ransom note. Among the spelling mistakes and grammatical errors was a demand for $50,000, which would over $1 million in today's money. Despite explicit instructions not to contact the authorities, Charles and Anne quickly called the Hopewell pd Officers raced over with the press hot on their heels. It's not clear how the media knew what had happened, but by 10:30pm just a half hour later, radio stations announced that Charles Lindbergh Jr. Was missing. After that, the news spread like wildfire. Reporters rushed to get the story into the next day's paper. And by the next day, March 2, the Lindbergh Estate was crawling with police and journalists. With so much foot traffic around the property, investigators didn't have time to gather all the evidence or properly secure the area. Because of that, the crime scene was thoroughly compromised. It quickly became clear the local authorities were out of their depth. So the New Jersey State Police stepped in. But Charles was terrified that they'd spook the kidnapper, so he insisted on leading the investigation himself. And given his celebrity status, nobody dared to stop him. Three days after Charlie went missing on March 4, 1932, the Lindberghs received a second ransom note in the mail. The postmark said it had come from about 60 miles away in Brooklyn, New York. And because Charles had gone to the authorities, the ransom had been increased from 50,000 to $70,000. That's over one and a half million dollars in today's money. That wasn't their only demand. The kidnapper also refused to negotiate with the intermediary Charles had chosen. According to the kidnapper, the negotiator had to be someone random and therefore impartial. Thanks to all the publicity the case had generated, plenty of strangers were vying for the role. One of those people was 72 year old Dr. John Condon. He took it upon himself to publish an ad in his local paper, the Bronx Home News. The retired principal addressed the ad to the kidnapper and offered to pay an additional $1,000 if they agreed to negotiate through him. On March 9, Condon got a response. The kidnapper was willing to meet. Condon called the Lindberghs to let them know. With little else to go on, Charles gave him permission to broker the most important deal of his life and sent Condon $70,000 to pay the ransom. With Charles's blessing, Condon began a theatrical back and forth with the kidnapper. It involved coded messages printed in the local paper and notes delivered via taxi Dr. And hidden under rocks in random locations. After a few days, on March 12, Condon and the kidnapper finally spoke in person. Condon called the man Graveyard John. Because they met at Woodlawn Cemetery, the encounter yielded two important pieces of information. First, Graveyard John left his face exposed, allowing Condon to later provide a detailed description to police and and second, the kidnapper agreed to provide proof that he actually had baby Charlie. Soon after meeting, the man sent Condon the pajamas Charlie was wearing the night he disappeared. Condon passed the clothing onto the Lindberghs, who positively identified them as Charlie's. Now all that was left to do was send over the money and get Charlie back. On April 2, Condon returned to Woodlawn Cemetery. He handed over the money and John told him where to find baby Charlie. According to him, the child was being held on a boat named Nelly, anchored near Martha's Vineyard off the coast of Massachusetts. Authorities quickly descended on Martha's Vineyard, but after multiple searches, they found no sign of the boat or the baby. It seemed like Graveyard John had sent them on a wild goose chase and run off with the cash. From there, the case ran cold even with the description Condon had provided. And for a while it seemed like that was the end of the story. But then on May 12, 1932, two months after Charlie was taken, the Lindberghs got some devastating news that day. Delivery truck drivers William Allen and Orville Wilson stopped for a bathroom break along the highway near the Lindberghs estate after find human remains in the woods. Allen and Wilson alerted the police who found the tiny body face down and partially buried. It was rushed to the morgue where Charles was already waiting. One look and Allen's suspicions were confirmed. This was definitely the Lindbergh's son. A coroner determined his cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head and based on the decomposition, they believed he'd been killed over two months earlier, the night he was taken. After 72 agonizing days, Charles and Ann Lindbergh finally had answers. But their nightmare wasn't over. Because now they weren't just searching for a kidnapper. They were on the hunt for a killer.
