Bonus: In the Garage
A California man's DUI has been thrown out by the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled that police needed a warrant to enter his attached garage. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Jul 02, 2021•11 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
#140 Police Reform: What Works?
Since the murder of George Floyd, cities and towns everywhere have proposed reforms that they hope can transform their police departments. Proposals range from more body cameras to eliminating police departments entirely. But what really works? Which of these will improve public safety, for everyone? Our guests are Nancy LaVigne , Executive Director of the Task Force on Policing of the Council on Criminal Justice, and Walter Katz , Task Force member and Vice President of Criminal Justice at Arno...
Jun 29, 2021•58 min
#139 Flawed Forensics
Every day in American courtrooms, forensic science offers evidence to judges and juries: fingerprints, ballistics, shoe prints, even bite marks. It’s supposed to provide scientific proof of guilt. But what if it’s a lot less reliable than we think? Our guest is Brandon Garrett , Professor of Law at Duke University School of Law and author of “Autopsy of a Crime Lab: Exposing the Flaws in Forensics.” Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands...
Jun 15, 2021•57 min
Bonus: Krasner's Mandate
Hoping to leverage public frustration with rising crime, Philadelphia DA Larry Krasner's critics framed his reelection as a referendum on the incumbent's progressive reforms. In the end it was -- but not in the way they had hoped. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Jun 08, 2021•10 min
#138: To Fix Policing, Understand It
Since George Floyd’s death, countless advocates, government officials, task forces and commissions have made demands and proposals for police reform. But one reform advocate took a novel approach: she went inside the police organization, and joined up. In her book “Tangled Up in Blue: Policing the American City” (Penguin Press, 2021) author Rosa Brooks tells the story of joining the police in Washington D.C. – what she learned, and what she came away with regarding police reform. Advertising Inq...
Jun 01, 2021•54 min
Bonus: The Year of George Floyd
Today marks the one-year anniversary of George Floyd's murder by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin. How have his death and the resulting groundswell of activism shaped the landscape for criminal justice reform? Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
May 25, 2021•30 min
Bonus: Police Body Cameras and Their Limits
Reformers had high hopes that equipping police with body cameras would make officers more accountable. How's that going? Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
May 16, 2021•16 min
#137 Police Reform from a Rare Perspective
Since the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis in May of 2020, many governments, commissions, and organizations have come out with plans to change police departments. What does this look like when the leaders of a reform effort are African American, from law enforcement, and female? Our guest is Karol V. Mason, President of John Jay College of Criminal Justice, and one of the co-leaders of the reform effort that produced a police reform plan called “The Future of Public Safety.” Links: Pres. K...
May 11, 2021•54 min
Bonus: Independent Investigations Aren't Enough
Independent investigations into police killings are supposed to circumvent the apparent conflict of interest that often prevents local prosecutors from bringing charges against local officers. But they don't seem to be any likelier to result in charges, because the law is stacked in favor of police regardless of who's investigating. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
May 06, 2021•10 min
#136 A Break in Belonging
When someone goes to prison, it can destroy the family left behind – and even more so when no one really knows what happened. But then, what does the family do years later, when that family member returns? Our guest, filmmaker Shirley Vernae Williams , tells us the story of Pastor Martin Thomas: the murder he committed, and his quest to make his life worthwhile, after he returns from prison. Trailer: A Break In Belonging Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands...
Apr 27, 2021•39 min
Bonus: Patterns and Practices
Following Derek Chauvin's conviction in the murder of George Floyd, the Justice Department launches a "pattern or practice" investigation into the Minneapolis Police Department. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Apr 25, 2021•12 min
Bonus: Chauvin Guilty
A Minneapolis jury has found former police officer Derek Chauvin guilty on all three counts in the murder of George Floyd. What does it mean for criminal justice reform? Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Apr 23, 2021•15 min
#135 The Unlikely Philly DA
In the US, the local prosecutor – usu the district attorney has a huge influence on the criminal system. The DA influences who gets prosecuted, for what, how long they serve if convicted – even who gets the death penalty. So what happens when the usual tough on crime DA gets replaced – by someone determined to bring transformational change to prosecution? We’ll talk with Larry Krasner , the unlikely Philly DA; his election and attempt to bring that change to an entrenched system is told in “Phil...
Apr 13, 2021•53 min
Bonus: What's a Hate Crime, Exactly?
The apparently racially-motivated spa murders in Atlanta have reignited discussion about hate-crime statutes. How do these laws work? How often are they applied, and to what ends? Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Apr 06, 2021•23 min
#134: Is Police Reform Over?
For years, advocates for better policing have pushed various reforms: consent decrees, civilian oversight, body cameras. But after George Floyd’s death and 2020, is reform still a viable alternative? Or is it defund or bust? Our guest is Christy Lopez , Professor of Practice at Georgetown Law. She headed multiple police reform investigations at the U.S. Department of Justice, and now runs the Innovative Policing Program at Georgetown . Her article, “Defund the Police? Here’s What That Really Mea...
