The “Broken Harts” Podcast Takes a Close Look Into a Tragedy That Shook the Nation

Listen up mystery fans, the Broken Harts podcast is now live on iHeartRadio, and it’s sure to be your new obsession.

Most of us remember the headlines: a mother drives her van off a 100-foot high cliff in California, killing herself, her wife, and her six adopted children. It was shocking and saddening, and we’re still trying to figure out what brought the Harts to this moment and whether their lives could have been saved.

From the Facebook posts and stories they shared, Jessica and Sarah Hart were a happily married couple raising six beautiful adopted children— the perfect blended family. They homeschooled their kids to avoid bullies and took them to transformational festivals that celebrated their family. But as their van was pulled from the wreckage site and allegations of child abuse came to light, the life that the Harts carefully cultivated on social media seemed more like smoke and mirrors. There were red flags, concerned teachers and calls to child protective services, but by the time the truth was exposed, it was too late.

Features director Justine Harman and books editor Elisabeth Egan join field reporter Lauren Smiley to explore one of the most confounding, complicated, and heartbreaking mysteries in recent memory and at each step along the way they’ll ask, how could we have saved the Harts?

Check out episode one now.

Broken Harts​​​​​​​​​​​​​​