This show originally aired on October 19, 2019. The theme of this week’s Sound Effect is “Gatekeepers” — stories about people with power over who comes and goes. First, we hear what it’s like for a prison guard to be locked in with the inmates. Next, a story of escape and betrayal in one of the world’s most repressive countries. Then, the chilling words of a man ready to confront his fate — and his complicated journey to execution. Finally, we hear from a woman who once was tasked with helping

This story originally aired on October 19, 2019. The Vietnam War officially ended in 1973, but people continued to flee the country well into the 1980s. Hundreds of thousands of people escaped the country on boats. Thousands died at sea. It was an international humanitarian crisis. The men, women and children fleeing were called boat people. “After the Vietnam War, people in South Vietnam who had supported the United States presence and war effort, you know, they were treated like the enemy,”

This story originally aired on October 19, 2019. In the fall of 1989, in Vancouver, Washington, a short, 29-year-old man named Westley Allan Dodd raped and murdered three young boys. The boys were brothers Cole and William Neer, ages 10 and 11, and 4-year-old Lee Iseli. A few weeks later, police arrested Westley at a movie theater after he tried and failed to abduct another boy. He quickly confessed to the three murders. The prosecution sought the death penalty, and Dodd pled guilty. Death

This story originally aired on October 19, 2019. Grace Jo was 6 years old when her mom scooped up her and her older sister, and set out to cross the Tumen River into China. “We walked three nights and four days,” Jo said, recalling the trek along rocky mountain trails. “A lot of tree branches were hurting our skin. A lot of wild animal sounds we could hear at night, and we had to hide from people.” At the river’s edge, the water level went up to her mother’s hips. “My mom managed, and all three

Against a backdrop of mounting scrutiny and calls for change, Pierce County voters will elect a new sheriff for the first time in nearly two decades. Pierce County Sheriff Paul Pastor announced in October that he would retire after serving for 19 years — the longest tenure for a sitting sheriff in the state’s second-largest county.

This show originally aired on September 21, 2019. Collections come in all shapes and sizes. Whatever it is, a collection can take on a life of its own. And it says something about the person behind it. That’s our latest theme — The Collector: why we’re drawn to collect stuff, and what we’re willing to do in pursuit of it. First, the co-owner of a Tacoma bar shares how he came to acquire a small collection of glass art from Dale Chihuly. Then, we meet a woman who makes jewelry out of animal bones

As we move into the heart of our Pacific Northwest summer, families with children are facing a dilemma: what to do with kids, cooped up for months, and itching to see friends. COVID-19 cases are rising in Washington, but experts say it doesn’t mean kids need to stay on lockdown.

The Seattle area is leading the way on controlling a viral epidemic, besides COVID-19. A new analysis of 39 cities shows the region’s health system has been effective at treating people with HIV and AIDS. Seattle came out ahead of all the cities analyzed on a key measure: how many people infected with HIV are virally suppressed.

The top general at Joint Base Lewis-McChord is asking for new recruits. Lt. Gen. Randy George is part of a three-day Armywide push to enlist 10,000 people, after COVID-19 restrictions slowed recruitment all spring.

We have all been dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic in our own ways. And the Sound Effect team has been doing our best to cover it in a podcast called Transmission. Today on Sound Effect, we share some more stories that have stood out to us from the series. First, we make the rounds with Gino Jevdjevic — a Bosnian pop star-turned-punk-frontman-turned-social-services-provider — as he checks in on his clients with developmental disabilities. Then, we hear the story of Thomas Lopez , the beloved