The Untold Story: Criminal Injustice

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On seasons 1 and 2, we took a deep look into policing and criminal justice in America. This season on The Untold Story, we go even further, with three investigations of injustice happening in your own backyard. From executive producer Jay Ellis and Lemonada Media, this season covers how we can fix the humanitarian crisis happening at Rikers Island; why your tax dollars are funding software that leads to over policing in our most vulnerable communities; and the racist roots of the debunked medical term excited delirium. Host Travon Free talks to real people who have experienced the effects first-hand, as well as lawyers, organizers, and city officials who are all part of the effort to answer the question: How can we hold our most powerful institutions accountable?

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  1. EPISODE 1

    Travon Explores the Humanitarian Crisis on Rikers Island

    Rikers is a pretrial detention center and while people await their day in court, the conditions at the island are simply inhumane due to violence, overcrowding and inadequate medical care. Rikers is scheduled to close in 2027 but at the rate we're going, eighty more people might die on the island before the jail is shut down. How do we untangle this culture of perpetual violence at Rikers? And could an intervention called a federal receivership make conditions more humane for the people who live there? Host Travon Free uncovers why a receivership might be the only solution that could actually make things better for people right now.  The Untold Story is a Lemonada Media original and is presented by Campaign Zero. This episode is produced by Nicolle Galteland with production help from Hannah Boomershine and Priscilla Alabi. Supervising producer is Kristen Lepore. Production intern is Jala Everett. Fact checking by Steve Crighton. Music, sound design and mixing by Hannis Brown. Engineering from Andrea Kristinsdottir. Executive producers are Jessica Cordova Kramer, Stephanie Wittels Wachs, DeRay Mckesson and Jay Ellis. You can find host Travon Free on Instagram and Twitter: @Travon.  Resources: The Rikers in Crisis Campaign The New York Times: Tracking the Deaths in New York City’s Jail System in 2022 The Brennan Center: Receiverships for Jails and Prisons, Explained, The Way Forward for Rikers Island: Receivership The Fortune Society: At pivotal time for Rikers, experts say federal control is best path forward The Columbia Justice Lab: Pros and Cons of Receiverships as a Catalyst for Institutional Reform Vital City: The Fatal Cost of Waiting: What Must Happen Now in the City’s Jails WNYC/ Gothamist: Correction commissioner absent from oversight hearing as Rikers Island violence escalates Just leadership USA The Close Rikers Campaign The Legal Aid Society  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    42 min

  2. EPISODE 2

    Travon Asks If Microphones Really Stop Bullets

    Can you hear the difference between a firework and a gunshot? ShotSpotter says it can. It's a private sector company that uses microphones to detect gunfire and alert police to the scene. The company says it’s a powerful tool to stop gun violence, but critics say it’s an excuse to overpolice some of our most vulnerable communities. How did this technology with questionable accuracy lead to million-dollar contracts with police departments across the country? Travon walks us through the case of Silvon Simmons, a man falsely accused of shooting a cop, all because of an eight-second audio file from ShotSpotter. Plus, conversations with a former 911 operator and a city councilmember in Durham, NC, about the fight against ShotSpotter.  The Untold Story is a Lemonada Media original and is presented by Campaign Zero. This episode is produced by Hannah Boomershine with production help from Nicole Galteland and Priscilla Alabi. Supervising producer is Kristen Lepore. Production intern is Jala Everett. Fact checking by Steve Crighton. Music, sound design and mixing by Hannis Brown. Engineering from Andrea Kristinsdottir. Executive producers are Jessica Cordova Kramer, Stephanie Wittels Wachs, DeRay Mckesson and Jay Ellis. You can find host Travon Free on Instagram and Twitter: @Travon.  Resources: CancelShotSpotter.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    45 min

