He wasn’t just another outlaw — he was a storm with a gun.
Lester Gillis, better known as Baby Face Nelson, wasn’t driven by fame like Dillinger or fantasy like Bonnie and Clyde. He was driven by rage.
In this episode of Deadly Truths: Morally Bankrupt, we unravel the violent rise and fall of America’s most unpredictable Public Enemy — from his days under Al Capone to the bloody shootout in Barrington that left federal agents dead and the country shaken.
Nelson wanted respect. What he got was infamy.
And in the end, even his trigger couldn’t save him.
📚 Research sources include FBI archives, Chicago Tribune (1934), Bureau of Investigation case files, and eyewitness accounts from Barrington, Illinois.
⚠️ Content Warning:
This episode contains discussions of violence, death, and historical crime. Listener discretion is advised.
FBI Historical Records: Public Enemies, 1933–1935
Chicago Tribune Archives, November 1934
Bureau of Investigation Case Files (Barrington Shootout)
“Baby Face Nelson: The End of the Public Enemies Era,” History.com
Federal Bureau of Investigation, Official Public Enemy List (1934)
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