Podcast appearances and mentions of justice commission

Quang Nguyen joins the show.

Transcripts and some chapter headings are AI Generated. They are not authoritative. Always refer to the actual content of the podcast. Please support Tommy's work: Urban Scoop SupportIn this inaugural episode of Battlefield USA, we delve into a deeply disturbing issue that has plagued the UK: the grooming gangs scandal. Our guest, Raja Miha, a decorated public servant and whistleblower, shares his harrowing journey of exposing the grooming and gang rape of young British working-class white girls by predominantly Pakistani gangs in Oldham. Raja discusses the political cover-ups, the racial motivations behind these crimes, and the systemic failures of the authorities to protect vulnerable children.Raja recounts his personal experiences of being labeled a racist and far-right activist by British politicians for speaking out against these atrocities. He highlights the political motivations behind the cover-ups, including the manipulation of postal votes and the influence of powerful MPs who fear exposure.The episode also explores the cultural prejudices ingrained within certain communities that have allowed these crimes to persist, and the societal implications of failing to safeguard children. Raja's story is one of resilience and determination, as he continues to fight for justice despite facing political persecution and threats to his life.We also discuss the recent parliamentary vote against a national inquiry into the grooming gangs, the implications of this decision, and the need for a Truth and Justice Commission to address the systematic grooming and gang rape of children in the UK.This episode is a call to action, urging listeners to not remain silent in the face of such grave injustices and to continue the fight for the protection of society's most vulnerable.

Social Affairs Correspondent Ailbhe Conneely has this report.

Join the conversation with C4 & Bryan Nehman. The chairman of the juvenile justice commission sat down with WBAL TV 11.  Nate Silver went off on election polls on a recent podcast.  Bill Maher talks Chicago teachers & the union on his show.  Many voters are upset over a recent mailer that went out.  Anthony Ambridge joined the show discussing opposition of Question F.  Chuck Todd, NBC News Chief Political Analyst joined the show discussing the upcoming election.  Listen to C4 and Bryan Nehman live every weekday from 5:30-10:00 a.m. ET on WBAL News Radio 1090, FM101.5, and the WBAL Radio App!

Mere days before the election, Torrey discusses the issues voters are considering as they head to the ballot box.  We discuss how voters are influenced by campaign messaging. We also talk about Gov. Moore's new Juvenile Justice Commission, and if it will have an impact on crime.  We also discuss the foreign policy implications of Trump vs. Harris.

Lecture summary: Part 1 of the Lecture focuses on the development of the right to self-determination as a rule of customary international law and its application to the Chagos Archipelago, Africa and the Commonwealth Caribbean. The adoption of Resolution 1514 by the General Assembly of the United Nations on December 14, 1960 was a decisive element in the development of the customary character of the right to self-determination. After that transformational development it was colonial peoples, not colonial powers, who determined their independence and its form e.g. whether based on a republican system or a UK parliamentary system. Thus, after that time the colonial powers were under an obligation to respect the right of colonial peoples to ‘freely determine their political status', and any breach of that obligation would entail their international responsibility. Part 11 addresses the status of the right to self-determination as a norm of jus cogens, and concludes that on the basis of the relevant evidentiary material, the right to self-determination is a peremptory norm of general international law. Part 111 focuses on the right to self-determination in relation to the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Disappointment is expressed at the lack of clarity in the ICJ's treatment in its recent Advisory Opinion of the jus cogens character of the right to self-determination in cases of foreign occupation. Speaker: Judge Patrick Robinson 1. In 1964 graduated from the University College of the West Indies -London with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English, Latin and Economics. 2. In 1968, called to the Bar at Middle Temple, in which year also completed the LLB degree from London University. In 1972, completed the LLM degree in International Law at Kings College, London University. 3. Jamaica's representative to the Sixth (Legal) Committee of the UN General Assembly from 1972 to 1998. Led treaty -making negotiations on behalf of Jamaica in several areas, including extradition, mutual legal assistance and investment promotion and protection. 4. From 1988 to 1995, served as a member of the Inter American Commission on Human Rights, including as the President in 1991. From 1991 to 1996, member of the International Law Commission. From 1995 to 1996, member of the Haiti Truth and Justice Commission. 5. In 1998 elected a Judge of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and served as the Tribunal's President from 2008 to 2011; presided over the trial of Slobodan Milosevic. 6. In 2020 appointed Honorary President of the American Society of International Law (ASIL); in that capacity, in collaboration with ASIL and the University of the West Indies, organized two International Symposia which led to the launch on June 8, 2023 of the historic Report on Reparations for Transatlantic Chattel Slavery (TCS) in the Americas and the Caribbean, which quantified for the first time the reparations due from the practice of TCS in the Caribbean, Central America, South America and North America. 7. Elected a Judge of the International Court of Justice in 2014 and demitted office on February 5, 2024. The Eli Lauterpacht Lecture was established after Sir Eli's death in 2017 to celebrate his life and work. This lecture takes place on a Friday at the Centre at the start of the Michaelmas Term in any academic year. These lectures are kindly supported by Dr and Mrs Ivan Berkowitz who are Principal Benefactors of the Centre.