  3. EPISODE 3

    Travon Unravels the Racist Roots of Excited Delirium

    In this episode, host Travon Free uncovers the racist roots of the debunked medical term “excited delirium.” A study from Maryland in 2017 found that excited delirium was referenced in 11 percent of cases where someone died in police custody. And when these cases go to court, the concept of excited delirium can be used to argue that the police did nothing wrong. How did TASER, a couple of doctors and a handful of so-called experts take a meaningless psychiatric term and get it picked up by police departments, medical professionals and courtrooms all over the country? The Untold Story is a Lemonada Media original and is presented by Campaign Zero. This episode is produced by Nicolle Galteland with production help from Hannah Boomershine and Priscilla Alabi. Supervising producer is Kristen Lepore. Production intern is Jala Everett. Fact checking by Steve Crighton. Music, sound design and mixing by Hannis Brown. Engineering from Andrea Kristinsdottir. Executive producers are Jessica Cordova Kramer, Stephanie Wittels Wachs, DeRay Mckesson and Jay Ellis. You can find host Travon Free on Instagram and Twitter: @Travon.  Resources: Campaign Zero @campaignzero on Twitter and Instagram; Sign up to learn more: https://campaignzero.typeform.com/untold-story  Physicians for Human Rights: “Excited Delirium” and Deaths in Police Custody Richard Burns documentary: Exposed: Last Writes The American Medical Association: Policy on Excited Delirium BART Police Department: New policy on excited delirium Brookings: How “excited delirium” is misused to justify police brutality Dr. Obasogie in the Virginia Law Review: Excited Delirium and Police Use of Force Justice for Angelo Quinto California Attorney General, Rob Bonta See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    50 min

  4. EPISODE 4 BONUS

    Learn More: Providing Access to Housing After Incarceration

    ​​Incarceration in the U.S. has profound flaws and consequences, but there are many people doing life-changing work to lessen its harm. In this special episode, Lemonada co-founder Stephanie Wittels Wachs sits down with two individuals whose organizations aim to increase access to housing for people who have been involved in the justice system. Stephanie speaks with Leslie Credle, founder and executive director of Justice 4 Housing in Boston, and Bernadette Butler, director of The Homecoming Project, an initiative out of Impact Justice in Northern California. The three discuss the realities faced by justice-involved individuals in today’s society, and how housing is both a human right and a crucial place to start when trying to improve lives. You can find Justice 4 Housing at justice4housing.org and @justice4housing on Instagram and YouTube. The Homecoming Project can be found through its parent organization at impactjustice.org and @impactjustice on Instagram and Facebook. Thank you to both of these organizations for making this episode possible. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    29 min

  5. 18/10/2022

    The Untold Story: Season 3, we're back!

    From executive producer, Jay Ellis, and Lemonada Media, season 3 of The Untold Story drops October 25. Host Travon Free talks to real people about the injustices happening in your own backyard. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    2 min

  6. BONUS

    Why we can’t incarcerate our way to public safety

    There has been a lot of media coverage around recent spikes in violent crime. A LOT. Even though overall crime rates are at historic lows, many people are feeling unsafe and want solutions. Most people also want to tackle our country’s incarceration crisis while addressing public safety concerns. As it turns out, these things go hand in hand. Join us for this special live event between Lemonada Media and The Just Trust to hear from executive directors of three leading criminal justice reform advocacy organizations – a former Police Lieutenant, a former federal prosecutor, and a social worker focused on drug law reform – about the intersection of safety and criminal justice reform in this moment. We’ll ask questions like “what really makes communities safer?” (hint - it’s not more prisons), and “what myths do we need to bust about justice reform?” The bottom line is that the criminal justice system impacts all of us, and we all have a role to play in making it better – in every city, in every state, regardless of who is in the White House or the Governors’ mansions. Join us as we break down some of the most urgent strategies for change, and how unlikely allies across sectors are leading the way.  This is a sponsored episode by The Just Trust, a philanthropic venture that is 100% dedicated to powering criminal justice reform, state by state and across the country. Visit TheJustTrust.org to learn more. Click this link for a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this show and all Lemonada shows go to lemonadamedia.com/sponsors. Stay up to date with us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at @LemonadaMedia.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    57 min
See All Season 3 (6)

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On seasons 1 and 2, we took a deep look into policing and criminal justice in America. This season on The Untold Story, we go even further, with three investigations of injustice happening in your own backyard. From executive producer Jay Ellis and Lemonada Media, this season covers how we can fix the humanitarian crisis happening at Rikers Island; why your tax dollars are funding software that leads to over policing in our most vulnerable communities; and the racist roots of the debunked medical term excited delirium. Host Travon Free talks to real people who have experienced the effects first-hand, as well as lawyers, organizers, and city officials who are all part of the effort to answer the question: How can we hold our most powerful institutions accountable?

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