Five best true crime documentaries on Netflix

Netflix continues to hit the nail on the head when it comes to true crime documentaries.

It’s hard to find a genre that has exploded more over the past few years than true crime. After the Serial podcast in 2014 and HBO’s The Jinx in the beginning of 2015, Netflix burst onto the true crime scene with the popular hit, Making a Murderer.

Since then, Netflix has released a number of true crime documentaries that dive into the world of cold cases and mysteries. With so many to choose from, here are the five best true crime documentaries to stream on Netflix.

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Making a Murder (2015)

Netflix’s first big hit in the true crime genre might be its very best series. Making a Murderer describes the complicated life of Steven Avery. Avery served 18 years for a crime he did not commit before being exonerated thanks to DNA testing. Two years after his release from prison, Avery is in legal trouble again after he is charged with the murder of photographer, Teresa Halbach.

The series explores Avery’s fight for innocence as well as the handling of the case by the Manitowoc County Sheriff’s Department, suggesting ulterior motives besides the facts of the case may have been used to put Avery behind bars.

Amanda Knox (2016)

Did Amanda Knox kill Meredith Kercher? That question is at the heart of documentary. Knox and her boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, were charged with the murder of Kercher back in Italy in 2007. Knox served four years in prison before her acquittal four years later. Amanda Knox is not only a story about a murder trial, but also about how an acquitted murder suspect tries to live a normal life again.

The Keepers (2017)

Who killed Sister Cathy? The Keepers explores the unsolved murder of Sister Cathy Cesnik in Baltimore back in 1969. Sister Cathy was a beloved teacher at a Baltimore school at the time of her murder. As her former students fight for justice, allegations against the Catholic Church begin to surface, which include a potential cover up by authorities to protect the main priest, Joseph Maskell, who was guilty of sexual abuse.

Evil Genius: The True Story of America’s Most Diabolical Bank Heist (2018)

Evil Genius begins in 2003, when a man named pizza delivery man named Brian Wells walked into a bank with a bomb around his neck in Erie, PA. The attempted robbery was not so cut-and-dry as the viewer begins to learn about possible suspects involved that planned the heist. Lead by the eccentric Marjorie Diehl-Armstrong, Evil Genius portrays a cat and mouse game between the authorities and suspects, leaving the viewer to question who truly was the brains of the entire operation.

The Staircase(2018)

In 2001, did Michael Peterson murder his wife, Kathleen, at the bottom of a staircase or was her death the result of a terrible fall? That is for you to decide in the latest true crime documentary, The Staircase. Between misleading testimonies and questionable evidence, the series is not just about solving the case, but a reflection on the flaws of the judicial system.

Next: What we learned from new episodes of Netflix’s The Staircase

All of these true crime documentaries can be streamed on Netflix.