Lecture summary: Part 1 of the Lecture focuses on the development of the right to self-determination as a rule of customary international law and its application to the Chagos Archipelago, Africa and the Commonwealth Caribbean. The adoption of Resolution 1514 by the General Assembly of the United Nations on December 14, 1960 was a decisive element in the development of the customary character of the right to self-determination. After that transformational development it was colonial peoples, not colonial powers, who determined their independence and its form e.g. whether based on a republican system or a UK parliamentary system. Thus, after that time the colonial powers were under an obligation to respect the right of colonial peoples to ‘freely determine their political status’, and any breach of that obligation would entail their international responsibility. Part 11 addresses the status of the right to self-determination as a norm of jus cogens, and concludes that on the basis of the relevant evidentiary material, the right to self-determination is a peremptory norm of general international law. Part 111 focuses on the right to self-determination in relation to the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Disappointment is expressed at the lack of clarity in the ICJ’s treatment in its recent Advisory Opinion of the jus cogens character of the right to self-determination in cases of foreign occupation. Speaker: Judge Patrick Robinson 1. In 1964 graduated from the University College of the West Indies -London with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English, Latin and Economics. 2. In 1968, called to the Bar at Middle Temple, in which year also completed the LLB degree from London University. In 1972, completed the LLM degree in International Law at Kings College, London University. 3. Jamaica’s representative to the Sixth (Legal) Committee of the UN General Assembly from 1972 to 1998. Led treaty -making negotiations on behalf of Jamaica in several areas, including extradition, mutual legal assistance and investment promotion and protection. 4. From 1988 to 1995, served as a member of the Inter American Commission on Human Rights, including as the President in 1991. From 1991 to 1996, member of the International Law Commission. From 1995 to 1996, member of the Haiti Truth and Justice Commission. 5. In 1998 elected a Judge of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and served as the Tribunal’s President from 2008 to 2011; presided over the trial of Slobodan Milosevic. 6. In 2020 appointed Honorary President of the American Society of International Law (ASIL); in that capacity, in collaboration with ASIL and the University of the West Indies, organized two International Symposia which led to the launch on June 8, 2023 of the historic Report on Reparations for Transatlantic Chattel Slavery (TCS) in the Americas and the Caribbean, which quantified for the first time the reparations due from the practice of TCS in the Caribbean, Central America, South America and North America. 7. Elected a Judge of the International Court of Justice in 2014 and demitted office on February 5, 2024. The Eli Lauterpacht Lecture was established after Sir Eli's death in 2017 to celebrate his life and work. This lecture takes place on a Friday at the Centre at the start of the Michaelmas Term in any academic year. These lectures are kindly supported by Dr and Mrs Ivan Berkowitz who are Principal Benefactors of the Centre.

