Focus: We Keep Us Safe

In the summer of 2020, protests are happening all across the country. But Seattle is different. A confrontation between protestors and police outside a precinct leads to the birth of CHOP. A thousand miles away, Antonio Mays Jr. hears about what’s happening in Seattle. He was shot and killed there three weeks later.
We Keep Us Safe is part of Focus, a dedicated documentary channel from KUOW Puget Sound Public Radio in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR network.
Get in touch with the team by email at focus@kuow.org. Support KUOW and projects like this by donating at kuow.org/donate/focus.
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When 16-year-old Antonio Mays Jr. was shot and killed inside Seattle's CHOP protest zone in 2020, protesters claimed self-defense. For years, that version of events went unchallenged. Reporters Sydney Brownstone, Will James and David Gutman investigate what really happened the night Antonio died.
We Keep Us Safe is part of Focus, a dedicated documentary channel from KUOW Puget Sound Public Radio in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR network.
Get in touch with the team by email at focus@kuow.org. Support KUOW and projects like this by donating at kuow.org/donate/focus.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

“You let Tom Hudson off the hook."
That was one of the first things Paul (not his real name) said to host Isolde Raftery during their first conversation earlier this year. He wanted her to know about his own experience with Hudson, which included years of manipulation and molestation.
And that wasn’t all. Paul also recounted harrowing details about Hudson’s death, puncturing the narrative Isolde held true for so many years.
In this final episode of Adults in the Room, we uncover how extensive Tom Hudson’s crimes were … and how little we really understood about his death.
CONTENT ADVISORY: This episode includes graphic descriptions of sexual abuse, drug abuse, and suicide, and includes a slur for gay men.
If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741-741. Please take care while listening.
KUOW only allows sources anonymity on rare occasions. You can read our entire ethics policy, which details how we approach anonymous sourcing, here.
Get in touch with the team by email at focus@kuow.org. Support KUOW and projects like this by donating at kuow.org/donate/focus.
Adults in the Room is part of FOCUS, a dedicated documentary channel from KUOW Puget Sound Public Radio in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR network. It is hosted by Isolde Raftery. Original reporting by Isolde Raftery, Jeannie Yandel, and Will James. Our producers are Will James and Alec Cowan. Our editor is Jeannie Yandel. Music by BC Campbell. Additional music by Alec Cowan.
Special thanks to King County Sexual Assault Resource Center, Phyllis Fletcher, John Bancroft, Mary Mills, and Levi Pulkkinen.


See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The team behind Adults in the Room is hard at work on an Epilogue episode, set to release later this summer.
In the meantime, the team recently gathered for a live event to discuss behind-the-scenes moments and decisions from the series—including interviews that didn't make it into the final episodes, the continued challenges of addressing grooming and childhood sexual abuse, and audience questions.
KUOW's Libby Denkmann was joined by Ella Hushagen, host Isolde Raftery, producer Alec Cowan, and editor Jeannie Yandel.
Get in touch with the team by email at focus@kuow.org. Support KUOW and projects like this by donating at kuow.org/focus.
Adults in the Room is part of FOCUS, a dedicated documentary channel from KUOW Public Radio in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network. Thank you to everyone who made this event possible, including Ella Hushagen, host Libby Denkmann, producers Alec Cowan and Hans Twite, editor Jeannie Yandel, event manager Charlotte Duren, and marketing associate Carina Bolaños Lewen.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A surprise archival interview with a former Garfield High School principal reveals that the teacher abuse problem at the school extended beyond Tom Hudson. Isolde discovers that the district received numerous credible allegations of temper outbursts and sexual harassment about her Garfield journalism teacher, Dave Ehrich, but kept him in the classroom until his retirement in 2019.
As Isolde looks into the district’s recent history addressing repeat allegations against teachers, she finds more examples of teachers who were physically and sexually abusive towards multiple students, but were still allowed to keep their jobs.
After a conversation with Ella and former Garfield classmate Rosie Bancroft, Isolde sits down with the superintendent of Seattle Public Schools to ask why predators are given multiple chances to stay in the classroom, and how he intends to make schools safer for kids.
This episode includes an explicit description of a sexual act, and discussion of sexual harassment. Please take care while listening.
Get in touch with the team by email at focus@kuow.org. Support KUOW and projects like this by donating at kuow.org/donate/focus.
Adults in the Room is part of FOCUS, a dedicated documentary channel from KUOW Puget Sound Public Radio in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR network. It is hosted by Isolde Raftery. Original reporting by Isolde Raftery, Jeannie Yandel, and Will James. Our producers are Will James and Alec Cowan. Our editor is Jeannie Yandel. Music by BC Campbell. A special thank you to Ella Hushagen, without whom this project would not be possible.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.