- [14:31]
Unknown Advertiser
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- [15:01]
Vanessa Richardson
Apply hey, it's Vanessa. And if you love Crime House, the show the ultimate destination for true crime fans. Then you have to check out Clues with Morgan Absher and Kaylin Moore. Just like we explore notorious cases each week, every Wednesday, Kaylin and Morgan take you deep into the world of the most notorious crimes ever. Clue by clue. And what I really love about Clues is how they break down the ways that even the smallest pieces of evidence can crack a case wide open. From serial killers to shocking murders, Clues dives into all the the forensic details and brilliant sleuthing of the world's most infamous cases. If you're looking for compelling storytelling, crime scene analysis and a new perspective through some of the world's most puzzling true crime cases, then you have to check out Clues. Clues is a Crime House original powered by Pave Studios. New episodes drop every Wednesday. Just search Clues wherever you listen to podcasts. On May 12, 1932, the body of 20 month old Charles Lindbergh Jr. Was discovered a few miles from his family's estate in Hopewell, New Jersey. The Dramatic search for the missing child had dominated the headlines for months. Now the entire country was eager to find his killer. Now that it wasn't just a kidnapping case, the New Jersey State Police was back in charge of the investigation. But after Charlie's body was found, President Herbert Hoover wanted the newly formed Federal Bureau of Investigation on the job, too, and the state police needed the help. With so much media attention, there were hundreds of tips pouring in daily. The investigators did their best to follow up on each and every one, but for the most part, this turned out to be a waste of precious time and resources. Soon, they realized their best lead wasn't to talk to people. It was to follow the money. Before the ransom was delivered, investigators had worked with Charles Lindbergh to record the serial numbers on the bills. Now, months later, the FBI gave a list of those numbers to all the banks in the New York area and asked them to keep a close eye on any deposits they received. While the FBI waited to hear back, they dove into what little evidence they did have that included handwriting experts who were brought in to examine the ransom notes. They determined that all 13 letters, which included those sent to the Lindberghs and Dr. John Condon, had been written by the same person. And a closer look at the spelling mistakes revealed the author was likely German. Detectives also examined the pieces of ladder found outside of baby Charlie's window. It looked homemade, crafted by someone with woodworking skills. That, coupled with the notes, led investigators to believe they were looking for a German carpenter. It was a promising start, but in a place like New York City, with tens of thousands of German immigrants, this didn't exactly narrow things down, even though they did have a physical description. For the next few months, the FBI worked to sift through any suspects who matched what they knew about the killer. It was slow going, though, and by November 1932, it seemed like they'd never have answers. Just when it seemed like they were hitting a dead end, they got an unexpected boost. That month, Franklin D. Roosevelt won the presidential election. His top priority was to jumpstart the economy Economy and end the Great Depression. And in the process, Roosevelt ended up helping the Lindbergh baby investigation too. One of Roosevelt's first moves was to end the gold standard, which tied the value of US Currency to the value of gold. He ordered all gold coins and Certificates valued over $100 to be returned to the treasury in exchange for paper bills. That was important because at least $40,000 of the ransom money had been paid in gold certificates. At the same time, FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover sent out revised pamphlets listing the serial numbers of the bills and the gold certificates that were used to pay the ransom. Like before, the pamphlets were distributed far and wide to any banks in the Tri State area. The Lindbergh case was one of the biggest ongoing criminal investigations in the country and everyone was keeping tabs on how it was progressing, including President Roosevelt. He applauded Hoover for his work and on October 19, 1933 he gave the FBI full jurisdiction over the investigation. Up until then, all of the information had been spread between the New Jersey State Police, the NYPD and and the federal government, which meant no one had a complete picture. With the ball firmly in his court Director Hoover made sure everyone involved was communicating properly, especially when it came to tracing the money and the gold certificates. It took some time, but by September 1934, over two years after Charlie was killed, all of Hoover's hard work finally paid off. 16 of the gold certificates used in the ransom were identified at various banks around New York City. The FBI noticed they were mostly clustered around the Upper east side. The area was home to a large portion of New York's German immigrants. It seemed like the FBI's original hunch was correct. Together, the New Jersey State Police, NYPD and FBI contacted every bank on the the Upper east side and told them to ramp up their efforts. They wanted them to inspect every single gold certificate they received. On September 18, 1934, the assistant manager of the Corn Exchange bank and Trust Company reported a ten dollar gold certificate that he just found. It was part of a deposit from a gas station. Investigators tracked down the gas station and spoke to the attendant. He remembered that a man had come in a few days earlier and paid for his gas with the