Lecture summary: Part 1 of the Lecture focuses on the development of the right to self-determination as a rule of customary international law and its application to the Chagos Archipelago, Africa and the Commonwealth Caribbean. The adoption of Resolution 1514 by the General Assembly of the United Nations on December 14, 1960 was a decisive element in the development of the customary character of the right to self-determination. After that transformational development it was colonial peoples, not colonial powers, who determined their independence and its form e.g. whether based on a republican system or a UK parliamentary system. Thus, after that time the colonial powers were under an obligation to respect the right of colonial peoples to ‘freely determine their political status', and any breach of that obligation would entail their international responsibility. Part 11 addresses the status of the right to self-determination as a norm of jus cogens, and concludes that on the basis of the relevant evidentiary material, the right to self-determination is a peremptory norm of general international law. Part 111 focuses on the right to self-determination in relation to the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Disappointment is expressed at the lack of clarity in the ICJ's treatment in its recent Advisory Opinion of the jus cogens character of the right to self-determination in cases of foreign occupation. Speaker: Judge Patrick Robinson 1. In 1964 graduated from the University College of the West Indies -London with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English, Latin and Economics. 2. In 1968, called to the Bar at Middle Temple, in which year also completed the LLB degree from London University. In 1972, completed the LLM degree in International Law at Kings College, London University. 3. Jamaica's representative to the Sixth (Legal) Committee of the UN General Assembly from 1972 to 1998. Led treaty -making negotiations on behalf of Jamaica in several areas, including extradition, mutual legal assistance and investment promotion and protection. 4. From 1988 to 1995, served as a member of the Inter American Commission on Human Rights, including as the President in 1991. From 1991 to 1996, member of the International Law Commission. From 1995 to 1996, member of the Haiti Truth and Justice Commission. 5. In 1998 elected a Judge of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and served as the Tribunal's President from 2008 to 2011; presided over the trial of Slobodan Milosevic. 6. In 2020 appointed Honorary President of the American Society of International Law (ASIL); in that capacity, in collaboration with ASIL and the University of the West Indies, organized two International Symposia which led to the launch on June 8, 2023 of the historic Report on Reparations for Transatlantic Chattel Slavery (TCS) in the Americas and the Caribbean, which quantified for the first time the reparations due from the practice of TCS in the Caribbean, Central America, South America and North America. 7. Elected a Judge of the International Court of Justice in 2014 and demitted office on February 5, 2024. The Eli Lauterpacht Lecture was established after Sir Eli's death in 2017 to celebrate his life and work. This lecture takes place on a Friday at the Centre at the start of the Michaelmas Term in any academic year. These lectures are kindly supported by Dr and Mrs Ivan Berkowitz who are Principal Benefactors of the Centre.

Lecture summary: Part 1 of the Lecture focuses on the development of the right to self-determination as a rule of customary international law and its application to the Chagos Archipelago, Africa and the Commonwealth Caribbean. The adoption of Resolution 1514 by the General Assembly of the United Nations on December 14, 1960 was a decisive element in the development of the customary character of the right to self-determination. After that transformational development it was colonial peoples, not colonial powers, who determined their independence and its form e.g. whether based on a republican system or a UK parliamentary system. Thus, after that time the colonial powers were under an obligation to respect the right of colonial peoples to ‘freely determine their political status', and any breach of that obligation would entail their international responsibility. Part 11 addresses the status of the right to self-determination as a norm of jus cogens, and concludes that on the basis of the relevant evidentiary material, the right to self-determination is a peremptory norm of general international law. Part 111 focuses on the right to self-determination in relation to the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Disappointment is expressed at the lack of clarity in the ICJ's treatment in its recent Advisory Opinion of the jus cogens character of the right to self-determination in cases of foreign occupation. Speaker: Judge Patrick Robinson 1. In 1964 graduated from the University College of the West Indies -London with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English, Latin and Economics. 2. In 1968, called to the Bar at Middle Temple, in which year also completed the LLB degree from London University. In 1972, completed the LLM degree in International Law at Kings College, London University. 3. Jamaica's representative to the Sixth (Legal) Committee of the UN General Assembly from 1972 to 1998. Led treaty -making negotiations on behalf of Jamaica in several areas, including extradition, mutual legal assistance and investment promotion and protection. 4. From 1988 to 1995, served as a member of the Inter American Commission on Human Rights, including as the President in 1991. From 1991 to 1996, member of the International Law Commission. From 1995 to 1996, member of the Haiti Truth and Justice Commission. 5. In 1998 elected a Judge of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and served as the Tribunal's President from 2008 to 2011; presided over the trial of Slobodan Milosevic. 6. In 2020 appointed Honorary President of the American Society of International Law (ASIL); in that capacity, in collaboration with ASIL and the University of the West Indies, organized two International Symposia which led to the launch on June 8, 2023 of the historic Report on Reparations for Transatlantic Chattel Slavery (TCS) in the Americas and the Caribbean, which quantified for the first time the reparations due from the practice of TCS in the Caribbean, Central America, South America and North America. 7. Elected a Judge of the International Court of Justice in 2014 and demitted office on February 5, 2024. The Eli Lauterpacht Lecture was established after Sir Eli's death in 2017 to celebrate his life and work. This lecture takes place on a Friday at the Centre at the start of the Michaelmas Term in any academic year. These lectures are kindly supported by Dr and Mrs Ivan Berkowitz who are Principal Benefactors of the Centre.

