The Constitution requires a warrant before police can search you or your property. But what if that warrant is based on third-hand information? That’s what happened to IJ client Michael Mendenhall, and it happens across America every day. We recently spoke with IJ attorneys Patrick Jaicomo and Jared McClain to discuss how warrants are often just rubber stamps, and what IJ is doing to fix that. https://youtu.be/0hTQIAsDHX0 Become a Monthly Donor Are you looking for a rewarding and consistent way ...
Jun 20, 2025•35 min
A new financial surveillance dragnet is sweeping up ordinary cash transactions at small businesses near the US-Mexico border. The federal government has placed onerous new requirements on businesses that help people without bank accounts cash checks or send money to family members. It’s demanding reports on all transactions involving at least $200 in cash, subjecting innocent people to warrantless surveillance and burying small businesses in paperwork. Today we chat with IJ attorneys Rob Johnson...
May 16, 2025•26 min
You might think constitutional lawsuits work like this: Find an unconstitutional law, challenge it in court, and if the law is truly unconstitutional, the court will strike it down. But in reality, a web of legal doctrines and ingrained attitudes mean judges have enormous leeway to avoid ruling against the government. On this episode, we talk with IJ attorneys Josh Windham and John Wrench on judicial deference and why courts protect some rights better than others. https://youtu.be/AwAFcSzqZ4A Be...
May 02, 2025•39 min
In 2017, FBI agents, with guns drawn and a flashbang grenade, burst into the Atlanta home of Trina Martin, her then seven-year-old son Gabe, and her then partner Toi. Turns out, they had the wrong address. In April, Trina’s yearslong fight for accountability is heading to the U.S. Supreme Court. Today we chat with IJ client Trina Martin and IJ attorney Patrick Jaicomo about wrong house raids, what it’s like have the Supreme Court hear your case, and what victory will mean for Trina and all Ameri...
Apr 17, 2025•36 min
First enacted to ensure southern states respected the rights of newly freed slaves, the 14th Amendment is indispensable to modern civil rights litigation. But what does the amendment say and how does IJ use it to challenge everything from harassment by police to undue burdens on hair braiders? Today we’ll discuss all that and more with IJ attorneys Bob McNamara and John Wrench. https://youtu.be/xPPU9ZKWd0Q Become a Monthly Donor Are you looking for a rewarding and consistent way to support IJ’s ...
Apr 04, 2025•41 min
$29,000 for overgrown grass. $16,000 for cracks in the driveway. $100,000 for parking incorrectly on your own property. These are some of the outrageous fines IJ’s clients have faced, often for harmless violations. The prohibition on excessive fines is one of our oldest rights, but governments, from small towns to federal agencies like the IRS, still issue ruinous fines and courts still rubberstamp these fines. IJ attorneys Sam Gedge and Michael Greenberg join us for the discussion. https://yout...
Mar 13, 2025•42 min
For centuries, people have helped their neighbors by providing food, shelter, and more to people in need. But all too often, the creativity and generosity of ordinary people conflicts with government regulations. That’s why IJ defends those providing private solutions to public problems. I'm Kim Norberg of the nonprofit civil liberties law firm the Institute for Justice, with IJ senior attorney Jeff Rowes. https://youtu.be/aJxt3B43pg0 Become a Monthly Donor Are you looking for a rewarding and co...
Feb 28, 2025•21 min
In Pasco County, Florida, the Sheriff’s Office thought it had a great idea: make lists of who might commit crimes in the future and hound them and their families until they end up in jail or move away. Under Pasco’s so-called intelligence-led policing program, hundreds of people, many of them minors, were deemed “prolific offenders” based on a crude algorithm and subjected to relentless night-time visits, citations for minor code infractions, and other harassment. So, IJ sued, and in December we...
Feb 13, 2025•39 min
In 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court issued one of its most reviled decisions in modern history, in Kelo v. City of New London. By a vote of 5-4, the Court said governments could use eminent domain to take private property and give it to private developers who might pay more in taxes. As Justice Sandra Day O’Connor said in her dissent, “The specter of condemnation hangs over all property. Nothing is to prevent the State from replacing any Motel 6 with a Ritz-Carlton, any home with a shopping mall, or...
Jan 31, 2025•46 min
We all want to feel secure in our homes, and if the reckless or abusive acts of government officials violate that security, we expect to be able to hold them accountable. IJ recently launched two cases in Georgia to uphold that principle; one in which a town bulldozed a home without warning or compensation and another where FBI agents violently raided the wrong house. Today we are joined by IJ attorneys Dylan Moore and Patrick Jaicomo. https://youtu.be/z4jMHnwkOj8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v...
