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Criminal (In)justice

Problems with police, prosecutors and courts have people asking: is our criminal justice system broken? University of Pittsburgh law professor David Harris interviews the people who know the system best, and hears their best ideas for fixing it. Criminal (In)justice is an independent production created in partnership with 90.5 WESA, Pittsburgh's NPR News Station.
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Now displaying: 2017
May 23, 2017

Drones were developed as weapons of war, but they've begun to find their way into domestic police work as well. They could help officers trace suspects or missing persons or assess threats like toxic spills, but they also pose a threat to privacy.

Matthew Feeney of the Cato Institute says those technological toys come with some serious concerns.

Find more at criminalinjusticepodcast.com.

May 18, 2017

Analysis of Attorney General Jeff Sessions's May 10th memo directing federal prosecutors to pursue the strictest charges and the harshest sentences "the evidence supports."

May 16, 2017

The exposure of wrongful convictions began in 1989, and it upended the idea that guilty verdicts were always trustworthy. When there’s a wrongful conviction, what has to happen to get a court to exonerate someone?

Marissa Boyers Bluestine is the Litigation Director for the Pennsylvania Innocence Project, and she tells us what it’s really like, on the ground, working to establish innocence – after a guilty verdict.

Find more at criminalinjusticepodcast.com.

May 11, 2017

President Trump's firing of FBI Director James Comey has serious implications for the relationship between the FBI and the White House. What should we keep in mind as the story unfolds?

Find more at criminalinjusticepodcast.com.

May 9, 2017

The last few years have exposed problems in policing: use of force, high-tech surveillance, and a lack of transparency.

NYU Law Professor Barry Friedman argues that the fault for this lies not just with the police, or the courts – it’s on us.

Find more at criminalinjusticepodcast.com.

May 4, 2017

Arkansas is rushing to carry out eight executions in just two weeks. Why the hurry? The lethal injection drugs used by the state are nearing their expiration date.

Find more at criminalinjusticepodcast.com.

May 2, 2017

The Stingray is a new technology that allows police to gather all the cell phone signals in a whole area at any time – without a warrant or any accountability. And if you ask for information about it: permission denied.

Adam Bates studies the secret use of Stingray devices at the Cato Institute in Washington D.C.

Find more at criminalinjusticepodcast.com.

Apr 25, 2017

High-speed pursuits are among the riskiest police activities. Some pursuits catch bad guys, but in others, many thousands have been killed or severely injured – including innocent civilians. Are chases worth the deaths and injuries to citizens and officers?

Find more at criminalinjusticepodcast.com

Apr 18, 2017

Americans who live in areas facing high rates of crime are portrayed as anti-police, but a new study shows something far different: strong respect for the law and a willingness to help with public safety.

Journalist Brentin Mock reports on these misconceptions for CityLab and others.

Find more at criminalinjusticepodcast.com.

Apr 11, 2017

American criminal trial juries are composed of 12 ordinary citizens tasked with bringing justice to the downtrodden and common sense to the law – no easy job. But who actually gets to serve? Research out of North Carolina shows some people get removed from jury pools much more often than others.

Ron Wright is jury selection analyst and the Needham Yancey Gulley Professor of Criminal Law at Wake Forest School of Law. 

Find more at criminalinjusticepodcast.com.

Apr 3, 2017

Racial reconciliation – an attempt to speak plainly about racial strife between police and citizens of color – is a necessary step toward comprehensive police reform. It’s important, and no doubt difficult – but what does it actually look and feel like on the ground?

Aseante Hylick builds these conversations across the U.S.

Find more at criminalinjusticepodcast.com.

Apr 1, 2017

Attorney General Jeff Sessions is warning local law enforcement agencies to comply with requests from federal immigration authorities to assist them in detaining people suspected of being in the country illegally -- or face consequences. But as David explains, there could also be serious consequences for communities that do comply.

