Today, Hunter spoke with the Chief Federal Public Defender for the District of Kansas to discuss independence, or the lack thereof, for federal public defenders. Unlike many state systems, the federal system is at the mercy of the federal judiciary. As a result of this judicial oversight, the federal public defenders can be hesitant to be as vocal and aggressive in their public advocacy. Over the past year, the hiring freeze for federal public defense demonstrated the pressing need to remove the...
Jul 30, 2024•55 min•Ep. 260
Today, Hunter spoke once again w/Bob Kolstad and for the first time Veronica Surges. Both are public defenders in the state of Minnesota, and they joined the show to discuss how the organized a strike authorization and how that threat of a strike helped them secure the largest pay raises in the history of Minnesota Public Defense. Guests: Bob Kolstad, Public Defender, Hennepin County, Minnesota Veronica Surges, Public Defender, 6th District, Minnesota Resources: Contact Bob bob@robertkolstad.com...
Jul 25, 2024•1 hr 12 min
Today, Hunter kicks off a week about Public Defense in Minnesota by speaking with the Chief Public Defender of the State, Bill Ward. Throughout this episode, Bill and Hunter discuss workloads, workload refusal, the recent budgetary victories he’s helped secure, and what is needed to ensure Public Defenders in Minnesota are not drowning in cases. Guests: Bill Ward, Chief Public Defender, Minnesota Resources: Minnesota Public Defender Website https://www.pubdef.state.mn.us/ Minnesota Public Defend...
Jul 23, 2024•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 258
Today, Hunter is joined by long time Capital Defender, Sharon Turlington. Today, the two discuss cases that bookended Sharon’s career in Missouri. Both cases involved an in the weeds evidentiary rule that prohibits testimony that points to the guilt of a person who is not on trial. In one of her earliest cases, this rule kept the jury from hearing that a third party ADMITTED TO COMMITING THE CRIME IN QUESITON. In her last case, it kept the jury from hearing that FIVE people pointed to another pe...
Jul 18, 2024•1 hr 29 min
Today, Hunter is joined by Jason Gain, a West Virginia Post Conviction defense attorney. On this episode, the two continue the miniseries covering the dangers of convictions secured through uncorroborated evidence. This time, we discuss the recent victory that Jason secured for his client, Lamont Dees. After more than five years of incarceration, Mr. Dees was freed because his conviction was secured thanks to the help of one cop’s perjury, his attorneys ineffective assistance of counsel, and the...
Jul 17, 2024•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 256
Today, Hunter is joined by Eric Tindal, a criminal defense attorney in Iowa. Today’s discussion focuses on the question, how much evidence does it take to convict someone. Specifically, Hunter and Eric discussed how a single uncorroborated testimony can be sufficient to secure a conviction. This episode kicks off a miniseries comparing what evidence is perfectly fine for prosecutors to rely on and what evidence is barred from even being heard when the defense wants to use it. Guests: Eric Tindal...
Jul 16, 2024•58 min
Today, Hunter is joined by Lenora Easter, a candidate for the Public Defender position in Orange and Osceola Counties. As a former Bronx Defender and member of Partners for Justice, Lenora understands the importance of a holistic defense practice. In her adopted home of Orange and Osceola Counties, Lenora sees an absence of that holistic practice and a loud voice in the community as a short coming of the current Public Defender practice. By becoming the elected Public Defender for the circuit, L...
Jul 11, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 254
Today, Hunter is joined by two amazing guests from the ACLU of Pennsylvania. Vic Walczak and Veronica Miller join the show to discuss the newest ACLU lawsuit being brought against Pennsylvania for its failure to adequately fund public defense. As we heard last week on the show, things in Pennsylvania Public Defense are failing because of Pennsylvania utterly failing to meet its obligations as a state to fund Public Defense, but why sue now? After all, under Governor Shapiro, the state has alloca...
Jul 10, 2024•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 253
Today, Hunter is joined by journalist Andrew Pantazi to tell the story of Florida’s worst Chief Public Defender, Matt Shirk. For more than a decade, Andrew and his colleagues have been covering the story of Shirk who served two terms as Jacksonville’s elected public defender. During his time as the chief, Shirk oversaw a systemic practice of sexual harassment, drove out some his best attorneys and replaced them with his incompetent or unqualified friends, and attempted to get his juvenile client...
Jul 09, 2024•1 hr 5 min
Today, Hunter is joined by three Public Defenders from the state of Pennsylvania to get a feel for how Public Defense is fairing outside of the Philadelphia. Autumn Johnson, Sara Jacobson, and Samuel Encarnacion join the show to discuss what’s happening in Mercer County, Lancaster County, and around the state. Recently, Pennsylvania dedicated its first ever state level funding for Public Defense, but is it too little too late? With a new ACLU lawsuit having just dropped, it will be interesting h...
