Criminal (In)justice
242 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 2 years ago - ★★★★★ - 286 ratingsSometimes 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
#132 Re-entry: What Research Shows
February 23, 2021 07:00 - 43 minutes - 40 MBReturning 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 ...
Ask Dave: What About Accomplice Liability?
February 20, 2021 18:57 - 11 minutes - 10.8 MBDavid 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
Bonus: Progressive Prosecutors in the Crosshairs
February 16, 2021 21:03 - 7 minutes - 7.02 MBSan 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
#131 Re-entry: The Real Experience
February 09, 2021 07:00 - 1 hour - 58.6 MBLeaving 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
Ask Dave: What Is Felony Murder?
February 05, 2021 15:05 - 15 minutes - 14.5 MBAndrew 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
#111 College Behind Bars (reprise)
February 02, 2021 07:00 - 55 minutes - 51.1 MBCriminal 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 No...
Bonus: Cop Insurrection
January 22, 2021 19:41 - 9 minutes - 8.92 MBSurprised 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
#122 Would More Diversity Improve Policing? (reprise)
January 19, 2021 07:00 - 52 minutes - 47.6 MBIn 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
Bonus: Words Matter
January 12, 2021 07:00 - 29 minutes - 26.6 MBSome reflections on the events of January 6 in Washington D.C. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
#119 What Now for American Policing? (reprise)
January 05, 2021 07:00 - 1 hour - 59.9 MBCriminal 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...
#124 Voices From Death Row (reprise)
December 30, 2020 14:33 - 54 minutes - 49.9 MBCriminal 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...
Bonus: Why Trump's Lawsuits Didn't Fly
December 23, 2020 07:00 - 19 minutes - 17.5 MBWhy did the Trump legal team fail to overturn the election in court? It's not complicated. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
#130 Does Eliminating Cash Bail Harm Public Safety?
December 15, 2020 07:00 - 47 minutes - 43.4 MBMore 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
Bonus: WWJD?
December 08, 2020 18:50 - 20 minutes - 18.5 MBAs 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
#129 The Beginning of the End of the War on Drugs?
December 01, 2020 07:00 - 52 minutes - 47.6 MBPresident 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
Bonus: Tarrick McGuire, from Selma to Montgomery
November 27, 2020 17:00 - 6 minutes - 5.92 MBAn 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
Bonus: Criminal Justice on the 2020 Ballot
November 24, 2020 00:32 - 16 minutes - 15 MBPolice 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
#128 How Can Police Build Trust?
November 17, 2020 07:00 - 41 minutes - 38.3 MBWe 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 forwa...
Bonus: Literally the One Thing We All Agree On
November 10, 2020 07:00 - 13 minutes - 12.2 MBJudging 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
#127 Getting Rid of Mandatory Minimums
November 03, 2020 07:00 - 40 minutes - 37.5 MBMandatory 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
Lawyers Behaving Badly: Saying the Quiet Part Really, Really Loud
October 27, 2020 06:00 - 16 minutes - 14.7 MB"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://redc...
#126 The Past, Present and Future of Policing
October 20, 2020 06:00 - 47 minutes - 43.8 MBSince 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 blogg...
Bonus: How Will Coney Barrett Rule on Criminal Justice?
October 18, 2020 06:00 - 15 minutes - 14.6 MBPresumptive 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
Bonus: Whose Crime Bill Was It?
October 15, 2020 13:37 - 11 minutes - 10.9 MBFor 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. Adve...
Bonus: Breonna Taylor's Death Wasn't a Tragic Accident
October 06, 2020 06:00 - 33 minutes - 30.3 MBWho bears responsibility for Breonna Taylor's murder? Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Bonus: Legal Giant, Human Being
September 28, 2020 06:00 - 12 minutes - 11.5 MBRemembering the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
#125 Wrongful Convictions – But No Crimes?
September 22, 2020 06:00 - 44 minutes - 41 MBWe’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://redci...
#124 Voices From Death Row
September 08, 2020 06:00 - 52 minutes - 48.2 MBMore 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://redcir...
# 123 Can Requiring Police Professional Insurance Tame Police Misconduct?
August 25, 2020 06:00 - 56 minutes - 51.9 MBWith 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
Ask Dave: The Problem With 'Bad Apples'
August 21, 2020 20:57 - 11 minutes - 11 MBDave 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
#121 Would More Diversity Improve Policing?