Welcome to the Monday Breakfast show for October 21st, 2024.On todays show:Interview with Sue-Ann Hunter on Yoorook Justice Commission - Marisa speaks to Sue-Ann Hunter, Deputy Chair & Commissioner of Yoorrook Justice Commission, to provide updates on Victoria's Truth-Telling process and the land injustice inquiryAudio from the Public Forum for CFMEU Solidarity, hosted by the Migrant Workers' Federation last Wednesday October 10th at Democritus [pron. deh-moh-kritess] House in Thornbury.We hear some opening comments from Agapi Pashos, secretary of the Greek Democritus Workers' League & Renata Musolino, longtime OH&S officer at Victorian Trades Hall Council (Renata discussing 54th anniversary of Westgate bridge collapse: Tues Oct 15th).Interview with Kalyani Inpakumar, NSW Tamil Refugee Council coordinator and an organiser of the Sydney camp outside Minister for Home Affairs Tony Burke's. Interview with Marissa on the Refugee encampments and encouraging listeners to attend the encampment leading up to the 100th day of protest Songs:Cremsian, Alabaster DePlume, Laith Albandak 7:18DePlume's new digital EP titled Cremisan: Prologue to a Blade; The EP features two tracks recorded earlier this year in Bethlehem, Palestine with pianist Sami El Enaniand Qanoun player Laith Albandak, and a third track inspired by the experience of living insolidarity with the people of Palestine.Canto de Ossanha, Baden Powel 04:15minsBaden Powell, was a Brazilian guitarist. He combined classical techniques with popular harmony and swing.He performed in many styles, including bossa nova, samba, Brazilian jazz, and Latin jazz coloured concrete, Nemaphsis 3:09minsNemah Hasan, known professionally as Nemahsis,is a Palestinian Canadian singer-songwriter from Toronto, OntarioCase of You, Joni Mitchell

A Miscarriage of Justice Commission Report can be read hereInjustices and Miscarriages of Justice Experienced by 12 Indigenous Women report can be read online hereConviction Integrity: The Canadian Miscarriages of Justice Commission by Carrie Leonetti, University of Auckland can be found hereThe brief submitted by the Hon. Harry Laforme, Hon. Juanita Westmoreland-Traoré, and Kent Roach to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights can be found hereNative Women's Association of Canada's submission to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights can be found hereSubmission of the Canadian Association of Elizabeth Fry Societies can be read hereUniversity of British Columbia's Innocence Project brief can be read hereBILL C-40, An Act to amend the Criminal Code, to make consequential amendments to other Acts and to repeal a regulation (miscarriage of justice reviews) is accessible here

In this episode, Caroline is joined by Travis Lovett, Deputy Chair and Commissioner of the Yoorrook Justice Commission. A proud Kerrupmara Gunditjmara Traditional Owner, Travis plays a key role in the first formal truth-telling process into historical and ongoing injustices experienced by First Peoples in Victoria, the Yoorrook Justice Commission. The Commission, established by an agreement between the First Peoples' Assembly of Victoria and the Victorian Government, operates independently of both. It delivered an interim report in June 2022, and a critical issues report in August 2023, and will present a final report in 2025. The Commission is led by five Commissioners, with three being Aboriginal. They bring extensive knowledge and experience in areas such as First Peoples' knowledge, systemic disadvantage, land rights, history, law, trauma, and healing. In this episode, Travis shares his personal story, discusses what it's like being part of a big family and mob, and talks about his many passions, including being a dad, practising his Culture, working with Community, and preserving Aboriginal languages. Travis and Caroline discuss some of the most significant evidence of past injustices which have come forward. Commissioner Lovett also walks listeners through the truth-telling process, providing valuable insights into the important hearings taking place and the steps ahead. To follow the great work the Yoorrok Justice Commission are doing, visit their website https://yoorrookjusticecommission.org.au/ To follow Travis's journey then please visit his instagram page HERE. If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review and don't forget to follow the show!  Follow Caroline on Instagram @blak_wattle_coaching and learn more about working with Caroline here!  If this episode has brought up anything for you contact 13YARN on 13 92 76. Or, visit the following pages for more useful contacts and support Where can I get help | R U OK? We would like to acknowledge Aboriginal people as Australia's First Peoples' who have never ceded their sovereignty. We acknowledge the Wurundjeri/Woiwurrung people of the Kulin Nation where the podcast was taped. We pay our deepest respects to Traditional Owners across Australia and Elders past, present and emerging. This podcast was brought to you by On Track Studio. www.ontrackstudio.com.au @on.track.studio For advertising opportunities please email hello@ontrackstudio.com.auSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Ayotzinapa massacre refers to the enforced disappearance of 43 students from the Ayotzinapa Rural Teacher Training College in Mexico on the night of September 26, 2014. The students were intercepted by municipal police while traveling to a protest and were later handed over to a criminal gang, Guerreros Unidos. The Mexican government's initial investigation, which claimed that the students were killed and burned at a landfill, was widely criticized and deemed fabricated.Recent investigations have revealed that the disappearances were a state crime, involving various levels of government and military officials. Reports indicate that military personnel not only monitored the students' movements but also participated in their abduction. Additionally, the Mexican army had wiretapped communications related to the crime but withheld this information for years. New evidence suggests that some students were kept alive for several days before being killed on orders from military officers.The families of the disappeared students, along with human rights organizations, have continuously fought for justice. The current Mexican administration, led by President López Obrador, has established a Truth and Justice Commission to re-examine the case. This commission has made some progress, including issuing arrest warrants for high-ranking officials and military personnel involved in the cover-up and enforced disappearances.(commercial at 10:36)to contact me:bobbycapucci@protonmail.comsource:Iguala mass kidnapping: Guerreros Unidos cartel massacre of 43 innocent students in 2014 involved corrupt Mexican cops and soldiers, newly revealed text messages show | Daily Mail Online

