Public Defenseless

Today, Hunter is once again joined by Arlington, VA Chief Public Defender Brad Haywood. This time, Brad joins the show to dig into the ways copaganda has negatively impacted criminal legal reforms in Virginia. Specifically, we discuss the ways false media outrage about organized retail theft and the century old war on drug rhetoric have shaped Virginia's discourse on criminal legal policy. Guests: Brad Haywood, Chief Public Defender, Arlington and City of Falls Chruch, Virginia Resources: Retail Theft Coverage https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/dec/07/retail-theft-losses-inventory-nrf https://www.themarshallproject.org/2023/02/27/shoplifting-retail-theft-lawmakers-response https://www.cnbc.com/2023/12/19/target-store-closures-theft-and-crime-higher-nearby.html#:~:text=Retail-,Target%20blamed%20theft%20and%20violence%20for%209%20store%20closures.,locations%20it%20kept%20open%20nearby&text=Target%20blamed%20theft%20and%20violence%20when%20it%20closed%20nine%20stores,kept%20open%20near%20those%20stores https://sentinelcolorado.com/opinion/editorial-auroras-shoplifter-jail-crusade-is-a-mirage-of-honesty-credibility-and-facts/ Fentanyl Terorism Law https://virginiamercury.com/2023/07/21/states-stiffen-penalties-for-fentanyl-despite-public-health-concerns/#:~:text=Va.,to%20ten%20years%20in%20jail Radley Balko on Jason Miyares https://radleybalko.substack.com/p/virginias-culture-warrior-attorney Contact Hunter Parnell: Publicdefenseless@gmail.com Instagram @PublicDefenselessPodcast Twitter @PDefenselessPod www.publicdefenseless.com Subscribe to the Patron www.patreon.com/PublicDefenselessPodcast Donate on PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=5KW7WMJWEXTAJ Donate on Stripe https://donate.stripe.com/7sI01tb2v3dwaM8cMN

Today, Hunter is once again joined by James McDermott and Paul Chambers from the Far West Texas Regional Public Defender Office. This time, James and Paul are discussing how they utilized the new National Workload study to double their attorney staff. While the use of data was extremely important into winning over county commissioners, James' and Paul's willingness to let the system fail proved to be the catalyst in securing more funding. Guests: James McDermott, Chief Public Defender, Far West Texas Regional Public Defender Paul Chambers, Deputy Chief Public Defender, Far West Texas Regional Public Defender Resources: National Workload Study https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA2559-1.html Far West Texas Regional Public Defender https://far-west-texas-regional-public-defender.business.site/ Contact Hunter Parnell: Publicdefenseless@gmail.com Instagram @PublicDefenselessPodcast Twitter @PDefenselessPod www.publicdefenseless.com Subscribe to the Patron www.patreon.com/PublicDefenselessPodcast Donate on PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=5KW7WMJWEXTAJ Donate on Stripe https://donate.stripe.com/7sI01tb2v3dwaM8cMN

Today, Hunter sat down with Jessica Brand, the found of the Wren Collective, to discuss their recent report about the death penalty in Harris County, Texas. For decades, Harris County used the death penalty more than anywhere in the world, but unlike many places, it did not use full time public defenders for these cases. Instead, they used court appointed counsel, and the results of that representation model have been stunningly bad. Guests: Jessica Brand, Founder, Wren Collective Resources: Contact the Wren Collective https://www.wrencollective.org/contact-3 Death by Design Part 1 https://www.wrencollective.org/_files/ugd/8fe8f0_fd475c291d07486188088f0d5c2ffa33.pdf Death By Design Part 2 https://www.wrencollective.org/_files/ugd/8fe8f0_cd056b2be4634f3e9410053388c79bfe.pdf Contact Hunter Parnell: Publicdefenseless@gmail.com Instagram @PublicDefenselessPodcast Twitter @PDefenselessPod www.publicdefenseless.com Subscribe to the Patron www.patreon.com/PublicDefenselessPodcast Donate on PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=5KW7WMJWEXTAJ Donate on Stripe https://donate.stripe.com/7sI01tb2v3dwaM8cMN

In a follow up to our episode on Operation Lone Star, Hunter is joined by UC Davis Law Professor Eric Fish to discuss his recent law review article, "Resisting Mass Immigration Prosecutions." On our previous OLS episode, we discussed the many ways the state of Texas has stacked the deck in its favor, making it extremely difficult for PDs to get anything close to a "win." Yet, OLS is not the first mass immigration prosecution scheme, and today's episode is about understanding the lessons we can learn from Eric, the other PDs, and the criminal defense attorneys in San Diego who got amazing wins against Operation Streamline. Guests: Eric Fish, Former Federal Public Defender and Professor of Law, UC Davis School of Law Resources: Law Review Article https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4659514 History of Operation Streamline https://www.law.berkeley.edu/files/Operation_Streamline_Policy_Brief.pdf Contact Eric https://law.ucdavis.edu/people/eric-fish Contact Hunter Parnell: Publicdefenseless@gmail.com Instagram @PublicDefenselessPodcast Twitter @PDefenselessPod www.publicdefenseless.com Subscribe to the Patron www.patreon.com/PublicDefenselessPodcast Donate on PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=5KW7WMJWEXTAJ Donate on Stripe https://donate.stripe.com/7sI01tb2v3dwaM8cMN