August 11, 2020 06:00 - 50 minutes - 46.5 MBIn 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
Bonus: SCOTUS Recap on The Confluence
August 05, 2020 01:43 - 15 minutes - 14.2 MBDave 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
#121 Being Black in America's Most Livable City
July 28, 2020 06:00 - 44 minutes - 40.6 MBPittsburgh 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 pol...
Read This: It Could Have Been Me
July 25, 2020 06:00 - 5 minutes - 5.19 MBRecommended 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
Bonus: Roger Stone Sentence Commuted
July 21, 2020 06:00 - 14 minutes - 13.6 MBWhat'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
#120 How Cities Pay for Police Brutality
July 14, 2020 06:00 - 37 minutes - 34.6 MBWith 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 Inqui...
Bonus: Bill Barr's Big Interview
July 07, 2020 06:00 - 31 minutes - 28.7 MBA point-by-point breakdown and response to A.G. William Barr's recent interview on NPR. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
#119 What Now for American Policing?
June 30, 2020 06:00 - 1 hour - 58.7 MBThe 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 Governm...
Bonus: #CRSPCast Live
June 14, 2020 01:38 - 4 minutes - 3.66 MBOn 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
Bonus: Defund the Police
June 10, 2020 00:28 - 12 minutes - 11.6 MBMinneapolis 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 e...
Bonus: Minneapolis Officers Charged
June 04, 2020 01:53 - 18 minutes - 16.5 MBDerek 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
Bonus: Dog Leash Lady Tries to Unleash Racist Violence
May 31, 2020 15:08 - 8 minutes - 7.86 MBViral video of an encounter in NYC's Central Park shows a white woman calling 911 to report another park user is threatening her life, apparently trying to provoke a violent police response against the "African American man" who had simply asked her to leash her dog. Reflexively fearing people of another race is racist -- but it's mostly a function of the garden-variety implicit bias that most of us harbor on some level, whether we're aware of it or not. Actively weaponizing that fear in ...
Bonus: The Death of George Floyd
May 29, 2020 03:17 - 29 minutes - 27.3 MBAnother horrific episode of police violence, captured on video in Minneapolis, graphically recalls the 2014 killing of Eric Garner by NYPD officers who were never criminally charged in his death. This time the officers may face charges, but prosecuting police is still notoriously difficult. Is there hope for justice? Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Bonus: The Murder of Ahmaud Arbery
May 18, 2020 19:25 - 10 minutes - 9.99 MBThe killing of an unarmed black man, Ahmaud Arbery, by two white men in Georgia went largely unnoticed until video of the February shooting went viral earlier this month. Now the father and son face murder charges -- but will Georgia's "Stand Your Ground" law block their conviction? 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
Read This: Let the People Go
May 14, 2020 17:08 - 5 minutes - 5.24 MBRecommended reading on how COVID-19 is impacting incarcerated populations and what must be done to avoid catastrophe: "Let the People Go" by Joseph Margulies in the Boston Review. 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
Bonus: Bad to Worse
May 10, 2020 15:54 - 28 minutes - 25.8 MBCOVID-19 has exposed systemic injustice and institutional failures at every level of society, and nowhere more than in the criminal justice system. Incarcerated people are already being hit hard by the pandemic, but the situation is rapidly deteriorating -- and the effects will be felt beyond the walls of prisons and jails. Support Criminal Injustice at $5/month to unlock extra bonus episodes and more on the Members feed: patreon.com/criminalinjustice Advertising Inquiries: https://redcir...
Bonus: COVID-19 and Funding Public Defense
May 05, 2020 06:00 - 6 minutes - 5.59 MBLouisiana's public defender system is funded by fines from traffic violations. But with far fewer cars on the road due to COVID-19, an already badly underfunded system is at the breaking point. 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
Bonus: No More Non-Unanimous Verdicts
April 28, 2020 06:00 - 9 minutes - 9.15 MBThe U.S. Supreme Court rules that jury decisions in state criminal cases must be unanimous, overturning a precedent that goes back to Jim Crow. 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
SCOTUS v COVID-19
April 23, 2020 06:00 - 7 minutes - 6.46 MBWorkplaces are adjusting to life under lockdown by holding meetings via videoconference — and the U.S. Supreme Court is no exception. 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
Bonus: The Confluence, April 16
April 19, 2020 06:00 - 8 minutes - 7.78 MBPresident Trump claims “total authority” to override governors and end their stay-at-home orders, yet again raising the question: can he do that? No, as Dave explains on 90.5 WESA’s The Confluence, he cannot. 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