EPISODE 1: Meet the Sheridans

Dead End: A New Jersey Political Murder Mystery

On a quiet cul-de-sac, a husband and wife of 47 years are stabbed to death in the stillness of dawn. Honest and unassuming, John Sheridan, famous for never raising his voice, played against type in the rough-and-tumble world of New Jersey politics. Could the Republican lobbyist have killed his wife Joyce—a veteran public school teacher and no-nonsense mother of four sons—then set their bedroom on fire before knifing himself? That’s the version of events authorities say happened in the early morning hours of September 28, 2014. But, in more ways than one, the theory doesn’t add up.

Key voices interviewed in episode:

Christine Todd Whitman, former Governor

Chris Stevens, Joyce Sheridan’s best friend

Bob Stevens, husband of Chris’ Stevens

Mark Sheridan, eldest of the Sheridans’ four sons, lawyer for Governor Chris Christie's campaign and for the state Republican party for more than a decade

Peter Sheridan, John’s younger brother and federal judge in Trenton since 2005

Mary Kay Roberts, hired by John Sheridan at Riker Danzig, a New Jersey law firm. Worked with him closely for a decade in the Trenton office

John Farmer, a former state Attorney General and friend of John Sheridan who runs a political research center at Rutgers University