In this episode, Oliver Traldi, a John and Daria Barry Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the James Madison Program at Princeton University, discusses his new book "Political Beliefs: A Philosophical Introduction," which is published by Routledge. Here is the description of the book:Anyone who's had an argument about politics with a friend may walk away wondering how this friend could possibly hold the beliefs they do. A few self-reflective people might even wonder about their own political beliefs after such an argument. This book is about the reasons that people have, and could have, for political beliefs: the evidence they might draw on, the psychological sources of their views, and the question of how we ought to form our political beliefs if we want to be rational.The book's twenty-four chapters are divided into four larger parts, which cover the following: (1) the differences between political and other types of beliefs, (2) theories of political belief formation, (3) sources of our political beliefs and how we might evaluate them, and (4) contemporary phenomena – like polarization, fake news, and conspiracy theories – related to political beliefs. Along the way, the book addresses questions that will arise naturally for many readers, like:Does the news you choose to watch and your own social media leave you stuck in an “information bubble”?Are you committed to a certain ideology because of the history of your society?Are people who believe “fake news“ always acting irrationally?Does democracy do a good job of figuring out what's true?Are some political beliefs good and some evil?As the book investigates these and other questions, it delves into technical, philosophical topics like epistemic normativity, the connection between belief and action, pragmatic encroachment, debunking arguments, and ideology critique. Chapter summaries and discussion questions will help students and all interested readers better grasp this new, important area on the border of politics and philosophy.Traldi is on Twitter at @olivertraldi. The PDF version of his book is available for free on the Routledge website.This episode was hosted by Elizabeth Schiller, who is the Staff Director for the Virginia Access to Justice Commission. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nevena and Janet talk to Dechlan Brennan about Yoorook Justice Commission updates. Appearing before the Yoorrook Justice Commission, the Environment Minister Steve Dimopoulos acknowledged royalties agreements were intentionally legislated and... LEARN MORE The post Saturday, 11th May, 2024: Freelance Journalist Dechlan Brennan. Yoorrook Justice Commission updates. appeared first on Saturday Magazine.

 Acknowledgement of Country// Headlines// We played a speech given by Declan Furber-Gillick, Eastern Arrernte man and member of the Black Peoples Union and Unionists for Palestine, at the April 15th rally at the Victorian Parliament steps launching the campaign to Get Elbit Out of Victoria. The campaign aims to end the state government's contracts with israeli weapons manufacturer Elbit Systems as part of the global solidarity movement fighting for a free Palestine.// Content note: this interview contains discussion of massacres and systemic harm towards First Nations people. For support, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander listeners can call 13 YARN on 13 92 76 or Yarning Safe'n'Strong on 1800 959 563. Listeners can also contact Lifeline on 13 11 14.  We heard part two of a conversation with Yoorrook Justice Commisioner Travis Lovett who joined Leila last week to share updates from the Yoorrook Justice Commission's land justice hearings. In this part of the discussion, Commissioner Lovett contextualises on-Country evidence given at the March 21st ceremonial hearings within histories of Victorian First Nations aquaculture, science and lore, long-standing strategies of resistance, and the ongoing impacts of colonisation. Listen back to part 1 here. Make a submission to the Justice Commission here.// El Gibbs, Director of Policy and Advocacy at Disability Advocacy Network Australia, spoke with us about last month's introduction of legislation aiming to amend the operation of the National Disability Insurance Scheme in response to last year's NDIS review report. The legislation, put forward by Minister for the NDIS Bill Shorten, risks further undermining access to vital NDIS-funded supports for people with a disability in Australia.// Dr Stephen Townsend, Research Fellow at the University of Queensland's School of Human Movement and Nutrition Sciences, joins us to talk about the management of concussion in elite Australian sporting codes, focusing on the AFL and AFLW. Despite the progressive introduction of concussion management protocols at both elite and community levels, serious concerns remain about how to safeguard athletes' health in an inherently risky game. Stephen is an historian who seeks to reveal the hidden past of sports concussion in Australia and internationally. You can find him on Twitter(X) @historycrab and at The Conversation.// Songs//For My Tittas - Barkaa//Indigenous Land - DRMNGNOW//

