Shows / Public Defenseless
Public Defenseless
Anyone paying attention can tell you that our criminal legal system perpetuates cruelty and harm, but the complexity of the legal world overwhelms most people just trying to get through another day. Public Defenseless explores the rot in the system and what we can do about it. Host and public defender Hunter Parnell talks with defense attorneys, advocates, scholars and journalists from across the country as they pull apart the system's convoluted web. Views are the host's and guests' own, not…
Episodes
Public Defenseless413 | How New Mexico Joined in On the Fight to End Harmful Court Fines and Fees w/Joanna Weiss
Today, Hunter spoke with Joanna Weiss, Co-Founder and Co-Executive Director of the Fines and Fees Justice Center. Today, the two sat down to discuss FFJC's…
Public Defenseless412 | How Pre-Trial Services Can Reduce Incarceration w/David Bennett
Today, Hunter spoke with David Bennett, a veteran in the field of pretrial services. They discuss the evolution of pretrial services, the challenges of jail…
Public Defenseless411 | How Private Criminal Defense Lawyers Are Trying to Solve Colorado's Rural Attorney Shortage Crisis w/Kristin Ladd, Mesa Anderson, and Blue Daniels
Today, Hunter spoke with three amazing guests from Colorado's Office of Alternate Defense Counsel. Kristin Ladd, Blue Daniels, and Mesa Anderson joined the…
Public Defenseless410 | How to Meet the Needs of Incarcerated Women w/Emily Salisbury
In this conversation, Hunter Parnell speaks with criminologist Emily about the unique challenges faced by justice-involved women. They discuss the importance…
Public Defenseless409 | How Will Maryland Public Defense Handle It's Workload Crisis and a Slate of New Criminal Law Policies w/Natasha Dartigue
Today, Hunter spoke with Natasha Dartigue, the Chief Public Defender of the Maryland Office of Public Defense. This time, Natasha and Hunter spoke about the…
Public Defenseless408 | How Georgia's New "Tough on Crime" Laws Could Make Communities Even Less Safe w/Blake Feldman
Today, Hunter was joined by the Southern Center for Human Right's Blake Feldman. Hunter and Blake walked through a handful of criminal legal policy changes…
Public Defenseless407 | How Hennepin County has Expanded the Right to Counsel to Civil Legal Issues w/ Jeanette Boerner, Jessica Ryan and Terrance Hendricks
Today, Hunter was joined by three guests from Hennepin County's Adult Representation Services. As has been discussed multiple times on the show, many of the…
Public Defenseless406 | How the Cook County Prosecutor Has Made it Harder for the Wrongfully Convicted to Find Justice w/Dan Hinkel
Today, Hunter was joined by Journalist Dan Hinkel to discuss his newest piece about the Conviction Integrity Unit in Cook County. While CIUs are an imperfect…
Public Defenseless405 | How The Miami Public Defenders Got Their Workloads Under Control w/Carlos Martinez
Today, Hunter was joined once again by Carlos Martinez, Chief Public Defender in Miami Dade County. This time, Carlos joined to explain the tech innovations he…
Public Defenseless404 | How Enforcing Workload Standards Changed the Culture and the Future of Montana Public Defense
Today, Hunter was joined by several amazing public defenders from the Montana Public Defender System. Each one of them joins the show to talk about the truly…
Public Defenseless403 | Is this the Start of Public Defense Expanding in Mississippi? w/Andre de Gruy
Today, Hunter was joined once again by Andre de Gruy, Mississippi's State Public Defender. Andre joins the show this time to discuss a new pilot program that…
Public Defenseless402 | Defense Lawyering in the Progressive Prosecution Era w/Jenny Roberts
Today, Hunter was joined by Dean Jenny Roberts of Hofstra Law School. On today's episode, Hunter and Dean Roberts discuss a law review article that Dean…
Public Defenseless401 | Police Against the Movement: The Sabotage of the Civil Rights Struggle and the Activists Who Fought Back w/Joshua Clark Davis
Today, Hunter was joined by Professor Joshua Clark Daivs to discuss his new book, Police Against the Movement. In the book, Professor Davis tells the often…
Public Defenseless400 | Why the Lawyers Handling 80% of Massachusetts's Public Defender Cases Stopped Taking New Cases w/Shira Diner
Today, Hunter was joined by Professor Shira Diner to discuss the Bar Advocate work stoppage in the state of Massachusetts. Back in May, the Bar Advocates, the…
