138. Evil at Our Table with Dr. Samantha Stein
The Consult: Real FBI Profilers
PodcastOne
4.8 • 1.4K Ratings
🗓️ 27 May 2026
⏱️ 73 minutes
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Summary
Forensic psychologist Dr. Samantha Stein joins the show to discuss her book, Evil at Our Table: Inside the Minds of the Monsters Who Live Among Us. For nearly three decades, Dr. Stein interviewed violent sexual offenders under California’s Sexually Violent Predator law, helping determine who may safely return to society and who remains too dangerous to release. Dr. Stein discusses the challenges of evaluating dangerous offenders, the complexities of human behavior, common misconceptions about “evil,” and what it's like to sit face-to-face with some of society’s most disturbing individuals.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | In the consult, we discuss cases involving violence, sexual violence, abduction, and murder. |
| 0:09.0 | Sometimes the cases we discuss involve children. |
| 0:13.0 | Listener discretion is advised. |
| 0:14.8 | Music Welcome to the consult. I'm Julia Cowley, retired FBI agent and profiler. |
| 0:36.1 | And today I'm joined by Dr. Samantha Stein. Dr. Stein is a |
| 0:41.1 | forensic psychologist with nearly 30 years of experience evaluating and treating sex offenders, |
| 0:47.3 | conducting court-ordered psychological evaluations, and providing expert testimony in court. |
| 0:53.2 | She practices in the San Francisco Bay Area and has written extensively about forensic psychology, |
| 0:59.5 | including a widely read column for psychology today. |
| 1:02.9 | She also teaches and speaks at professional conferences on issues related to criminal behavior and risk assessment. |
| 1:09.4 | Dr. Stein is the author of the memoir, Evil at Our Table, which focuses on her work |
| 1:14.8 | evaluating individuals convicted of serious sexual offenses under California's Sexually |
| 1:20.9 | Violent Predator Act. |
| 1:22.8 | Under that law, certain offenders must be evaluated before they are released from prison, and if they are |
| 1:28.7 | determined to pose a continuing risk of committing future predatory sexual offenses, they can |
| 1:34.9 | be civilly committed to a secure treatment facility indefinitely. |
| 1:39.3 | In her book, Dr. Stein talks about the reality of sitting across the table from these offenders in prison |
| 1:45.3 | interviews, reviewing their histories, and assessing their risk for future violence. She also |
| 1:51.3 | reflects on the responsibility that comes with these evaluations, where professional opinions |
| 1:56.9 | can carry significant consequences for both public safety and an individual's liberty. So today, |
| 2:03.6 | I'm going to be talking with Dr. Stein about how she got into this field, what these evaluations |
| 2:08.9 | actually involved, and what it's like to spend a career doing this kind of work. So welcome, Dr. |
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