Mar 23, 2021•50 min
Bonus: A Dream Fulfilled
A happy ending to the story of Chris Young, as told by former federal judge Kevin Sharp back in episode #55 . Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Mar 15, 2021•5 min
#133 Re-entry After Exoneration
We’ve spoken here about exoneration of the wrongfully convicted – how difficult and how important it is. But what happens to the exoneree – to that person – after release? How does that person build a life after years in prison, for something he or she did not do? We’ll talk to filmmaker Jia Wertz; she looks at these questions through the case of exoneree Jeff Deskovic in her debut film “Conviction,” available now on Amazon. "Conviction" Trailer Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brand...
Mar 09, 2021•45 min
Bonus: Baltimore's Surveillance Drones Grounded
An ambitious but controversial program to surveil the entire city of Baltimore from above is on hold after its philanthropic backer had second thoughts. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Mar 02, 2021•7 min
#132 Re-entry: What Research Shows
Returning to life outside of prison: It’s called re-entry. Getting people ready to go home just makes sense if you want them to succeed, and over 95 percent of all imprisoned people are eventually released. But we didn’t always do much to assure reentry success, and in many places and many ways, we still don’t. What does the evidence show about what works? Our guest is Dr. Christy Visher , Professor of Sociology at the University of Delaware and Director of the University’s Center for Drug and H...
Feb 23, 2021•44 min
Ask Dave: What About Accomplice Liability?
David from Skokie wonders if Donald Trump could be charged as an accomplice in the January 6 killings at the U.S. Capitol. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Feb 20, 2021•12 min
Bonus: Progressive Prosecutors in the Crosshairs
San Francisco DA Chesa Boudin and Los Angeles DA George Gascon are the newest members of a club we've been following for a while: progressive prosecutors elected on ambitious criminal justice reform platforms. Like their counterparts in Chicago, Philadelphia, St Louis, and other cities where voters have demanded sweeping change, Boudin and Gascon are facing fierce pushback from defenders of the status quo. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands...
Feb 16, 2021•8 min
#131 Re-entry: The Real Experience
Leaving incarceration, and returning to life outside of prison. It’s a difficult process, and many end up back behind bars. What does it take to make it work? What more can be done to support those coming home? We hear it directly from two men who have done it. Mr. F. and Mr. R. (identities withheld) describe their steps into the free world after each served decades in prison. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Feb 09, 2021•1 hr 4 min
Ask Dave: What Is Felony Murder?
Andrew from Australia raises an intriguing possibility: could Donald Trump be held directly responsible under the doctrine of felony murder for lives lost on January 6th? Dave explains how felony murder charges work and how they might be applied in the aftermath of the U.S. Capitol attacks. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Feb 05, 2021•16 min
#111 College Behind Bars (reprise)
Criminal Injustice returns with new episodes on February 9, 2021. Until then, we're reposting some of our favorite interviews. This episode originally appeared November 19, 2019. In the U.S., our prisons are full of people raised in the poorest neighborhoods, who only had access to the worst schools. So what happens when they can enter a first-class college program – inside prison? On this episode, Wesley Caines, an alum of the program and now Chief of Staff at Bronx Defenders, and Lynn Novick, ...
Feb 02, 2021•56 min
#106: Police Attitudes in Plain View (reprise)
Criminal Injustice returns with new episodes on February 7, 2021. Until then, we're reposting some of our favorite interviews. This episode originally appeared Sep 3, 2019. Many people make their social media posts public. Everyone can see them, like a signed billboard visible anywhere in the world. So, what should we think when we learn that *some* police officers, in some departments, have been posting racist messages or memes endorsing violence, visible to anyone on the Internet? Emily Baker-...
Jan 26, 2021•42 min
Bonus: Cop Insurrection
Surprised at how many current and former law enforcement officers participated in the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol? Don't be. "The Cops at the Capitol," The Appeal 1/13/21 #106: Police Attitudes in Plain View (Emily Baker-White) Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands...
Jan 22, 2021•10 min
#122 Would More Diversity Improve Policing? (reprise)
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...
Jan 19, 2021•52 min
Bonus: Words Matter
Some reflections on the events of January 6 in Washington D.C. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Jan 12, 2021•29 min
#119 What Now for American Policing? (reprise)
Criminal Injustice returns with new episodes on January 19, 2021. Until then, we're reposting some of our favorite interviews. This episode originally appeared June 30, 2020. 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....
Jan 05, 2021•1 hr 5 min
#124 Voices From Death Row (reprise)
Criminal Injustice returns with new episodes on January 19, 2021. Until then, we're reposting some of our favorite interviews. This episode originally appeared September 8, 2020. 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 Robin...
Dec 30, 2020•54 min
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