Public Defenseless399 | Unequal Scales: California's Investment Disparity Between Prosecution and Public Defense w/Caneel Fraser and Tatyana Kaplan
Today, Hunter was joined by Caneel Fraser and Tatyana Kaplan of California's Office of the State Public Defender. The three sat down to discuss an OSPD report…
Public Defenseless398 | How Public Defenders can Combat Copaganda w/Alec Karakatsanis
Today, Hunter was joined once again by Alec Karatkatsanis. This time, Alec is here discussing Copaganda, cop fueled propaganda that shapes the way our society…
Public Defenseless397 | The Tragedy of True Crime: Four Guilty Men and the Stories that Define Them w/John J Lennon
Today, Hunter was joined by John J. Lennon to discuss his new book, The Tragedy of True Crime: Four Guilty Men and the Stories that Define Us. John is a…
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396 | What Will it Take to Revive the Jury? w/Will Snowden
Today, Hunter was joined by Will Snowden of the Juror Project to discuss how they plan on revitalizing the jury around the country. Guest: Will Snowden…
Public Defenseless395 | A New Partners for Justice Toolkit to Help Public Defenders w/Vichal Kumar
Today, Hunter was joined once again by Vichal Kumar of Partners for Justice. This time, Vichal joins the show to discuss a new toolkit that Partners for…
Public Defenseless394 | What Can Data Tell us About New York's Discovery Reform? w/Michael Rempel and Anna Stenkamp
Today, Hunter was joined by Michael Rempel and Anna Stenkamp of the Data Collaborative for Justice. They discuss a recent report authored by DCJ about the…
Public Defenseless393 | Ending Isolation: The Case Against Solitary Confinement w/Christopher Blackwell
Today, Hunter was joined by activist, prisoner journalist, and author of Ending Isolation, Christopher Blackwell. On this episode, Chris and Hunter discuss the…
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392 | Can Public Defenders Become a Greater Check on the Three Branches of Government? w/Chesa Boudin and Eric Fish
Today, Hunter was once again joined by Chesa Boudin and Eric Fish to discuss a law review article they recently published. This time, they are talking about…
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391 | Debating The Problems and Promises of the Public Defender National Workload Study Part 2 w/Bob Boruchowitz
Today, Hunter hosted a debate between Professor John Gross and Professor Bob Boruchowitz about the Public Defender National Workload Standards. Back in the…
Public Defenseless390 | Debating the Problems and Promises of the Public Defender National Workload Study Part 1 w/John Gross
Today, Hunter hosted a debate between Professor John Gross and Professor Bob Boruchowitz about the Public Defender National Workload Standards. Back in the…
Public Defenseless389 | How Cook County Public Defenders are Preparing for Trump Deploying the National Guard to Chicago w/Sharone Mitchell Jr. and Sharlyn Grace
Today, Hunter was joined once again by Sharone Mitchell Jr. and Sharlyn Grace of the Cook County Public Defender Office. As we have already seen in Los Angeles…
Public Defenseless388 | How Public Defenders Can Make it Easier to Win More Courtroom Arguments w/Eve Primus
Today, Hunter was joined once again by Professor Eve Primus. This time, Eve joined the show to discuss her newest law review article "Burdens of Proof in…
Public Defenseless387 | The Junk "Science" Cops Use to Stop, Frisk, and Search People w/Amanda Savage
Today, Hunter was joined by Professor Amanda Savage to discuss her latest law review article "The Pseudoscience of Gun Hunting". In the article, Amanda…
Public Defenseless386 | Why Have the Private Defense Lawyers who Take 40% of Federal Public Defense Cases Stopped Getting Paid? w/Renae Alt-Summers and Mekka Jeffers-Nelson
Today, Hunter was Renae Alt-Summers and Mekka Jeffers-Nelson to discuss the payment stoppage for Criminal Justice Act Panel Attorneys. Just like state public…
Public Defenseless385 | How a Public Defender Fought for a Better Legal System in the Utah State Legislature w/Grant Miller
Today, Hunter was joined once again by Grant Miller, Salt Lake City Public Defender and Representative of Utah's 24th House District. Last time that he was on…
Public Defenseless384 | How Texas is Trying to Improve Access to Family Defense Attorneys w/Crystal Leff-Piñon