Jul 04, 2024•1 hr 32 min
Today, Hunter is joined by three members of the Bronx Defenders Union, Tyler Johnson, Katerine Azcona, and Marlene Marte. This episode comes on the heels of the Bronx Defenders Union authorizing a strike starting July 1. Over the past several months, the union and leadership have been unable to come to terms on a contract, and now, we could see the first strike in NY Public Defense since 1993. What is driving it? Why has the union reached this point? All that and more on today’s episode! Guests:...
Jul 03, 2024•1 hr 20 min•Ep. 250
Today, Hunter is jo ined by Brooke Burns and Angela Chang, two Ohio Public Defenders working tirelessly to stop the return of the “Super Predator” myth. Over the past 40 years, the language has changed, but the outcome has remained the same: our communities have responded to real and perceived rises in crime by policing and incarcerating certain groups of young people. That practice is alive and well in Ohio, but with the work of people like Brooke and Angela, communities have a shot at creating...
Jul 02, 2024•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 249
Today, Hunter sat down for a powerful conversation with Scarlett Lewis. Scarlett’s son Jesse Lewis was one of the children murdered in the Sandy Hook school shooting. In the wake of this tragedy, Scarlett grappled with the grief, sadness, and anger that any person would face. Yet, Scarlett wanted to choose a different path than anger. So Scarlett founded the Jesse Lewis Choose Love Movement with the goal of teaching children social-emotional learning strategies to try and address violence at its...
Jun 27, 2024•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 248
Today, Hunter is joined by Chesa Boudin, the former District Attorney of San Francisco, to discuss his transition from public defender to prosecutor and the challenges he faced in trying to make systemic change. He shares examples of cases where he felt limited in his ability to create meaningful impact as a public defender, leading him to pursue a career in prosecution. Boudin also discusses the difficulties of implementing progressive policies within a prosecutor's office, including the resist...
Jun 25, 2024•1 hr 14 min
Today, Hunter sat down with Eric Whitcher, Director of the Pennington County Public Defender Office. Until recently, South Dakota and Pennsylvania shared the inglorious distinction of being the last two states in the country to provide 0 dollars towards public defense at the state level. Finally after years of advocacy, it appears South Dakota is about to change that. Eric joins the show to discuss the statewide commission that is primed to start a massive overhaul of the Public Defense delivery...
Jun 20, 2024•1 hr 11 min
Today, Hunter sat down with once again with Travis Finck, the Executive Director of the North Dakota Commission on Legal Counsel for Indigents. This time, we discuss the precarious place that Public Defense is in the state. With major staffing shortfalls, the full time Public Defenders have massive vacancy rates, and with low contract pay, there are only so many private counsels willing to take on attorneys. What can be done to avert a crisis? Hopefully it starts with the legislatures recent rea...
Jun 18, 2024•1 hr 5 min
Today, Hunter sat down with Grant Miller a Utah Public Defender running for Utah House District 24. Throughout the course of the show, Hunter and numerous guests have discussed the importance of getting the public defender experience into legislatures around the country. Part of the reason our laws are so skewed towards police and prosecutors is because police and prosecutors drastically outnumber the public defenders in the legislature. Grant aims to change that with a campaign that revolves ar...
Jun 13, 2024•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 244
Today, Hunter sat down with Duci Goncalves and Lael Chester to discuss how Massachusetts has started to reimagine how the criminal legal system treats emerging adults. As most of us remember, we didn’t always make the best choices as children, and that questionable decision making didn’t just improve the moment we turned 18. Yet in the criminal legal system, 18 is treated as a magic number where suddenly we assume you are a fully developed adult. With new brain science, we understand that 18 is ...
Jun 11, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 241
Today, Hunter is joined once again by University of Michigan Professor of Law Eve Primus. So far, Eve and Hunter have discussed Public Defender Systems, Structures, and how Law Schools can do better at getting students interested in Public Defense. However, today’s conversation is focused on her upcoming law review article about how courts around the country have eroded the famous Miranda warnings and what we can do about it. Guests: Eve Primus, Professor of Law, University of Michigan Resources...
Jun 06, 2024•1 hr 12 min
Today, Hunter is joined Lucian Dervan, Professor of Law and Director of Criminal Justice Studies at Belmont College and Founding Director of the Plea Bargaining Institute. For more than a decade, Lucian has been at the forefront of uncovering the troubling issues with America’s plea deal driven criminal legal system. Lucian founded the Plea Bargaining Institute in order to bring together the latest and greatest research and caselaw on plea bargaining to help people challenge our plea bargaining ...