In this episode of Your Next Mission® video podcast, COL Jim D. Seward, Director of Veterans Justice Commission joins us for an insightful conversation. COL Seward sheds light on the chief priorities of the commission, while discussing the extent and nature of Veterans involvement in the criminal justice system and developing recommendations for evidence-based policy changes that enhance safety, health, and justice. Additionally, he focuses this powerful discussion on how we can help our Veterans who become lost in the system while educating agencies across the nation on ways to provide support. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/yournextmission/message

Dr. Sandie Morgan is joined by Panida Rzonca as the two discuss the importance of organizations who provide services to those of different cultures, specifically the Asian Pacific Islander community. Panida Rzonca Panida has been working with Thai victims of human trafficking at Thai CDC since 2007. Panida oversees and provides all direct social and legal services at Thai CDC. Panida's experience includes clerking at the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA) where she worked with both clients of labor and sex trafficking. Currently, Panida is primarily assisting victims of sex trafficking from what may be the largest Thai sex trafficking enterprise to date. She provides counsel to victims who are called upon to be federal witnesses, provides immigration legal services and also case manages comprehensive social services including reporting trafficking cases to law enforcement and assisting victims in navigating the legal system to obtain immigration status, restitution, and ultimately, justice. In addition to her work in anti-human trafficking, Panida has been involved with both labor and housing rights advocacy. She is dedicated to workers' rights advocacy within the Thai community working on public awareness campaigns and direct services to help workers navigate governmental agencies for wage and fair labor standard claims. Panida is a HUD certified housing counselor, providing counseling to Thais with limited English proficiency that are in danger of losing their homes. Panida is determined to continue assisting the underserved through the Slavery Eradication and Rights Initiative (SERI) Project campaign to raise awareness of the Anti-Human Trafficking Program at Thai CDC. Panida is also a member of the California State Bar Access to Justice Commission and the 2018 President of the Thai American Bar Association. Panida finished her J.D. at Southwestern School of Law and her B.A. in Political Science with a focus on International Relations at the University of California at San Diego. Key Points The Thai Community Development Center is a community economic development organization that focuses on increasing economic mobility among Thais and other ethnic minorities in the greater Los Angeles area. With a grant from the Department of Justice Office of Victims of Crime, the Asian Pacific Islander Human Trafficking Task Force, Thai Community Development Center, and other sister agencies, are able to provide services in several Asian languages. The Asian Pacific Islander Human Trafficking task force does provides technical assistance through a variety of training, to its sister organizations, ensuring that they are all equipped to properly serve victims of sex and labor trafficking. When aiding victims of different cultures, it is important to understand the culture's dynamics and language to better serve the victim. Resources Asian Pacific Island Human Trafficking Task Force  Thai Community Development Center California Access to Justice Commission  Asian Pacific Islander Equity Alliance Office for Victims of Crime Asian Americans Advancing Justice  Asian Pacific AIDS Intervention Team Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking  Korean-American Family Services  Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles Pacific-Asian Counseling Services South-Asian Network  Transcript Sandra Morgan 0:00 You're listening to the Ending Human Trafficking Podcast. This is episode #309: The Asian Pacific Island Human Trafficking Task Force, with Panida Rzonca. Welcome to the Ending Human Trafficking Podcast here at Vanguard University's Global Center for Women and Justice in Orange County, California. My name is Sandie Morgan and this is the show where we empower you to study the issues, be a voice, and make a difference in ending human trafficking. Our guest today is Panida, the directing attorney at the Thai Community Development Center where she manages the delivery of legal and ...

This week on Conflict Managed, we are thrilled to have Lindsay Frilling, CEO of the Obion County Joint Economic Development Corporation, as our special guest.