Jan 16, 2025•43 min
On Christmas Eve 2022, Jennifer Heath Box got off a cruise ship in Florida, excited to return home to Texas and spend Christmas with her children before her son was deployed. Instead, police arrested her as she got off the ship, and she spent Christmas in jail, where guards pumped death metal music and freezing air into the cells. All because police were looking for a woman who didn’t look like Jennifer, was half her age, and didn’t even have the same name. To tell us more about the case, we int...
Jan 02, 2025•37 min
Not long ago, if police wanted to know where someone drove, they would have to follow that person for days, taking significant resources. But new technology allows the government to track everyone nearly all the time and to access that information without a warrant. As this technology spreads around the country, people are fighting back for the Fourth Amendment. Today we have with us IJ attorneys Robert Frommer and Michael Soyfer to discuss a new lawsuit in Norfolk, Virginia. https://youtu.be/7S...
Dec 16, 2024•36 min
In Pennsylvania, officers of the Fish and Boat Commission have the power to trespass on any land or water without a warrant. For one couple, that lead to repeated harassment at their lakeside home from a Waterways Conservation Officer. But the Constitution’s Fourth Amendment protects all Americans, including Pennsylvanians who live near water. Today we’re talking with IJ attorneys Kirby Thomas West and Dylan Moore about a new case challenging warrantless trespassing. https://www.youtube.com/watc...
Nov 26, 2024•29 min
The proliferation of video is changing how Americans fight for their civil rights, and much of it is happening right here on YouTube. I'm Kim Norberg of the nonprofit civil liberties law firm the Institute for Justice, together with co-host Keith Neely and IJ senior attorney Patrick Jaicomo. Today, we’re talking with special guest John Bryan, better known as The Civil Rights Lawyer. John knows firsthand how difficult civil rights lawsuits have become–and he previously partnered with IJ to overco...
Nov 14, 2024•48 min
In 2013, a Clovis, California police officer found out that his girlfriend Desiree Martinez had reported him for physically abusing her—while Desiree was trapped in a room with him, leading to further horrific abuse. Incredibly, the informant was another officer who knew about Desiree’s boyfriend’s history of domestic violence. Desiree later sued that officer informant for enabling the abuse, but an appeals court granted qualified immunity to block the suit. Now, Desiree and IJ are asking the U....
Oct 24, 2024•38 min
In America, the government doesn’t get to pick winners and losers in the marketplace. Yet states and cities throughout the country block new business to protect established interests. That’s when IJ steps in. Awa Diagne has been braiding hair for 30 years, but when she tried to open a braiding salon in an Atlanta suburb, the town told her it would provide too much competition. So, Awa and IJ are fighting back. Today we talk with IJ attorneys Renee Flaherty and Will Aronin about how IJ is protect...
Oct 10, 2024•28 min
Can the government take your land just because they don’t like you? That’s happening to Brinkmann’s Hardware, a beloved local store in Long Island. After a lengthy fight, the town of Southhold, NY is now trying to take their land away through eminent domain—all to protect another business from competition. Today we talk with Hank Brinkmann and IJ Senior Attorney Jeff Redfern about how Brinkmann’s Hardware went from a small family shop to a champion of property rights—and their path all the way t...
Sep 28, 2024•35 min
The film Rebel Ridge came September 6 and shot to #1 on Netflix. It depicts a former Marine’s attempts to get his money back after it was taken by police through civil forfeiture. That story sounded pretty familiar to us at IJ. We have been working to dismantle civil forfeiture for decades, but unlike the film’s main character, our clients aren’t vigilantes who take the law into their own hands; instead, they fight back in court. So how accurate is Rebel Ridge’s portrayal of civil forfeiture? To...
Sep 25, 2024•23 min
It’s legal to travel domestically with any amount of cash. It’s legal to travel in and out of the U.S. with more than $10k if you declare it. But that doesn’t stop law enforcement from searching travelers’ property and seizing any cash they find without warrants or evidence of a crime. Today we talk with IJ attorneys Jaba Tsitsuashvili and Ben Field about how the government treats carrying cash like a crime and what IJ’s doing to fight back. https://youtu.be/WmVFud7v2r4 Know Your Rights Card Civ...
Sep 13, 2024•37 min
On a typical day, police officers pull over more than 50,000 drivers. If you’ve had a recent encounter with police, chances are good it was during a traffic stop. Traffic stops can lead to searches, arrests, and worse, yet they seldom involve a [search] warrant. So how did vehicles become Fourth-Amendment-free zones? Today we are joined by Josh Windham, the leader of IJ’s Project on the Fourth Amendment. We’ll explore how traffic stops are driving a hole through the Fourth Amendment and how IJ i...
