Bonus: Why Trump's Lawsuits Didn't Fly
Why did the Trump legal team fail to overturn the election in court? It's not complicated. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Dec 23, 2020•19 min
Criminal (In)justice
Sometimes challenging, often disturbing, occasionally absurd, always timely: Criminal Injustice explores the most complex and urgent issues facing the U.S. criminal justice system in conversation with the field's most knowledgeable experts. Professor David Harris and guests take on everything from racial bias to use of force... from surveillance technology to mass incarceration... and from police abuse and misconduct to the astonishing, frequently hilarious misdeeds of "Lawyers Behaving Badly." It's not a lecture hall, and you don't need a law degree to keep up. But you'll walk away from each episode with a deeper, richer understanding of what's wrong with the criminal justice system – and how to fix it.
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Episodes
#130 Does Eliminating Cash Bail Harm Public Safety?
More US jurisdictions are questioning the use of money bail systems for pretrial release from jail. But many in law enforcement and the bail bond industry say this will damage public safety. Is that true? What really happens when you trash cash bail? Dr. Don Stemen of Loyola University in Chicago is co-author of a new research paper about what really happened when Cook County, Illinois, moved away from cash bail. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands...
Dec 15, 2020•47 min
Bonus: WWJD?
As president, Joe Biden can fight for the criminal justice reforms the electorate is demanding... or he can double down on his decades-long advocacy for tougher policing, harsher sentencing, and stricter drug laws. With Inauguration Day on the horizon, we ask: what will Joe do? Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Dec 08, 2020•20 min
#129 The Beginning of the End of the War on Drugs?
President Richard Nixon declared illegal drugs to be public enemy number one in 1971. Almost 50 years later, fifty years of failure, waste, and criminal justice mistakes in the name of the war on drugs, is the end of this disaster finally in sight? Our guest is Matt Sutton , Director of Media Relations, at the Drug Policy Alliance . Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands...
Dec 01, 2020•52 min
Bonus: Tarrick McGuire, from Selma to Montgomery
An outtake from our recent interview with Tarrick McGuire in which the Arlington, TX police chief recalls visiting the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Nov 27, 2020•6 min
Bonus: Criminal Justice on the 2020 Ballot
Police accountability, cash bail, drug decriminalization and legalization, and strong reform candidates were all on the ballot this November. Dave reviews the results. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Nov 24, 2020•16 min
#128 How Can Police Build Trust?
We hear it everywhere: trust in police has eroded, reaching historic low point. Yet we know that if police want to make communities safe and livable, nothing is more important than trust. How can police build trust with the public, especially in a time when race and police conduct is at the forefront? Tarrick McGuire is the Chief of the Arlington Texas Police Department, and one of the most dynamic and creative leaders in policing today. He’ll discuss with us how policing must go forward in the ...
Nov 17, 2020•42 min
Bonus: Literally the One Thing We All Agree On
Judging from the unexpectedly close presidential election result, the U.S. electorate is as polarized as ever -- at least in terms of partisan alignment. But there's one issue on which the 2020 vote reveals widespread and growing agreement among Americans from across all demographics and in almost every part of the country: the decriminalization and full legalization of marijuana and, increasingly, other drugs. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands...
Nov 10, 2020•13 min
#127 Getting Rid of Mandatory Minimums
Mandatory minimum sentences helped fill prisons in the U.S., and they played a substantial role in the mass incarceration we see now. What were these sentences supposed to do, and where did they go wrong? Most importantly, how do we get rid of them? Our guest is Kevin Ring , the President of Families Against Mandatory Minimums, a Washington D.C. advocacy group that has fought mandatory minimum sentences for years. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands...
Nov 03, 2020•41 min
Lawyers Behaving Badly: Saying the Quiet Part Really, Really Loud
"Systemic racism" refers to systems that produce racially disparate outcomes regardless of the individual motivations, values, or personal qualities of the people working within them. The criminal justice system doesn't require individual police officers, lawyers or judges to hold racist views in order to structurally uphold white supremacy. But -- as the case of suspended Pennsylvania judge Mark Tranquilli vividly illustrates -- plenty of them do anyway. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle...
Oct 27, 2020•16 min
#126 The Past, Present and Future of Policing
Since the murder of George Floyd, hundreds of protests against police misconduct have occurred across the country. People are demanding real change, right now. But let’s step back, and take the long view: has American policing improved? Even if the answer is yes, what more must police do to give all Americans the policing they deserve, equally, fairly, and free or racial bias? David Couper served in policing since the early 1960s, over twenty of them as a Chief of Police. He’s now a blogger, com...
Oct 20, 2020•48 min
Bonus: How Will Coney Barrett Rule on Criminal Justice?
Presumptive Justice-to-be Amy Coney Barrett is conservative in both her political ideology and her judicial philosophy. But that doesn't mean she'll automatically side with police and prosecutors on the Supreme Court bench. Indeed, if her mentor Antonin Scalia is any guide, Coney Barrett may be less predictable on criminal justice than on other social issues. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Oct 18, 2020•16 min
Bonus: Whose Crime Bill Was It?
For decades, Joe Biden has claimed credit for crafting and championing the 1994 Crime Bill, now widely regarded as the policy foundation for the modern carceral state, the school-to-prison pipeline, and the systematic, often militarized overpolicing of Black communities. It's no surprise that Biden's very public association with that legislation has become a political liability in the Black Lives Matter era. But he's far from being the only member of his party who bears responsibility. Advertisi...
Oct 15, 2020•12 min
Bonus: Breonna Taylor's Death Wasn't a Tragic Accident
Who bears responsibility for Breonna Taylor's murder? Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Oct 06, 2020•33 min
Bonus: Legal Giant, Human Being
Remembering the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Sep 28, 2020•13 min
#125 Wrongful Convictions – But No Crimes?