(AUDIO CORRECTED) Following years of intense advocacy in the state house, a robust coalition of people in Illinois were successfully able to abolish cash bail with the SAFE-T Act. For the tough on crime crowd, this law would turn Illinois into "the Purge." Anarchy would claim the streets and the entire state would become lawless….but did that actually happen? Joining Hunter today are Celeste Korando, the Chief Public Defender of Jackson County Illinois, Sharlyn Grace, the Senior Policy Advisor at the Cook County Public Defender, and Victoria Kerr, former Public Defender and current Private Defense Counsel in Central IL, to talk about the good, the bad, and the truth of the SAFE-T Act. Guests: Celeste Korando, Chief Public Defender, Jackson County, Illinois Sharlyn Grace, Senior Policy Advisor, Cook County Public Defender Victoria Kerr, Criminal Defense Attorney, Central Illinois Resources: SAFE-T Act https://www.illinoislegalaid.org/legal-information/cash-bail-changes-2023-safe-t-act#:~:text=In%20July%202023%2C%20the%20Illinois,system%20and%20what%20it%20means. https://www.aclu.org/news/criminal-law-reform/the-illinois-supreme-court-cash-bail-ruling-explained https://eji.org/news/illinois-becomes-first-state-to-abolish-cash-bail/ https://blockclubchicago.org/2022/09/14/no-there-is-no-purge-law-in-illinois-here-are-the-facts-about-ending-cash-bail/ https://pretrialfairness.org/ Bad Faith Reactions to the Law https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/the-end-of-cash-bail-is-not-a-purge-law-in-illinois-heres-what-you-need-to-know/2981549/#:~:text=Some%20on%20social%20media%20have%20dubbed%20it%20a%20so%2Dcalled,Pritzker%20have%20said%20is%20false. https://myfox8.com/news/is-a-purge-law-coming-to-illinois/ Flow Chart https://ilcourtsaudio.blob.core.windows.net/antilles-resources/resources/b3d911ef-bd4e-4263-b86b-0b16fe032ac9/Pretrial%20Fairness%20Act%20Release%20by%20Citation%20Flowchart%20and%20Implementation%20Considerations.pdf Contact Sharlyn https://www.cookcountypublicdefender.org/locations-contact/find-public-defender/grace-sharlyn https://twitter.com/SharlynDGrace Contact Celeste https://twitter.com/CelesteKorando https://www.linkedin.com/in/celeste-korando-ba327a3b Contact Victoria Vekay19896@Gmail.com Contact Hunter Parnell: Publicdefenseless@gmail.com Instagram @PublicDefenselessPodcast Twitter @PDefenselessPod www.publicdefenseless.com Subscribe to the Patron www.patreon.com/PublicDefenselessPodcast Donate on PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=5KW7WMJWEXTAJ Donate on Stripe https://donate.stripe.com/7sI01tb2v3dwaM8cMN

In 2021, the Washington Supreme handed down one of the most important rulings in the history of the state. For decades, people in Washington were convicted under the state's felony drug possession law without any requirement they had knowledge of the drugs they possessed. The court struck down this strict liability law and opened the door for hundreds of thousands of people to be released, resentenced, or have their case vacated. Today, Hunter spoke with Grace O'Connor, Nat Jacob, and Kimonti Carter, the team at the Washington Office of Public Defense, who work on helping people navigate their options in the wake of Blake v State. Guests: Grace O'Connor, Former Blake Managing Defense Attorney, Washington Office of Public Defense Nat Jacob, Blake Triage Attorney, Washington Office of Public Defense Kimonti Carter, Blake Community Outreach Specialist, Washington Office of Public Defense Resources: Blake v State https://www.courts.wa.gov/opinions/pdf/968730.pdf Contact the Blake Team Call 800-414-6064 (ext 218) Email blake@opd.wa.gov How to Vacate Conviction https://opd.wa.gov/find-legal-help-and-information/vacate-drug-possession-convictions-state-v-blake Since I Been Down https://www.sinceibeendown.com/ https://www.kimonticarter.com/teach Redemption Project of Washington https://www.redemptionwa.org/ Seattle Clemency Project https://www.seattleclemencyproject.org/ Contact Hunter Parnell: Publicdefenseless@gmail.com Instagram @PublicDefenselessPodcast Twitter @PDefenselessPod www.publicdefenseless.com Subscribe to the Patron www.patreon.com/PublicDefenselessPodcast Donate on PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=5KW7WMJWEXTAJ Donate on Stripe https://donate.stripe.com/7sI01tb2v3dwaM8cMN