certificate. The attendant thought it might be counterfeit, so he'd written down the man's license plate number. Using DMV records, the FBI traced the license plate to a man named Bruno Richard Hauptman living in the Bronx. Not only was he German born, but he was in fact a carpenter. Finally, after over two years, it seemed like the authorities had their killer. On September 19, 1934, Hauptman was arrested on suspicion of murder. While he was in custody, investigators searched his home and found $13,000 hidden in a gas can in his garage. After after checking the serial numbers, they determined the money had been part of the ransom payment. Detectives then asked Dr. John Condon, who delivered the money, to come down to the police station. After taking a look at Hauptman, Condon confirmed he was the man he'd met with at Woodlawn. Cemetery. Despite the mounting evidence against him, Hauptman maintained his innocence. But it wasn't enough. On February 13, 1935, a jury found him guilty of first degree murder. He was given the death penalty after a series of failed appeals. Bruno Hauptman was executed via the electric chair the following year, on April 3, 1936. Although the Lindberghs didn't get a happy ending, their very public tragedy did inspire important change. After Charlie's disappearance and murder, the government passed the Federal Kidnapping act, also known as the Lindbergh Law, in June of 1932. This gave the FBI jurisdiction over kidnappings that seemed to cross state lines. Since then, the legislation has helped countless children avoid the same fate as Charlie. Up next, the story of another murder involving a celebrity son. But this time, they weren't the victim. They were the perpetrator. 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- [24:36]
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- [25:09]
Vanessa Richardson
In 1932, Charles Lindbergh's fame put a target on his son's back. Nearly 60 years later, another celebrity father had a brush with murder. But unlike Charles, this dad's famous name would be a saving grace. On May 16, 1990, a single gunshot rang out in the Hollywood Hills. It came from an opulent compound owned by the Godfather himself, Marlon Brando. The man who'd pulled the trigger was Marlon's 32 year old son, Christian. And while it seemed like a scene straight out of one of Marlon's movies, the reality was much more devastating now. Someone was dead because of Christian's actions. Despite being the oldest son of Hollywood royalty, Christian Brando's life was far from charmed when he was born. Born on May 11, 1958, it wasn't under happy circumstances. Marlon Brando had only agreed to marry Christian's mother, actress Anna Kashva, when he learned she was pregnant. But Marlon was a known womanizer and kept sleeping around while he was married to Anna. Eventually, it became too much for her to bear, and before Christian turned 1, she and Marlon divorced. Although Anna was awarded custody of baby Christian, she wasn't the best mother. After the divorce, she turned to drugs and alcohol to cope. Before long, her substance abuse and unpredictable temper had spiraled out of control, and 6 year old Christian was sent to live with his maternal aunt, also in la. By then, Marlon had fathered three more children and was on to his third wife. He'd met actress Tarita Teriya Paella while filming a movie called Mutiny on the Bounty in Tahiti. But he didn't just fall in love with Tarita while he was there. He also fell in love with the country of Tahiti and even purchased his own private island there. Sometimes Christian would go to the island to see Marlon. Other times he saw his dad in la. All to say, stability was hard to come by from both of Christian's parents and. But in 1970, when Christian was 12, life did get a little bit better. That year, Marlon and Tarita welcomed their second child, A daughter they named Cheyenne. Christian loved his little sister and enjoyed spending time with her whenever he was visiting Tahiti. But even then, Marlon remained an aloof and disinterested father. His busy schedule meant he hardly saw any of his children or knew what they were up to. And there were some people out there willing to take advantage of that. In 1972, Marlon was in Paris shooting a film and doing press for the second godfather. But his work trip was suddenly interrupted when rumors started going around that 13 year old Christian had been kidnapped. Despite Marlon's less than perfect track record, he still cared about Christian, and he took the news very seriously. He quickly hired a team of private investigators to find his son. And it didn't take them long to track him down to a small fishing village in Baja, California. The people who had Christian said the boy's mother, Anna, had offered them $10,000 to hide her son. It's not clear what Anna's motivation was or what she'd hoped to achieve. But once Christian was safe and a judge awarded Marlon full custody, the change was too much for Christian to handle. Soon, all his trauma and abandonment issues built up. He dealt with it by doing the same thing his mother had done, turning to drugs and alcohol to numb the pain. Before long, he'd dropped out of high school. After that, Christian struggled To find a path forward. He had a string of odd jobs and even tried acting a bit. But even though he still resented his father, Christian mostly just drifted through life, coasting on Marlon's wealth and reputation. But while Christian was thoroughly disillusioned with his father, Cheyenne was still very much enthralled by him. Although Marlon and Tarita had divorced when Cheyenne was just two, her love for Marlon never wavered. Of course, everyone in Tahiti already knew who her father was, but as a young girl, Cheyenne never tired of bragging about him. She even kept a photo album