Public Defenseless

As a choir member“ I often very much enjoy the topics of discussion and it is almost always delivered with good preaching and that’s just what you need in times like these when you know that the choir are the only people who you’re going to convince to sing.

Keep it up.

Public Defenseless details how the presumption of innocence is fiction in courtrooms across the country. While we supposedly have the right to a trial by a jury of our peers, defendants who are largely Black and Latino men, are compelled to take pleas or face lengthy, painful incarceration. The American justice system as revealed by Public Defenseless is so deeply broken and must be reformed.

As a former Colorado public defender (and still indigent criminal defense attorney), I’m biased in favor of the excellent coverage of issues in Colorado, including the crisis in our state public defender system and the horrors unfolding in municipal courts. But I also love every episode from elsewhere in the country. It’s so easy for us to be in our silos and forget that there are hundreds of other offices out there facing similar challenges and coming up with innovative solutions. This podcast is a wonderful way to help bring us together and share ideas. A true public service.