11 episodes

When 8-year-old Relisha Rudd disappeared from a homeless shelter in Washington, D.C. in 2014, nobody noticed. By the time authorities formally declared Relisha “missing,” 18 days had passed since she’d been spotted at school or the shelter where her family lived. Seven years later, Relisha has never been found. Through the Cracks investigates gaps in our society and the people who fall through them, and in this first season, host Jonquilyn Hill asks if Relisha’s disappearance was, as the city later claimed, unpreventable. From WAMU and PRX.

Through The Cracks WAMU

    • True Crime
    • 4.6 • 1.2K Ratings

When 8-year-old Relisha Rudd disappeared from a homeless shelter in Washington, D.C. in 2014, nobody noticed. By the time authorities formally declared Relisha “missing,” 18 days had passed since she’d been spotted at school or the shelter where her family lived. Seven years later, Relisha has never been found. Through the Cracks investigates gaps in our society and the people who fall through them, and in this first season, host Jonquilyn Hill asks if Relisha’s disappearance was, as the city later claimed, unpreventable. From WAMU and PRX.

    Relisha Goes Missing

    Relisha Goes Missing

    When 8 year old Relisha Rudd disappeared from a homeless shelter in Washington, D.C. in 2014, nobody noticed. By the time police appeared at the homeless shelter where Relisha lived with her family, 18 days had passed since she’d been seen at school or in the shelter. On this episode: What happened in March 2014.View a timeline of the key dates in Relisha’s disappearance at wamu.org/throughthecracks. To support the investigative reporting that goes into Through The Cracks, donate at wamu.org/supportthroughthecracks.

    • 32 min
    Ties That Bind

    Ties That Bind

    A child’s family is their first safety net. When she disappeared in 2014, 8-year-old Relisha Rudd was living with her family at a homeless shelter in Washington, D.C., where a number of people shared responsibility for her. Before she vanished, each one of her family members had already fallen through the cracks in one way or another.

    Help shape our second season by filling out our survey: https://iter.ly/21ga1

    Check out bonus material and subscribe to our newsletter at wamu.org/throughthecracks.

    To support the investigative reporting that goes into Through The Cracks, donate at wamu.org/supportthroughthecracks.

    • 30 min
    Kicked Out

    Kicked Out

    Before Relisha moved into a homeless shelter, her family lived together in an apartment near Congress Heights. But a chain of events led them to landlord-tenant court, and ultimately on the street. In this episode: Jonquilyn Hill explores how Relisha lost her home and wound up in a shelter in the most ‘tenant-friendly’ city in the country.

    Help shape our second season by filling out our survey: https://iter.ly/21ga1

    Check out bonus material and subscribe to our newsletter at wamu.org/throughthecracks.

    To support the investigative reporting that goes into Through The Cracks, donate at wamu.org/supportthroughthecracks.

    • 27 min
    Almost Like Jail

    Almost Like Jail

    How did 8-year-old Relisha Rudd go from living in an apartment, to a motel, to a shelter inside an “abandoned hospital”? Host Jonquilyn Hill explores life inside a homeless shelter.

    Help shape our second season by filling out our survey: https://iter.ly/21ga1

    View a timeline of the key dates in Relisha’s disappearance, and a map of her world, at wamu.org/throughthecracks. To support the investigative reporting that goes into Through The Cracks, donate at wamu.org/supportthroughthecracks.

    • 25 min
    Janitor, Doctor, Godfather

    Janitor, Doctor, Godfather

    Who was Kahlil Tatum? Was he a loving husband and surrogate father? A cold killer? We dig into the past of the janitor who served families at D.C. General, the “doctor” who excused Relisha from school and the “godfather” many children had grown to trust.

    Help shape our second season by filling out our survey: https://iter.ly/21ga1

    Read transcripts of episodes, a timeline of the key dates in Relisha’s disappearance, and a map of her world at wamu.org/throughthecracks.  To support the investigative reporting that goes into Through The Cracks, donate at wamu.org/supportthroughthecracks.

    • 29 min
    The Search

    The Search

    On the day the District went public with their search for Relisha Rudd, she had already been missing for over two weeks. What’s it like to search for a girl no one noticed was missing for 18 days?

    Help shape our second season by filling out our survey: https://iter.ly/21ga1

    Read transcripts of episodes, a timeline of the key dates in Relisha’s disappearance, and a map of her world at wamu.org/throughthecracks.  To support the investigative reporting that goes into Through The Cracks, donate at wamu.org/supportthroughthecracks.

    • 35 min

Customer Reviews

4.6 out of 5
1.2K Ratings

1.2K Ratings

bigred<3u ,

Important work

A must listen! Informative and captivating

tbpjewelry ,

Excellent

Great reporting. Important story and perspective.

moderate check ,

Reporter is extremely biased

Your reporting is not “critical” as you claim it to be. I found your unconscious bias to be a detriment to listening to the story. You seem to have political bias that prevents you from taking a critical look at the mother and other persons responsible in this case. Pointing out the race of everyone involved including Amber is an eye roll.

Maybe we should point out that you are white which factors into your bias in reporting on the failures of this family.

Top Podcasts In True Crime

Murder in the Hollywood Hills
NBC News
Three
Wavland
Dateline NBC
NBC News
Crime Junkie
audiochuck
Morbid
Morbid Network | Wondery
Paper Ghosts: The Ozarks
iHeartPodcasts

You Might Also Like

Black Girl Gone: A True Crime Podcast
Cloud10
Serial
Serial Productions & The New York Times
The Rise and Fall of Ruby Franke
Law&Crime | Wondery
Beyond All Repair
WBUR
In The Dark
The New Yorker
Dark Downeast
audiochuck

More by WAMU

WAMU: Local News
WAMU
Dish City
WAMU 88.5
The Pod Shop
WAMU
The Pod Shop
WAMU