Public Defenseless Hunter Parnell
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- Government
Anyone paying attention can tell you that our criminal legal system is perpetuating cruelty and harm, but the complexity of the legal world overwhelms most people simply trying to get through another day.
Public Defenseless explores the rot in the justice system and what we can do about it. Join host, Hunter Parnell, as he interviews top defense attorneys and criminal justice stakeholders from across the country as they pull apart the convoluted web of our criminal justice system.
Like so many of you, Hunter is not an attorney, simply tired of a news cycle and talking heads that offer no real solutions to the ever-growing list of problems we face. Hunter hopes that with this information, you will share his belief that ordinary people still can make a difference.
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234 | Stephen Hanlon: Case Withdrawals, Federal Funding, and the Five Year Plan to Fix Public Defense in Oregon
Today, Hunter is joined once again by Public Interest lawyer Stephen Hanlon. This time, Hunter and Stephen are breaking down the five year plan that he hopes will fix Public Defense in Oregon. While it is surely an ambitious plan, this plan gives urges public defenders to do all that they can to force the powers that be to take the crisis seriously: case withdrawals.
Guests:
Stephen Hanlon, Public Interest Lawyer
Resources:
Oregon Report 5 Year Plan
https://www.opb.org/article/2024/03/21/oregon-public-defense-report-more-attorneys/
Contact Hunter Parnell:
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233 | Lee Wachocki: With Almost 3k People Unrepresented, Why is Oregon adding More Cases to the Public Defender Crisis
Today, Hunter is once again joined by Lee Wachocki, a Public Defender and union leader in Portland, Oregon. As the Public Defender crisis continues in the state, this week is about figuring out how the state is responding. At the front line level, Lee reveals that little has functionally changed at his level to demonstrate the state is close to solving the problem. In fact, with Oregon recriminalizing drug possession, the state appears primed to super charge the issue.
Guests:
Lee Wachocki, Public Defender, Multnomah County
Resources:
Multnomah County DA Debate
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wehZ548c-OY
DA Schmidt Endorsing Recriminalization
Mike Schmidt Endorses Proposal to Recriminalize Hard Drugs (wweek.com)
Bad Reporting on Public Defender Caseload
Record Number of People Face Criminal Charges in Multnomah County With No Defense Attorney (wweek.com)
Impacts of Recriminalization
https://www.axios.com/local/portland/2024/03/19/public-defender-crisis-recriminalization-oregon
Contact Hunter Parnell:
Publicdefenseless@gmail.com
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www.publicdefenseless.com
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232 | Robin Bernstein: The New York Prison that Started our For Profit Prison Industry
Today, Hunter is joined Professor Robin Bernstein to discuss her newest book, Freeman's Challenge: The Murder that Shook America's Original Prison for Profit. When many of us think of the for-profit prisons, we think of the post slavery south at places like Parchman. However, that is not where the story started. Today, Robin joins the show to discuss Auburn State Prison and what we can learn from the history of for profit prisons.
Guests:
Robin Bernstein, Dillon Professor of American History and Professor of African and African American Studies and of Studies of Women, Gender, & Sexuality, Harvard University
Resources:
Order the Book Here
https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/F/bo213968137.html
Contact Hunter Parnell:
Publicdefenseless@gmail.com
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www.publicdefenseless.com
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231 | Dorsey Nunn: From Banning the Box to Restoring the Right to Vote, One Man's Struggle for the Rights of the Current and Formerly Incarcerated
Today, Hunter is joined by the powerful Dorsey Nunn. At 19, Dorsey was given a life sentence. Over the next 11 years, Dorsey would be exposed to violence, abuse, and the political education that would awaken in him a lifelong desire to fight our prison system. Today, Hunter talks with Dorsey about his new book, What Kind of Bird Can’t Fly to discuss his lifetime of organizing for the rights of the current and formerly incarcerated.