In a world where legal representation can be prohibitively expensive, many individuals are left navigating complex legal matters on their own. But what if there was a way to bridge the gap, making justice more accessible to everyone? Join us on "Access to Justice Unveiled," where we explore the fascinating world of relaxed regulations on who can practice law, with the aim of improving access to justice for those who cannot afford attorney's fees.Meet NALA and NC State Bar Certified paralegal, [Your Name], who not only works as a project manager for the Access to Justice Commission but also runs a thriving freelance paralegal business. As a council member for the NC Justice for All Project, she is at the forefront of an initiative to bring limited licensure of paralegals to North Carolina. Her passion for justice and her dedication to making legal services more accessible are truly inspiring.In this podcast, [Your Name] delves into the intricacies of limited licensure for paralegals and its potential impact on individuals seeking legal assistance. She shares insights, stories, and experiences that shed light on the challenges and opportunities in this evolving legal landscape.If you've ever wondered about the future of legal services, the role of paralegals in expanding access to justice, or the innovative work being done by the NC Justice for All Project, then this podcast is a must-listen. Join us as we explore the possibilities of a more inclusive legal system and discover how it could change the lives of countless individuals.To learn more about the NC Justice for All Project and [Your Name]'s work, visit their websites:- NC Justice for All Project: https://www.ncjfap.org/](https://www.ncjfap.org/- Royal Touch Project Solutions: https://www.royaltouchprojectsolutions.com/ https://www.royaltouchprojectsolutions.com/Don't miss out on this eye-opening journey into the world of legal access and empowerment. Subscribe to "Access to Justice Unveiled" today!Set your meeting today: https://calendly.com/edarosa-law/15min?back=1&month=2023-10 Links to current sponsors:Intrepid Paralegals: https://ipsvirtual.com/Affirm Investigative solutions: https://affirmpi.com/Wynter Immigration Law Academy: https://immigrationlawacademy.club/Pictera Solutions: https://picterasolutions.com/Thank you for your interest! Hope to see you soon!Affirm Investigations Solutions Wondering if you have what you need to take on and ultimately win your client's legal case? AffirUnited Latinas, Inc. Elevating and preparing Latinas that are transforming the world! Join United Latinas today! Hectic The Freelancer App Opening your business is hard enough. The Hectic App helps you run your business! Get Staffed Up Get Staffed Up, the leading virtual staffing company for law firms in the United States! Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.Support the showFollow us on: LinkedIn Instagram @edarosallc1 Facebook

Pamela Moore, MA, LPCC, currently serves as a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor and Director of the State Bar of New Mexico's Professional Programs Group where she educates the legal community on positive health and well-being and assists in providing resources and services to any legal professional struggling with mental, emotional, or behavioral issues.  Ms. Moore served as an advisory member to the National Commission on Lawyer Assistance Programs in 2019 and 2020 and is the New Mexico representative for the Institute for Well Being in Law.Tenessa Eakinscurrently serves as the Manager of the State Bar of New Mexico Lawyer Assistance Program (NM LAP). She oversees a 24-hour helpline for lawyers, law students, and all other legal professionals while also managing the NM LAP monitoring program, maintaining the program database, assists with varying levels of client treatment, program agreements, and helps to educate the legal community on positive health and well-being.  Ms. Eakins used to serve as an EMT-B for the 911 services of San Diego, California from 2010 - 2014.Amanda Parker, PhD Dr. Amanda Parker is a writer, researcher, and educator from Albuquerque, New Mexico. Her PhD is focused on critical race studies in education and society. Her academic work and teaching concentrated on the intersection of race and gender, building solidarity, developing critically conscious teachers, and examining racism in families. Dr. Parker is the Director of the Equity in Justice Program at the State Bar of New Mexico. In this role she is fostering community relationships, leading educational efforts, and building programs to address equity and inclusion for judges, lawyers, and law students. She collaborates with the Equity in Justice Commission and other entities that are working together on reform. She lives in Albuquerque with her daughters and can be found walking her poorly behaved dogs and practicing yoga in her free time.William D. Slease (“Bill”) is the Professional Development Program Director for the State Bar of New Mexico.In addition to his duties at the State Bar, he serves as an adjunct professor at the University of New Mexico School of Law where he teaches Ethics, 1L Lab, and serves as a practice skills evaluator for the evidence-trial practice skills course.Judith GordonJudith Gordon works with law firms, individual attorneys and practice groups, equipping them with tools and strategies that empower them to lead and excel in practice without burnout. Her individual coaching and collaborative workplace programs equip professionals with the skills needed to optimize productivity and high-performance, build confidence and resilience, reduce stress, and work better together, to increase professional satisfaction and the bottom line. Judith is the founder of LeaderEsQ, LLC, a coaching and training consultancy, and she is on faculty at UCLA School of Law where she has been teaching emotional intelligence, stress management, and high-performance skills for the past decade.Disclaimer: Thank you for listening! This episode was produced by the State Bar of New Mexico's Well-Being Committee and the New Mexico Lawyer Assistance Program. All editing and sound mixing was done by BlueSky eLearn. Intro music is by Gil Flores. The views of the presenters are that of their own and are not endorsed by the State Bar of New Mexico or the Department of Justice. The content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment or legal advice. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.