of his pictures that she loved to show off. Unfortunately, Marlon hadn't learned from his experience with Christian. Even though he visited Cheyenne and her siblings on most weekends, spending time with his kids just wasn't high on the priority list. And Marlon didn't let them come see him in the States either, where he'd been permanently moved back to after the divorce. He claimed it was for their own good, that the culture shock would be too much since they'd lived in Tahiti their whole lives. And he wasn't exactly wrong. In 1986, Cheyenne was finally allowed to visit her dad in LA for her 16th birthday. According to a friend, she was overwhelmed by the fast pace and crowded streets. Still, the trip could have been a success if Marlon had been more available. Instead, Cheyenne returned to Tahiti feeling nothing but disappointment. She was beginning to understand her older brother's resentment. Although 30 year old Christian still lived at Marlon's home in LA, he spent a good amount of time in Tahiti with Cheyenne. Despite their age difference, the two had become extremely close over the years. And now their shared resentment brought them even closer. But Christian wasn't her only shoulder to cry on. Around this time, 16 year old Cheyenne started dating a guy named Dag Drolet who was seven years her senior. The Drole and Brando families ran in the same high society circles on Tahiti, so it wasn't surprising when the pair got together. But the speed at which the relationship moved was shocking. Cheyenne and Dag moved in together almost immediately and they fought a lot. To the point that the Drolets were apprehensive about the relationship. Apparently Cheyenne could be rash and unpredictable, sometimes even violent. Still, Dag didn't pay attention to his parents worries and remained devoted to Cheyenne. But even with the affection of her boyfriend, Cheyenne still wanted to feel more loved by her father. In August 1989, Marlon was filming a movie in Toronto, Canada. 19 year old Cheyenne called from Tahiti to ask if she could visit him. He said no. Cheyenne was heartbroken. In her mind, this was just confirmation that Marlon didn't care about her. To make matters worse, she was also in a fight with Dag at the time. After learning her dad didn't want her to come see him, Cheyenne grabbed her car keys and stormed out of the house. She hopped into her Jeep and sped off into the night. She raced along the winding island roads, reaching over 100 miles per hour. At an especially tight curve, Cheyenne lost control of the vehicle and disappeared into a ditch. Cheyenne hoped it would be enough to finally capture her father's attention.
- [33:03]
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- [33:55]
Vanessa Richardson
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- [34:02]
Vanessa Richardson
See full terms@mintmobile.com In August 1989, 19 year old Cheyenne Brando was in a major car accident in Tahiti. After getting into a fight with her father and her 26 year old boyfriend, Dag Drole, Cheyenne was driving recklessly around the island when she careened off the road and into a ditch. Her injuries were extensive, especially to her face. She had a broken jaw and lost part of her ear. But for Cheyenne, one positive thing did come out of the crash. She she finally got her dad's attention. As soon as she was stable, Marlon flew Cheyenne from Tahiti to Los Angeles to recuperate. He covered the cost of the many reconstructive surgeries she needed and soon Cheyenne was on the path to recovery. Physically, Cheyenne's rehabilitation was nothing short of miraculous. After all the surgeries, the only sign that she'd been in a horrible accident was a small scar below one eye. Even so, the mental and emotional Damage was devastating. While Marlon had stepped in to help, Cheyenne still blamed the wreck on him and his constant neglect. When she was back in Tahiti, Cheyenne spiraled into a deep depression. Like her half brother Christian, she used drugs and alcohol to cope and soon became addicted. Dag tried to stand by her, but Cheyenne's substance abuse slowly chipped away at their relationship. The couple was reaching a breaking point when they got some unexpected News. In late 1989, just months after the car crash, they learned Cheyenne was pregnant. It should have been a happy time for the couple, but given Cheyenne's mental state, it only seemed to exacerbate the pain she was already in. And the pregnancy hormones certainly didn't help her moods, which were constantly in flux. As Cheyenne got further along, her depression and substance abuse issues worsened and things between her and Dag continued to unravel. But Dag wasn't ready to give up on their relationship. And when Marlon offered to bring 20 year old Cheyenne back back to LA to get ready for the baby in May 1990, Dag urged her to accept for her sake and their child's. Much to his relief, she said yes. Dag even went to LA with her as a show of support. But their relationship was still on thin ice. Rather than sleeping with Cheyenne in a guest room, Dag chose to sleep on the couch in the living room. Cheyenne knew Dag was pulling away from her, so she turned to the one person she felt like she could count on. On May 16, Cheyenne went out to dinner with her half brother, 32 year old Christian Brando, who was also living at Marlon's house. Although Christian was still struggling with drug and alcohol addiction, that didn't stop him from drinking during their night out. As Christian drank, Cheyenne told him about her own struggles, mainly the challenges she was having in her relationship with Dag. Christian had just met the man, so he only knew what Cheyenne told him. When she said he was abusive, Christian absolutely lost it. They got back to the Brando complex at around 11pm that night. Dag was watching TV in the living room when Christian burst in yelling and waving a gun. Before Dag could even respond, Christian aimed the pistol at his face and fired. 