Mar 28, 2017

Efforts to oversee police several decades ago resulted in hundreds of complaint review boards that investigate individual complaints. But a new type of oversight is gaining traction – one in which appointed civilians look at whole departments and how they do their jobs.

Independent police auditor Walter Katz of San Jose, California, says a police organization's investigative process is as important as its findings.

PLUS it's Criminal Injustice's one-year anniversary! Celebrate with host David Harris at criminalinjusticepodcast.com.

Mar 25, 2017

David follows up on this week's Senate confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch.

Find more at criminalinjusticepodcast.com.

Mar 21, 2017

More than 50 years since civilian oversight of police began, many cities have an independent review board. Some of these agencies work, and others don’t, but all of them are unpopular with police. We talk about civilian oversight in the post-Ferguson era.

Elizabeth Pittinger is the executive director of Pittsburgh's Citizen Police Review Board and one of the longest-serving oversight officials in the U.S. She says Pittsburgh's model offers necessary insulation from political interference and public opinion.

Find more at criminalinjusticepodcast.com.

Mar 18, 2017

It's customary to replace U.S. Attorneys whenever a new administration takes over in Washington. The case of Preet Bhahara, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York who refused a White House order to resign, is unusual at more than one level. David explains why in this bonus episode.

Mar 14, 2017

American policing is at a crossroads, with some calling for a return to the law and order policing of the past. But what many police leaders need is a way toward a future with more reliance on research-based practices. We look at one organization that’s been conducting field studies with real cops to improve policing for years: the Police Foundation, on this episode of Criminal Injustice.

Mar 11, 2017

The U.S. Supreme Court delivered rulings last week on two cases involving race and jury proceedings. We break down the decisions and get analysis on their implications in this bonus episode.

Mar 9, 2017

David assesses President Donald Trump's claim that his predecessor wiretapped him during the campaign. What's the legal procedure to get a wiretap? Can a sitting U.S. President order one? And -- IF it actually happened -- what could we infer from a judge's decision to allow a wiretap at Trump Tower?

More at criminalinjusticepodcast.com.

Mar 7, 2017

American cities all have crime and violence in some neighborhoods. People in these communities, and the police who work there, all want less crime and greater safety. So why do police and communities find themselves mistrusting each and unable to work together? How can we break out of this cycle?

Guest David Kennedy talks about the painful path to reconciliation.

Find more at criminalinjusticepodcast.com.

Feb 28, 2017

We hear a lot about crime trends, almost always involving homicides or felonies. But the vast majority of criminal offenses are misdemeanors. These convictions can have a major impact on employment, education, you name it - yet they are hardly studied at all. We talk with the leader of the new Misdemeanor Justice Project, Dr. Preeti Chauhan.

Find more at criminalinjusticepodcast.com.

Feb 24, 2017

An update on our former guest Christina Swarns of the NAACP (episode 34), who just won a key victory with this week's U.S. Supreme Court decision in Buck v. Davis.

Feb 21, 2017

What should a police department be? What’s the mission, and how should it be carried out? From the last administration's "President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing" to protests across the country, it’s been a non-stop national conversation.

We talk with Sheriff Jerry Clayton, a law enforcement professional who’s re-shaped a police agency from the inside out. 

Find more at criminalinjusticepodcast.com.

Feb 17, 2017

President Trump says self-styled "sanctuary cities" are breaking the law. But are cities under any actual obligation to enforce federal immigration law? And is there any evidence for Trump's claim that sanctuary status is linked with higher incidence of crime? David answers these questions and explains why many local law enforcement agencies want nothing to do with immigration enforcement.

Find more at criminalinjusticepodcast.com.

Feb 14, 2017

We know the current system for police interrogation can lead to false confessions, even for the most heinous crimes. There’s a better way to question suspects: the PEACE method. Developed in the UK, it’s revolutionizing police questioning across the world.

Jonathan Davison tells us why the PEACE method’s time has come.

Find more at criminalinjusticepodcast.com.

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