Today, Hunter was joined by Crystal Leff-Piñon, Director of TIDC's family protection representation unit. On Tuesday, Hunter and Scott Ehlers discussed the…
Public Defenseless383 | How Can Texas Solve its Shortage of Rural Public Defender Crisis? w/Scott Ehlers
Today, Hunter was joined once again the Texas Indigent Defense Commission Executive Director, Scott Ehlers. This time, Scott and Hunter explore a slow moving…
Public Defenseless382 | What Stopped North Dakota Public Defenders from Refusing New Cases? w/Travis Fink
Today, Hunter was joined once again by the Executive Director of North Dakota's Commission of Legal Counsel for the Indigent, Travis Fink. Last time, Travis…
Public Defenseless381 | With a Shortage of Lawyers and Too Many Cases, Will New Mexico Public Defenders Need to Stop Taking New Cases? w/Ben Baur
Today, Hunter was joined once again by New Mexico's Chief Public Defender, Ben Baur. A few years back, a workload study estimated that New Mexico had 1/3 of…
Public Defenseless380 | How Washington is Helping People Who Have been Found Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity w/Tim Ray Johnson, Dennis Calhoun, and Amanda Ulrich
Today, Hunter was joined by Dennis Calhoun, Tim Ray Johnson, and Amanda Ulrich to discuss how Washington is helping people who were found not guilty by reason…
Public Defenseless379 | How Washington is Trying to Recruit and Keep Lawyers in Rural Parts of the State w/ Nat Jacob, Elizabeth Mustin, Rachel Cortez
Today, Hunter was joined by Nat Jacob, Elizabeth Mustin, and Rachel Cortez to discuss new efforts by the Washington to recruit and retain Public Defenders…
Public Defenseless378 | Why is Oklahoma Going to Execute a Man who Didn't Kill Anyone? w/Amanda Bass Castro Alves
Today, Hunter was joined by federal public defender Amanda Bass Castro Alves to discuss the wrongful conviction of Tremane Wood. In 2004, Tremane was convicted…
Public Defenseless377 | How Was a Man Convicted of Murder When He Wasn't in the State When the Crime Occurred? w/Erica Nichols Cook
Today, Hunter was joined once again by Erica Nichols Cook, the head of the Iowa State Public Defender Wrongful Conviction Unit. On today's episode, Erica walks…
Public Defenseless376 | How a Law School Clinic is Trying to Prevent Gun Violence Through Litigation w/Megan Walsh and Anthony Benz
Today, Hunter was joined by Professor Megan Walsh and Anthony Benz from the University of Minnesota. As we did on Tuesday, Hunter sat down with these two to…
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375 | The Law Clinic Helping Public Defenders Fight Back Against New Police Technology w/Megan Graham
Today, Hunter was joined by Professor Megan Graham to discuss how her law an technology clinic is helping Public Defenders deal with technology issues in their…
Public Defenseless374 | How were Incarcerated People Impacted by the NY Correctional Officers' Illegal Wild Cat Strike? w/Emily Napier Singletary and Derek Singletary
Today, Hunter was joined by Co-Founders and Co-Executive Directors of Unchained Emily Napier-Singletary and Derek Singletary. Unchained is a non-profit…
Public Defenseless373 | How a Public Defender Investigator Unsolved a Murder w/Anat Rubin
Today, Hunter was joined by investigative journalist Anat Rubin to discuss her recent reporting on Public Defender Investigators in California. At times…
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372 | The Community Organizers Helping Detroit Reach its Lowest Crime Rate in 60 Years w/Dujuan "Zoe" Kennedy
Today, Hunter was joined by Dujuan "Zoe" Kennedy of Force Detroit a Community Violence Intervention organization in Detroit. For decades, Detroit was known…
Public Defenseless371 | The Cruelty Kids Face at the Intersection of Criminal and Immigration Law w/Claire Valentin and Hayley Upshaw
Today, Hunter was joined Claire Valentin and Hayley Upshaw to discuss how the intersection of criminal and immigration law impacts kids. So far on the show…
Public Defenseless370 | How Public Defenders Can Make a Difference in Immigration Defense w/Ali Saidi
Today, Hunter was joined by Ali Saidi, Deputy Public Defender in Contra Costa County, California. On this episode, Hunter and Ali discuss how Public Defenders…
Public Defenseless369 | Why California Has and Needs its Immigration Sanctuary Laws w/Angela Chan
