The documentary Broken Harts pokes behind the scenes and into the lives of what was once described as the “perfect family.” No one listened or paid attention to reports of neglect and abuse in the Hart family. Tragically, this failure by agencies charged with protecting children led to a murder-suicide at the hands of two women who were supposed to keep their adopted children safe.
Directed by Gregory Palmer (Homicide City), Broken Harts will air on discovery+ on May 18, 2021.
Jupiter Entertainment’s Patrick Reardon, Harrison Land, Gregory Palmer, and Skye Borgman executive produce along with Conde Nast’s Oren Katzeff, Geneva Wasserman, and Jon Koa. discovery+’s Lorna Thomas also executive produces and Katherine Grandy co-executive produces.
The Plot:
On a coastal section part of Highway 1 in Mendocino County, California, a car was found upside down at the bottom of a 100-foot cliff. Inside police found the bodies of two adults, later identified as Jen and Sarah Hart, and three children. From the very onset, it seemed more than a normal traffic accident, and it continued to be a confusing and shocking story – both for the local community and the online supporters who had followed the family’s adventures for years.
They were known as a couple leading an idyllic life. Two white women who adopted six black children, promoting a core mission of activism, travel, and community service. As the story of the crash circulated, many began to wonder how this could have happened to a family like theirs, and if maybe the life they showed to the world wasn’t exactly what it seemed.
Expanding upon the hit Glamour podcast and article, this two-hour film peels back the façade this family carefully curated, exposing chilling patterns of abuse, and multiple systems that failed to protect the lives of six innocent children.