Today, Hunter spoke with Taylor Six, a journalist at the Lexington Harold Leader in Kentucky, to discuss her expansive coverage of the criminal legal system in the state. From a system that is almost devoid of all trials to accusations of racial bias in local prosecutors, Taylor is doing amazing work bringing to light the criminal legal stories that help drive better criminal legal policies. Guests: Taylor Six, Journalist, Lexington Harold Leader, Kentucky Resources: judge tossed a murder charge prosecutor's response Follow up on Racial Bias Accusation from Judge https://www.kentucky.com/news/local/crime/article284296008.html Case of Lasielle White Here is how her case ended. Teen linked to Fatal Shooting Gets Probation https://www.kentucky.com/news/local/crime/article275460956.html#storylink=cpy https://www.kentucky.com/news/local/crime/article281033483.html Plea Deal Story https://www.kentucky.com/news/local/crime/article278980039.html Contact Hunter Parnell: Publicdefenseless@gmail.com Instagram @PublicDefenselessPodcast Twitter @PDefenselessPod www.publicdefenseless.com Subscribe to the Patron www.patreon.com/PublicDefenselessPodcast Donate on PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=5KW7WMJWEXTAJ Donate on Stripe https://donate.stripe.com/7sI01tb2v3dwaM8cMN

The protections of the Constitution are meant to apply to all Americans regardless of their status, but for those who are incarcerated, courts have systematically denied, abused, or ignored those protections. Today, Hunter is once again joined by Kaelen Perrochet, a UCLA law student and two-time previous guest, to take a look at the various rights prisoner's simply don't have. From denial of healthcare and safety to no access to courts or counsel, this episode is a reminder that courts have and continue to determine who should rights based simply on who they are. Guests: Kaelen Perrochet, UCLA Law Student, Resources: Singer v Raemisch https://casetext.com/case/singer-v-raemisch Lewis v Casey https://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/94-1511.ZO.html Estelle v Gamble https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/429/97 Farmer v Brennan https://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/92-7247.ZS.html Brown v Plata https://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/09-1233.ZO.html Contact Hunter Parnell: Publicdefenseless@gmail.com Instagram @PublicDefenselessPodcast Twitter @PDefenselessPod www.publicdefenseless.com Subscribe to the Patron www.patreon.com/PublicDefenselessPodcast Donate on PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=5KW7WMJWEXTAJ Donate on Stripe https://donate.stripe.com/7sI01tb2v3dwaM8cMN

Today, Hunter is continuing his coverage of public defense in Texas by speaking with former Executive Director of the Texas Indigent Defense Commission and current Executive Director of the Texas Fair Defense Project, Geoff Burkhart. Under his leadership, there was a massive expansion of institutional public defender offices around Texas, but it happened in an extremely unorthodox manner. Normally, public defender offices spring up in the urban areas and slowly make their way to the more rural parts of the state, but in Texas, that model has been a bit backwards. With the grant money TIDC provided, rural communities jumped at the chance to have institutional public defender offices, while some large metro areas (Tarrant County in particular) still relied on a contract base private attorney system. Why that happened, what Geoff learned, and why he left TIDC to work at the Fair Defense Project are just a few of the topics explored on today's episode! Guests: Geoff Burkhart, Executive Director, Texas Fair Defense Project Resources: Texas Fair Defense Project https://www.fairdefense.org/ Texas Indigent Defense Commission https://www.tidc.texas.gov/ Contact Hunter Parnell: Publicdefenseless@gmail.com Instagram @PublicDefenselessPodcast Twitter @PDefenselessPod www.publicdefenseless.com Subscribe to the Patron www.patreon.com/PublicDefenselessPodcast Donate on PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=5KW7WMJWEXTAJ Donate on Stripe https://donate.stripe.com/7sI01tb2v3dwaM8cMN

Today, Hunter sat down with Kimberly Simmons, Executive Director, and Jamie Spencer, managing attorney, at the Texas Rio Grande Public Defender to discuss their role in fighting against the mass immigration prosecutions of Operation Lone Star. Despite immigration policy falling under the exclusive control of the federal government, Texas started OLS after it determined not enough was being done to arrest and deport migrants in the country illegally. As with most tough on crime immigration policies, the goal of OLS is to make the deportation of people go as quickly as possible, without much regard for due process or the treatment of those being detained. This episode highlights the importance of the public defense in stopping states from railroading people through our broken immigration system. Guests: Kimberly Simmons, Executive Director, Texas Rio Grande Public Defender Jamie Spencer, Managing Attorney, Texas Rio Grande Public Defender Resources: TRGPD https://www.trgpd.org/ Operation Lone Star https://www.tidc.texas.gov/operation-lone-star/ https://www.texastribune.org/series/operation-lone-star/ https://www.tpr.org/border-immigration/2024-01-11/gov-abbotts-operation-lone-star-seized-control-of-a-public-park-on-the-border-overnight-residents-protest https://www.texastribune.org/2024/01/03/texas-senate-bill-4-illegal-immigration-justice-department-lawsuit/ Contact Hunter Parnell: Publicdefenseless@gmail.com Instagram @PublicDefenselessPodcast Twitter @PDefenselessPod www.publicdefenseless.com Subscribe to the Patron www.patreon.com/PublicDefenselessPodcast Donate on PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=5KW7WMJWEXTAJ Donate on Stripe https://donate.stripe.com/7sI01tb2v3dwaM8cMN