Jun 04, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 241
Today, Hunter is joined by another amazing guest from the Wren Collective, Adrienne Johnson. Today’s conversation is about their report on Public Defense in Gwinnet County, Georgia. While there is a state wide Public Defender in Georgia, Gwinnet County has been able to maintain its independence from the state system. If Public Defender’s in Gwinnett County want to maintain that independence, it is essential that they address some of the glaring problems in Public Defense that this report exposed...
May 30, 2024•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 240
Today, Hunter is joined once again by Justice Text Co-Founder Devshi Mehrotra to discuss how Justice Text is helping Public Defender Office’s enter the digital era. This time, Devshi brought Elisabeth Pollock, Chief of the Champaign IL Public Defender Office, to talk about the serious digital overhaul Elisabeth undertook once she took charge of the office. Coming from the federal system, Elisabeth was used to a fully digital system, so it came as quiet a shock when Elisabeth realized that her ne...
May 28, 2024•1 hr 1 min
Today, Hunter is joined once again by Patricia Warth, Director of the NY Office of Indigent Legal Services. This time, Hunter and Patricia discuss the in the weeds budget moves that are threatening vital programs in New York Public Defense. Specifically, they talk about the failing family court system and how a sweep up of funds may endanger an already struggling practice. Guests: Patricia Warth, Director, New York Office of Indigent Legal Services Resources: Coverage of the Fund Sweep Up https:...
May 23, 2024•1 hr 7 min
Today, Hunter is joined by the newest State Public Defender of California, Galit Lipa. As discussed on previous episodes, California has a county based public defender system. As such, Galit and her office sit in a limited role to help train public defenders around the state. Following a law suit and several reports highlighting the failings of public defense in California, Galit and her team could prove to be a pivotal voice in rethinking the delivery of California public defense. Guests: Galit...
May 21, 2024•56 min
Today, Hunter is joined by Molly Gilbert and Jason Schwarz to discuss the plan to implement Public Defender workload standards across the state of Washington. Despite not being a centralized Public Defender system, the Public Defenders of Washington, spurred by the State Supreme Court, figured out how to work with the state bar to get workload standards. As they sit on the verge of getting enforceable standards approved by the State Supreme Court, Hunter, Molly, and Jason explore how these workl...
May 16, 2024•1 hr 18 min
Today, Hunter is joined by Taylor Herbert, a Public Defender in Lan County Oregon to discuss civil commitment. As is often talked about on the show, the divide between the civil and criminal legal system is far smaller than many are willing to admit. Civil commitment is the process by which a person can be confined in a mental health facility against their will. Unlike a criminal process, which does not allow for you to be deprived of liberty unless you’ve been proven guilty beyond a reasonable ...
May 14, 2024•1 hr 1 min
Today, Hunter is joined once again by Public Interest lawyer Stephen Hanlon. This time, Hunter and Stephen are breaking down the five year plan that he hopes will fix Public Defense in Oregon. While it is surely an ambitious plan, this plan gives urges public defenders to do all that they can to force the powers that be to take the crisis seriously: case withdrawals. Guests: Stephen Hanlon, Public Interest Lawyer Resources: Oregon Report 5 Year Plan https://www.opb.org/article/2024/03/21/oregon-...
May 09, 2024•1 hr 3 min
Today, Hunter is once again joined by Lee Wachocki, a Public Defender and union leader in Portland, Oregon. As the Public Defender crisis continues in the state, this week is about figuring out how the state is responding. At the front line level, Lee reveals that little has functionally changed at his level to demonstrate the state is close to solving the problem. In fact, with Oregon recriminalizing drug possession, the state appears primed to super charge the issue. Guests: Lee Wachocki, Publ...
May 07, 2024•1 hr 9 min
Today, Hunter is joined Professor Robin Bernstein to discuss her newest book, Freeman's Challenge: The Murder that Shook America's Original Prison for Profit. When many of us think of the for-profit prisons, we think of the post slavery south at places like Parchman. However, that is not where the story started. Today, Robin joins the show to discuss Auburn State Prison and what we can learn from the history of for profit prisons. Guests: Robin Bernstein, Dillon Professor of American History and...
May 02, 2024•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 232
Today, Hunter is joined by the powerful Dorsey Nunn. At 19, Dorsey was given a life sentence. Over the next 11 years, Dorsey would be exposed to violence, abuse, and the political education that would awaken in him a lifelong desire to fight our prison system. Today, Hunter talks with Dorsey about his new book, What Kind of Bird Can’t Fly to discuss his lifetime of organizing for the rights of the current and formerly incarcerated. Guests: Dorsey Nunn, Executive Director Legal Services for Priso...
Apr 30, 2024•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 231
