The Criminal Docket

In this podcast, we hear from Professor Cara Drinan about her new book released today by Oxford University Press, The War on Kids: How American Juvenile Justice Lost Its Way. This is a must read. Professor Drinan’s masterful and accessible book weaves together the stories of individual children in our criminal justice system with history, analysis, and a prescription for reform. I have to say, I just love it when a single book can make me so well-informed, educated, and empowered on such an important issue that is urgently challenging America. Professor Drinan is a professor of law at the Catholic University of America. I had a chance to sit down with her recently at the George Washington University School of Law where she is visiting for the year. Learn more about NACDL. Ivan J. Dominguez, host; Alexandra Funk and Ian Nawalinski, production assistants. Music West Bank (Lezet) / CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 and Walkabout (Digital Primitives) / CC BY-NC-ND 3.0. Running time: 30m58s.

Direct download: CriminalDocketEpisode054.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:24pm EDT

Last year, NACDL released its first report on South Carolina’s summary courts, Summary Injustice: A Look at Constitutional Deficiencies in South Carolina's Summary Courts. This first report was a joint project with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the ACLU of South Carolina. Then, earlier this year, NACDL released its second report on South Carolina's summary courts, Rush to Judgment: How South Carolina's Summary Courts Fail to Protect Constitutional Rights. As demonstrated in the reports, these courts routinely fail to inform defendants of their right to counsel and refuse to provide counsel to the poor at all stages of the criminal process. South Carolina summary courts also regularly violate the Constitution by sentencing defendants to jail simply because they cannot afford to pay fines.

In this podcast, we hear from Diane DePietropaolo Price, who until recently served as NACDL’s Public Defense Training Manager. Diane was the lead author of the 2016 Summary Injustice report. We also hear from Dr. Alisa Smith, the Chair of the Department of Legal Studies at the University of Central Florida. Dr. Smith was the lead researcher and co-author of Rush to Judgment. Learn more about NACDL. Ivan J. Dominguez, host; Alexandra Funk and Ian Nawalinski, production assistants. Music West Bank (Lezet) / CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 and Walkabout (Digital Primitives) / CC BY-NC-ND 3.0. Running time: 27m57s.

Direct download: CriminalDocketEpisode053.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:18pm EDT

The Foundation for Criminal Justice (FCJ) and NACDL have established the First Amendment Strike Force and Mass Defense Unit. The goal of this project is to provide qualified counsel to represent protesters when the exercise of First Amendment rights results in arrest and prosecution. Specifically, NACDL supports a cadre of criminal defense lawyers who will be available to provide pro bono assistance to protesters throughout the country in the event of mass arrests. For those lawyers who volunteer, NACDL will maintain a database of available counsel and provide training and support at no cost. In this episode of “The Criminal Docket,” we hear from FCJ President and Past NACDL President Gerald B. Lefcourt. We also learn from volunteer attorneys Mary Chartier, Joshua Dratel, and Bill Gallagher why they have volunteered for this important pro bono initiative. Learn more about NACDLIvan J. Dominguez, host; Alexandra Funk and Ian Nawalinski, production assistants. Music West Bank (Lezet) / CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 and Walkabout (Digital Primitives) / CC BY-NC-ND 3.0. Running time: 8m32s.

Direct download: CriminalDocketEpisode052.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 11:16am EDT

NACDL Director of Public Affairs & Communications Ivan J. Dominguez recently had the opportunity to speak with attorneys Jonathan Hacker and Deanna Rice from the Washington, D.C. office of O’Melveny & Myers LLP. Jon and Deanna, together with their Associate Kimya Saied, co-authored NACDL’s amicus curiae, or friend of the court, brief to the U.S. Supreme Court in the case of Packingham v. North Carolina. The case concerns the proliferation of collateral consequences that deprive convicted persons of fundamental rights without a sound basis in law. At issue in this case is a North Carolina law that makes it a felony for a person on North Carolina’s registry of former sex offenders to use a social media platform if the site is known to allow minors to have an account. Mr. Packingham was convicted of posting “God is good” on Facebook in celebration of the dismissal of a traffic ticket. Learn more about NACDLIvan J. Dominguez, host; Ezra Dunkle-Polier and Alexandra Funk, production assistants. Music West Bank (Lezet) / CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 and Walkabout (Digital Primitives) / CC BY-NC-ND 3.0. Running time: 21m44s.

Direct download: CriminalDocketEpisode051.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 11:16am EDT

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