26 year old dag died instantly. After hearing the gunshot. Marlin came running. He called 91 1, then attempted CPR on DAG while they waited for help to arrive. Before long, light, lights and sirens echoed in the Hollywood Hills. But there wasn't anything the medics could do for Dag. The situation was entirely in the hands of the LAPD and it didn't take the officers long to realize Christian was completely hammered. They gave him a Breathalyzer, which came back at 0.19. That's over twice the legal limit for a DUI. It also meant Christian was unusually chatty. He maintained the whole thing was a tragic accident. He told detectives that he never intended to shoot Dag, let alone kill him. He said he was only trying to scare him. Christian claimed that as he turned to leave the room, Dag lunged for the weapon. They were fighting over it when one of them accidentally pulled the trigger, shooting Dag in the process. However, the crime scene told a very different story. Dag's body was slumped into the couch cushions. He was still holding the TV remote in one hand and a cigarette lighter in the other. There were no signs of physical struggle had taken place. In the early morning hours of May 17, Christian was brought down to the station for questioning, and shortly after that, he was arrested for murder. While Marlin came to his son's defense, Cheyenne told investigators there was nothing accidental about the shooting. But before she could be questioned further, Marlin forced her to return to Tahiti, where she checked into a hospital. Just weeks later, in June 1990, she gave birth to Dag's son. Despite Cheyenne's mental health issues and being freshly postpartum, prosecutors in the US Wanted her to testify against Christian. But as a Tahitian, Cheyenne had French citizenship, which meant extradition wasn't an option. However, Dag's family wasn't willing to let her get out of it so easily. Not only did they think she was a witness to Dag's murder, but they believed she was the cause of it. Dag's father filed a civil complaint against Cheyenne, claiming she was an accessory to his son's death. All of it sank Cheyenne into an even deeper depression, and she made two unsuccessful attempts to take her own life. In November 1990, without Cheyenne as a witness, prosecutors struggled to build a case against Christian. And their chances at a confession conviction only got worse when Marlin hired superstar lawyer Robert Shapiro to defend his son. Shapiro had represented the likes of Johnny Carson and Eric Menendez, and in the future, he'd also defend O.J. simpson. If anyone could get Christian off the hook, it was him. When Christian's trial began in January 1991, Shapiro systematically chipped away at the prosecution's argument. But his biggest win was getting Christian's taped confession ruled inadmissible. It turned out the officer had failed to read Christian his full Miranda rights, skipping over the part about the availability of a public defender. It was a technicality, but it was still a violation of his rights which meant his confession had to be thrown out. With their case for first degree murder crumbling, the prosecution offered Christian a deal and he took it. In the end, Christian pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison, but was released after just five in 1996 for good behavior. Sadly, the Brando siblings didn't get on the straight and narrow after that. In December 1990, Cheyenne was placed under a conservatorship and her mom was given custody of her son. From then on, Cheyenne was in and out of psychiatric hospitals. Her life reached a tragic end in 1995 when 25 year old Cheyenne died by suicide. Christian was still incarcerated at the time of Cheyenne's death. After his release, he lived a quieter life, though he had other brushes with the legal system. In 2005, the 46 year old was charged with spousal abuse. This time he received three years of probation and court ordered rehab. Christian died three years later in 2008 from complications due to pneumonia. He was 49 years old looking back on this week in Crime history, we can see how fame is a double edged sword. While there are many perks to being a celebrity, there are just as many drawbacks. In the case of the Lindbergh baby, someone saw Charles's fortune and decided they wanted a piece. They didn't care if Charles's child had to pay the price. In contrast, Marlon Brando's resources helped Christian escape a life behind bars. But in the end, neither family was spared from tragedy and the entire world watched as their lives crumbled. Foreign thanks so much for listening. I'm Vanessa Richardson and this is Crime House the Show. Crime House the Show is a Crime House original. Powered by Pave Studios At Crime House, we want to express our gratitude to you, our community, for making this possible. Please support us by rating, reviewing and following Crime House the Show. Wherever you go, your podcasts, your feedback truly matters and for ad free and early access to Crime House the Show plus exciting bonus content. Subscribe to Crime House plus on Apple Podcasts. We'll be back next Monday. Crime House the Show is hosted by me, Vanessa Richardson and is a Crime House original. Powered by Pave Studios. This episode was brought to life by the Crime House House the Show team. Max Cutler, Ron Shapiro, Alex Benidon, Natalie Pertovsky, Lori Marinelli, Sarah Camp, Megan Hannam, Hania Saeed and Michael Langsner. Thank you for listening. How can one tiny clue change everything? Kaylin Moore and Morgan Absher break it all down on their new show, Clues. New episodes drop every Wednesday. Just search Clues wherever you listen to podcasts.