Aug 22, 2024•39 min
The freedom of speech protected by the First Amendment is a foundational and cherished right that sets America apart from other constitutional democracies. Many people think of the First Amendment in the context of controversial speech on highly politicized issues. But did you know that some of the most important free speech cases today involve uncontroversial speech on issues that matter to ordinary Americans in their daily lives? Today we have with us IJ Senior Attorneys Paul Sherman and Rober...
Aug 08, 2024•36 min
As our listeners probably know, civil forfeiture is legal practice that lets the government take and keep your property by claiming it’s connected to a crime, without needing to convict anyone. You can lose your property even when the government agrees you’re innocent. Recently, the Supreme Court decided an important forfeiture case. While the outcome was disappointing, the way they decided it gives us hope that the high court is finally ready to rein in this form of theft-by-government. Today w...
Jul 26, 2024•34 min
Imagine a SWAT team raids a house—battering doors, breaking windows, and coating everything inside with tear gas residue. Now imagine the SWAT team had the wrong address. Who do think would pay for the damage? If you said insurance, you’re probably wrong. If you said the city, you’re probably also wrong. Today, IJ attorneys Jeff Redfern and Dylan Moore talk with us about this nightmare situation facing homeowners across America – and how the Institute for Justice is fighting to change it. https:...
Jul 15, 2024•44 min
In March 2021, people entered a private security-deposit box company in Beverly Hills, CA, broke open hundreds of boxes, and indiscriminately seized their contents – collectively worth over one hundred million dollars. Box holders lost their life savings, family heirlooms, important documents, and more. But the people who took their property weren’t mobsters; they were FBI agents. Today we have with us IJ attorneys Bob Belden and Mike Greenberg. They’re going to share with us the story of an unp...
Jun 27, 2024•44 min
We like to think of America as a land of opportunity and second chances. But what happens when a web of government restrictions prevents someone from earning an honest living due to past mistakes? Today we’re talking with IJ Attorney Andrew Ward, and Rudy Carey, a substance abuse counselor and former IJ client. We discuss so-called “permanent punishment” laws, the millions of people they affect, and how IJ is helping Americans get the fresh starts they deserve. https://youtu.be/yfApc87-eSg Relat...
Jun 13, 2024•37 min
If a federal official violates your rights, is it impossible to hold them accountable? In this episode, we talk with IJ senior attorneys Anya Bidwell and Patrick Jaicomo, leaders of IJ’s Project on Immunity and Accountability. We discuss some outrageous cases of abuse by federal officials, why it’s so hard to sue the Feds, and what IJ is doing to clear a path to justice. https://youtu.be/teOXBgd3yCo?si=QBFZD6mrk-pAd2C-
Jun 12, 2024•31 min
Your home is supposed to be your castle. But what about the land your castle sits on? We discuss why it is that most private land in America gets no protection from warrantless government surveillance. We are joined by IJ attorney and co-director of IJ’s Project on the Fourth Amendment, Josh Windham. https://youtu.be/jN-VEE7fAEs related report Good Fences? Good Luck Released in the Cato Institute’s Regulation magazine, IJ’s study “Good Fences? Good Luck” is the first study to put a number on the...
May 17, 2024•36 min
What can Americans do if the government retaliates against them for speaking out? Today we're going to discuss real world examples of governments retaliating against citizens for speech they don’t approve of. We are joined by IJ Attorneys Kirby Thomas West and Ben Field. https://youtu.be/Yhji-Uyn23Y
May 02, 2024•43 min
Does qualified immunity actually accomplish what the Supreme Court intended? Kim Norberg and co-host Keith Neely discuss qualified immunity and how it plays out in the real world. IJ Senior Attorney Bob McNamara and data scientist Jason Tiezzi join to discuss Unaccountable, IJ’s new report that examines qualified immunity by the numbers. The report uses the largest ever collection of federal appellate cases, covering the 11-year period from 2010 through 2020. It is also the first to use cutting-...
Apr 17, 2024•34 min
Unbeknownst to parents, a portion of their baby’s blood remained unused after a standard screening was complete. And New Jersey had unilaterally decided that it could keep that blood for 23 years. Even worse, New Jersey, along with other states, believed it could use that blood however it saw fit, whether that be selling it to third parties, giving it to law enforcement, or even turning it over to the Pentagon. On today’s episode of Beyond the Brief, hosts Kim Norberg and Keith Neely talk to IJ ...
Apr 05, 2024•29 min