Guests:
Dorsey Nunn, Executive Director Legal Services for Prisoners with Children, Co-Founder All of Us or None, Co-Founder Formerly Incarcerated Convicted People and Family Movement
Resources:
Order the Book Here
https://www.amazon.com/What-Kind-Bird-Cant-Fly/dp/1597146323
Legal Services for Prisoners with Children
https://prisonerswithchildren.org/staff-and-board/
All of Us or None
https://prisonerswithchildren.org/about-aouon/
Contact Hunter Parnell:
Publicdefenseless@gmail.com
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@PublicDefenselessPodcast
Twitter
@PDefenselessPod
www.publicdefenseless.com
Subscribe to the Patron
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230: The Voices of Victims and Survivors that Alabama Ignores and Neglects w/Leah Nelson and Callie Greer
Today, Hunter is joined once again by Leah Nelson of Alabama Appleseed. This time, they are joined by Callie Greer, a Community Navigator at Appleseed, to discuss Appleseed’s Afterward. This powerful report sought out to hear from victims and survivors of violence. As is often said on the show, the criminal legal system does a poor job of providing for the needs of all survivors of violence. In fact, the system often perpetuates the harm of those who need help following the tragic events in their life. By going to communities across Alabama, Appleseed hoped to capture the voice of so many people who want need more than just a criminal punishment to be made whole.
Guests:
Leah Nelson, Research Director, Alabama Appleseed
Callie Greer, Community Navigator, Alabama Appleseed
Resources:
Read Afterward Here
https://alabamaappleseed.org/afterward/
Alabama Appleseed
https://alabamaappleseed.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
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229: From a 25% Vacancy Rate to Nearly Zero, How the Montana Public Defender System Came Back from the Brink w/Brett Schandelson
Today, Hunter is once again joined by Brett Schandelson, the Director of the Montana Office of the State Public Defender. Last time he was one, we discussed his efforts to make Public Defense policy in Montana driven by data. Today, we discuss how those efforts have drastically turned the state system around. Specifically, Brett details how doing a better job of tracking cases and sticking to a workload standard has reduced turnover and helped retain Public Defenders throughout the state.
Guests:
Brett Schandelson, Director, Montana Office of the State Public Defender
Resources:
Office of the State Public Defender
https://publicdefender.mt.gov/
Agenda-DIBC-12-13-2023.pdf (mt.gov)
61080-OPD-QFR-Dec2023.pdf (mt.gov)
Quick video on the OPD Quarterly Update (at meeting start)
Brett’s presentation 12/13/23 IBC OPD Section
Materials
https://leg.mt.gov/content/Publications/fiscal/2025-Biennium/Section-D/Interim/OPD-Narrative-Response.pdf
https://leg.mt.gov/content/Publications/fiscal/2025-Biennium/Section-D/Interim/OPD-Fees-Assessed-and-Paid.pdf
https://leg.mt.gov/content/Publications/fiscal/2025-Biennium/Section-D/Interim/OPD-Ethical-Case-Management.pdf
https://leg.mt.gov/content/Publications/fiscal/2025-Biennium/Section-D/Interim/OPD-FTE-Allocation.pdf
https://leg.mt.gov/content/Publications/fiscal/2025-Biennium/Section-D/Interim/OPD-Fees-Assessed-Q1-FY24.pdf
https://leg.mt.gov/content/Publications/fiscal/2025-Biennium/Section-D/Interim/OPD-Contractor-Capital-Hours-Q1-FY24.pdf
https://leg.mt.gov/content/Publications/fiscal/2025-Biennium/Section-D/Interim/OPD-Number-of-Matters-by-FTE-and-Contractors-Q1-FY24.pdf
https://leg.mt.gov/content/Publications/fiscal/2025-Biennium/Section-D/Interim/OPD-Number-of-Matters-Without-MCA-Violations-Q1-FY24.pdf
https://leg.mt.gov/content/Publications/fiscal/2025-Biennium/Section-D/Interim/OPD-Active-Matters-and-Weights-December-7-2023.pdf
https://leg.mt.gov/content/Publications/fiscal/2025-Biennium/Section-D/Interim/OPD-HB-190-Annual-Plan-FY24.pdf
https://leg.mt.gov/content/Publications/fiscal/2025-Biennium/Section-D/Interim/OPD-IBC-Update-Dec2023.pdf
Contact Hunter Parnell:
Publicdefenseless@gmail.com
Instagram
@PublicDefenselessPodcast
Twitter
@PDefenselessPod
www.publicdefenseless.com
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