Today, Hunter was joined once again by Angla Chan of the San Francisco Public Defender Officer. This time, the two say down to discuss the history of sanctuary…
Public Defenseless368 | The Fight to Abolish the Death Penalty in Delaware w/Kevin O'Connell
Today, Hunter was joined once again by the Chief Public Defender of Delaware, Kevin O'Connell. This time, the two focused on the see-saw history of death…
Public Defenseless367 | After a Rocky Start, What Does the Future Hold for Idaho's New State Public Defender System w/Eric Fredericksen
Today, Hunter was by the Public Defender for the state of Idaho, Eric Fredericksen. Over the past two years, Public Defense in Idaho underwent a massive…
Public Defenseless366 | How Public Defenders Can Create Equitable Public Safety Policies w/Hans Menos and Rob Kenter
Today, Hunter was joined by Hans Menos and Rob Kenter of the Center for Policing Equity. They sat down to discuss the successes their organization has had in…
Public Defenseless365 | How San Francisco Public Defenders Used the Racial Justice Act to Combat Implicit Racial Bias in the Legal System w/Sujung Kim and Lilah Wolf
Today, Hunter was joined by two San Francisco Public Defenders, Sujung Kim and Lilah Wolf, to discuss their recent Racial Justice Act Victory. This California…
Public Defenseless364 | How Cops Mess Up the Investigation Child Sex Assault Cases w/Christina Sally and Chris Bertram
Today, Hunter was joined by two former police officers turned defense witness experts. Christina Sally and Chris Bertram joined the show to discuss their…
Public Defenseless363 | Why is the LA County DA Bringing Back Death Penalty Prosecutions? w/Ricardo Garcia
Today, Hunter was joined once again by Los Angeles County Chief Public Defender Ricardo Garcia. This time, they discuss how the new LA County DA is trying to…
Public Defenseless362 | Is Illinois Taking the First Step to Establish State Wide Public Defense? w/Elisabeth Pollock and Stephanie Kollmann
Today, Hunter was joined once again Elisabeth Pollock and for the first time Stephanie Kollmann. On today's episode, the three discuss the Fair Act in…
Public Defenseless361 | How a New Bail Law and Immigration Enforcement is Impacting Public Defense in Charleston, South Carolina w/Cameron Blazer
Today, Hunter was joined once again by the Chief Public Defender for South Carolina's 9th Circuit, Cameron Blazer. This time, we discuss workload issues in her…
Public Defenseless360 | Is There a Better Way to Teach Criminal Law Part II w/Andrew Crespo
Today, Hunter was joined by Professor Andrew Crespo to continue the conversation about how we can improve how criminal law is taught. On this episode, we dive…
Public Defenseless359 | Is There a Better Way to Teach Criminal Law? Part I w/Alice Ristroph
Today, Hunter was joined by Professor Alice Ristroph for the first of a two-part focus on how and why we teach Criminal Law the way we do. On today's episode…
Public Defenseless358 | Why has the San Francisco Public Defender Stopped Taking New Cases One Day a Week? w/Mano Raju
Today, Hunter was joined once again by Mano Raju, the Elected Chief Public Defender in San Francisco. In the past couple of weeks, Mano made the difficult…
Public Defenseless357 | Why are Minnesota Public Defenders Trying to Form an Independent Union? w/Bob Kolstad, Maggie Bott, Olivia Henstein
Today, Hunter was joined by Bob Kolstad, Maggie Bott, and Olivia Henstein to discuss why they are pushing Minnesota Public Defenders to create a new…
Public Defenseless356 | How the Chief Public Defender of Louisiana is Retaliating Against Public Defenders who Oppose his Power Grab w/Jim Boren
Today, Hunter was joined by longtime Louisiana Criminal Defense Lawyer and President of the Louisiana Association of Criminal Defense Lawyer, Jim Boren. Over…
Public Defenseless355 | How Missouri Public Defenders are Leading the Nation In Statewide Holistic Defender Services w/Missouri Public Defenders
Today, Hunter was joined by a whole host of characters from the Missouri Public Defender System. When Hunter last looked into Missouri Public Defense, he spoke…
Public Defenseless354 | With so Many Good Things Happening in Massachusetts, When Will Public Defenders Finally Get They Pay Raises they Deserve? w/Anthony Benedetti
Today, Hunter was joined once again by Anthony Benedetti, Chief Counsel of the Massachusetts Committee for Public Counsel Services. This time, Hunter and…