58 episodes
Lost Hills: Dark Canyon Pushkin
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- True Crime
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4.1 • 3.4K Ratings
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Lost Hills investigates the dark side of Malibu, California. Beneath a seductive facade, this city of billionaires, celebrities, and surf bums is hiding something menacing.
On September 16, 2009, 24-year-old Mitrice Richardson was arrested by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department for failing to pay her bill at a restaurant in Malibu, CA. After being released from Lost Hills Station shortly after midnight, she disappeared. Eleven months later, her naked, skeletal remains were discovered in a canyon some six miles away.
For nearly 15 years, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, Mitrice’s friends and family, and generations of internet sleuths have tried to crack the case.
To this day, her death remains an unsolved mystery.
The truth lies in the remote Malibu community where Mitrice was last seen. And now, finally, people are starting to talk.
Hosted by Dana Goodyear (The New Yorker) and produced by Western Sound and Pushkin Industries. Show artwork copyright Francesca Gabbiani.
Subscribe to Pushkin plus to hear the whole season early, and ad free. Find Pushkin plus on the Lost Hills show page in Apple Podcasts or at Pushkin.fm.
Follow us @losthillspod on Twitter and Instagram for a deeper dive into the stories.
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1. Vultures
As Mitrice Richardson’s disappearance dominates news headlines, the Sheriff’s Department defends its decision to release her with no phone, no wallet, and no ride. Meanwhile, Mitrice’s autopsy raises puzzling questions about a missing bone, and a long-buried interview introduces a new witness.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. -
2. My Light
Investigators search Mitrice’s impounded car and find several journals she wrote in the last months of her life. Never before shared publicly, the journals offer details about Mitrice’s mental state and her complicated love life. We track down an old girlfriend, who reveals Mitrice’s secret struggle.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. -
3. Call for Help
Mitrice arrives at Geoffrey’s restaurant in Malibu on Sept. 16, 2009, claiming she’s there to “avenge the death of Michael Jackson.” When she walks out without paying, a restaurant staffer calls 911. Deputies bring Mitrice to Lost Hills Station, where Mitrice’s cellmate overhears a worrying conversation.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. -
4. Hopscotch
Six hours after her release from Lost Hills Station, Mitrice is spotted in the rural community of Monte Nido. Investigators find Mitrice’s footprints, and neighbors report unusual disturbances around the time of her disappearance.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. -
5. So Close
As the months pass with no sign of Mitrice, rumors abound. Law enforcement questions the artist behind a creepy mural. And deputies raid a fort in the wilderness looking for human remains.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. -
Bonus: Get Jim
Three years before Mitrice’s arrest, Mel Gibson was arrested for drunk driving on Pacific Coast Highway. An interview with the arresting officer, James Mee, reveals the power wielded by celebrities in Malibu. Would Mitrice’s story have ended differently if she were rich and famous?
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Customer Reviews
Awesome storytelling
Updating my original review to say S4 was the best told yet. It’s hard to describe how good this podcast is but I don’t think anyone else is doing true crime serials at the level of Dark Hills. Dana Goodyear does a great job immersing you in time and place. I tend to want to look up pictures of people if I’m really sucked into a true story, but I also found myself looking up pictures of Malibu when I listened to this. She gets interesting people who were there to help tell the story and gives them free reign to speculate but doesn’t give over narrative control to them- she keeps the story tracking with her own narration.
The Ads Are Out of Control
The ads are so long. A 30 minute episode has 6+ minutes of ads. I don’t need to hear Malcom Gladwell every episode. It really annoys and takes me out of the story.
She’s a great storyteller, Pushkin needs to cool it with the ads.
Boring
Pointless. Junk.
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