Canary: The Washington Post Investigates · The Washington Post

Chapter 3: "No way in hell she would make this up"

October 1, 2020·27 min·1 clip

Matthew Lane recognized Truman Morrison’s name in a nearly 6,000-word Washington Post article about Lauren Clark.

1. Canary: The Washington Post Investigates, Chapter 3 examines Amy Britton’s effort to corroborate Carol Griffin’s allegations involving Judge Truman Morrison.\n2. Amy Britton narrates the investigation as a Washington Post reporter, while Carol Griffin provides the account Britton is testing against other evidence.\n3. The episode asks how a reporter can investigate an alleged sexual assault from 1976 when the account initially rests largely on one person’s memory.\n4. Carol searches her Birmingham attic for a handwritten apology letter she says Truman mailed decades earlier.\n5. Carol describes the missing letter as saying, “I'm sorry if I hurt you,” and asks whether it could represent an admission of wrongdoing.\n6. Britton explains that corroboration can include firsthand witnesses, photos, journals, and people who were told about an event.\n7. Britton interviews Matthew Lane, Carol’s ex-husband, who says she discussed the alleged assault during their marriage and counseling.\n8. Felix Joffrion, Carol’s therapist, says Carol described the alleged assault’s effects and wanted to be free from them.\n9. Nell Ruby, Carol’s college friend, says Carol told her that Truman had molested her.\n10. Isaac says Carol described the event in general terms and named Judge Truman Morrison as the man involved.\n11. Matthew recognized Morrison’s name while reading a nearly 6,000-word article about Lauren Clark.\n12. Britton notes that Matthew’s recognition connected an Alabama reader to a Washington, D.C. case involving the same judge.\n13. Carol’s parents, Janet and Jean Griffin, decline to be quoted after Britton visits their Birmingham home.\n14. Carol describes telling her parents by phone in the early 1990s and blaming her mother during an emotional conversation.\n15. Carol says Truman told her at age 16, “I've been fantasizing about you,” and described running away with her to a deserted island.\n16. A 1991 diary entry names Truman and records Carol’s memories of the alleged incident and later unwanted touching.\n17. Julia Tripp recalls being present when Carol says Truman touched her while Julia held his baby in the Morrison living room.\n18. The episode uses narration, recorded conversations, interviews, and archival details to build a methodical investigative account.\n19. Listeners interested in sexual-assault reporting and corroboration.\n20. Listeners seeking a fast-paced, non-narrative entertainment format.

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