We’ve all heard about the cases of wrongfully convicted people going to prison for the crimes others committed. In some cases, DNA exonerates them and finds the person who really did it. But what about people wrongfully convicted – of crimes that never happened at all? Our guest is Jessica S. Henry , Professor at Montclair State University and the author of “Smoke But No Fire: Convicting the Innocent of Crimes That Never Happened” (UC Press, 2020). Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/br...
Sep 22, 2020•45 min
#124 Voices From Death Row
More than two million Americans are incarcerated in prisons and jails. These are often violent, difficult, and unhealthy places. But if prison is dangerous, how much more so – is Death Row? And how does a person live, knowing the only way out is death by execution? Our guests are writer Tessie Castillo , and Terry Robinson, a resident of Death Row in North Carolina. Along with others on Death Row, they wrote “Crimson Letters: Voices from Death Row” Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/br...
Sep 08, 2020•53 min
# 123 Can Requiring Police Professional Insurance Tame Police Misconduct?
With the murder of George Floyd at the hands of police, the search for ways to tame police misconduct has become more intense than ever. Can requiring officers to have private insurance play a role? Our guest is Professor Deborah Ramirez of Northeastern University School of Law, in Boston. She’ll tell us how requiring police to carry professional liability insurance could, perhaps, help us curb abuses. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands...
Aug 25, 2020•57 min
Ask Dave: The Problem With 'Bad Apples'
Dave responds to listener comments about episode #119 guest Cedric Alexander's use of the oft-invoked phrase "a few bad apples" to characterize the relationship between police violence and institutional culture. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Aug 21, 2020•12 min
#121 Would More Diversity Improve Policing?
In the storm of protests after the murder of George Floyd, many say that having more African American and Latino officers will reduce police violence and force used against people of color. Will it? Our guest is the Dr. Rayshawn Ray, Professor of Sociology at the University of Maryland, show studies the impact of race in policing, and how we can meet the challenges it brings. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands...
Aug 11, 2020•51 min
Bonus: SCOTUS Recap on The Confluence
Dave reviews the recently concluded U.S. Supreme Court session with 90.5 WESA's Kevin Gavin on The Confluence Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Aug 05, 2020•15 min
#121 Being Black in America's Most Livable City
Pittsburgh has been named America’s most livable city many times over by magazines and ratings guides. And it is pretty great. At least, for people like me. What is it like for African American residents? And why are their experiences with our police so different than mine? Our guest is the Reverend Dr. John Welch , former Vice President and Dean of the Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. He tells us what it’s like to be in a thriving American city, as a black man, especially with regard to policin...
Jul 28, 2020•44 min
Read This: It Could Have Been Me
Recommended reading from The American Lawyer: 'It Could Have Been Me': Black Lawyers Reflect on George Floyd's Death and What Comes Next" Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Jul 25, 2020•6 min
Bonus: Roger Stone Sentence Commuted
What's the meaning of Donald Trump's decision to commute the sentence of Roger Stone? And what went on behind the scenes? Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Jul 21, 2020•15 min
#120 How Cities Pay for Police Brutality
With incidents of serious injuries and deaths at the hands of police, cities face the costs of settlements and jury verdicts. Some of these cases mean millions of dollars paid. How do cities pay for this? What does it mean to city budgets? And how is it that someone is making money off of this? Our guest is Brentin Mock, veteran journalist; he’ll discuss his article “How Cities Offload the Cost of Police Brutality,” which appeared in June in Bloomberg’s CityLab.com. Advertising Inquiries: https:...
Jul 14, 2020•38 min
Bonus: Bill Barr's Big Interview
A point-by-point breakdown and response to A.G. William Barr's recent interview on NPR. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Jul 07, 2020•31 min
#119 What Now for American Policing?
The death of George Floyd in Minneapolis set off outrage, weeks of demonstrations across the country and around the world, and has started discussion and legislative action at every level of government. On this episode, we’ll ask an African American law enforcement leader what policing has been like – and where it goes now. Our guest is Dr. Cedric Alexander, former police officer and chief of several police departments, and the author of “In Defense of Public Service: How 22 Million Government E...
Jun 30, 2020•1 hr 4 min
Bonus: #CRSPCast Live
On June 10, Dave gave an hour-long presentation on law and racial justice for the Center on Race and Social Problems at the University of Pittsburgh. We invite you to check out the video on YouTube: #CRSPCast: Law & Racial Justice w/ Professor David Harris - June 10, 2020 Support Criminal Injustice at $5/month to unlock extra bonus episodes and more on the Members feed: patreon.com/criminalinjustice Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands...
Jun 14, 2020•4 min
Bonus: Defund the Police
Minneapolis takes a bold step, announcing it will dismantle the police department that sparked protests nationwide with the murder of George Floyd -- and just like that, "defund the police" graduates from activist rallying cry to viable policy option. For all the handwringing over what the phrase "really means," it's really not complicated: people want their city governments to take resources away from lavishly-funded and unaccountable law enforcement agencies, and devote them instead to emergen...
Jun 10, 2020•13 min
Bonus: Minneapolis Officers Charged
Derek Chauvin faces second- and third-degree murder and assault charges, and the three other Minneapolis police officers who watched him kill George Floyd are charged with aiding and abetting the crime. Why not first-degree? What do the charges mean? Dave breaks down the prosecution's reasoning. Support Criminal Injustice at $5/month to unlock extra bonus episodes and more on the Members feed: patreon.com/criminalinjustice Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands...
Jun 04, 2020•18 min
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