*Content Warning: This episode of Doin' Time contains audio images of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who have died, and of deaths in custody. First up on today's show, Marisa speaks with Sue-Anne Hunter who is a proud Wurundjeri and Ngurai (Nu-Ray) Illum Wurrung woman and Deputy Chair and Commissioner with the Yoorrook Justice Commission. She informs listeners on Yoorrook's work toward Treaty in Victoria through redress and address of the historical and contemporary systemic injustices against First Nations people. With in-depth discussion of the public hearings they have been running since her last Doin' Time interview in February, she highlights the importance of making public record of the true history in this state.  Next, Marisa speaks with David Mejia-Canales (Senior Lawyer at the Human Rights Law Centre) about HRLC's call for the South Australian legislative council to block the proposed anti-protest laws that were recently rushed through the SA House of Assembly, discussing the potentially disastrous consequences of eroding civil liberties such as peaceful protest in this country.  Last up on the program, David Glanz from Refugee Action Collective (Vic) joins the program to discuss updates and news about refugees and asylum seekers, in particular about a forum being held on 29th May on the problem of children in detention and also of those who may live in the community, but in the precarious situation where lack of permanency denies them a future. Listeners are encouraged to get involved with regular events held by RAC Vic - check out their Facebook page here. Head to www.3cr.org.au/dointime for full access to links and previous podcasts.

Anuraag - organiser, critic and recently retired DJ, Yoorrook Justice Commission Chair Eleanor Bourke, Done by Law - The End of Native Forest Logging, Mahalla's Earthquake Relief Fundraiser for Turikye and Syria. 3CR would like to acknowledge the Kulin Nations – true owners, caretakers and custodians of the land from which we broadcast. 3CR pays respect to Elders, past and present of the Kulin Nation. We recognise their unceded sovereignty. Anuraag is an organiser, critic, and recently retired DJ living and working on unneeded Wurundjeri Country. They run digital performance space room2.fm, occasional party series Cool Room and work as a booker at experimental and club music venue Miscellania. They joined me yesterday to speak about their recent DJ hiatus, holistic safety and representation, the trappings of elitism, artists exploitation and what it means to make decisions based on creative and cultural merit.  Also check out Raag's newsletter at anuraagbhatia@substack.com.Next, we were joined by Wergaia/Wamba Wamba Elder and Chair of the Yoorrook Justice Commission Eleanor Bourke. Yoorrook is the first formal truth telling process, aimed at addressing systemic harms and injustices experienced by First Peoples since colonisation. Today, Eleanor brought us updates from the commission, which began in May 2021. Make a submission here: https://yoorrookjusticecommission.org.au/have-your-say/make-a-submission/ We then heard from fellow 3CR show Done By Law where Beth King was joined by Darcy from Forest Conservation Victoria (FCV) and Natalie Hogan from Environment Justice Australia (EJA) to dicsuss the end of Native Forest Logging announced in the State Budget on Tuesday and the anti protest laws that remain in place. You can catch Done By Law every Tuesday from 6pm on 3CR. Idil and Lara are committee members of the community collective Mähallä, run alongside two others, Aysu and Majed. Mähallä is a creative community hub that aims to foster ways to stay connected to our cultures through public gatherings like picnics, conversations, dance nights, film screenings and much more, we offer an inclusive space that is safe and welcoming for all. Mähallä community consists of cultures from all across the Middle East and Anatolia. They join us today to speak about Mähallä's Earthquake Relief Fundraiser for Turikye and Syria at School House Studios (Coburg) this Sunday 28th of May 1pm - 6pm.  Songs:Shakaya - Sublime 

As we've discussed many times on the podcast, the access to justice gap is a particularly complex challenge to address, due to its links to systemic issues such as poverty and limited availability to legal resources and technology. Today's guest, however, is helping people overcome these broader obstacles to legal services. Amanda Brown is the founder and executive director of Lagniappe Law Lab. The organization's mission is to facilitate access to justice at scale for Louisiana's underprivileged populations through the use of technology, human-centered design, and operations principles. Upon graduating law school, Amanda was a disaster recovery attorney, using technology to assist victims of disasters with accessing public benefits and title clearing. She then worked as a Microsoft NextGen Fellow for the American Bar Association's Center for Innovation, helping support the design and development of the Legal Services Corporation's legal navigator program, which connects those in need with legal resources available to them. She went on to serve as a legal technology consultant for the Louisiana Bar Foundation on its statewide triage portal. Drawing on these experiences in legal tech and the A2J space, Amanda founded Lagniappe Law Lab in 2019. She is also co-chair of Louisiana's Access to Justice Commission's technology subcommittee, and she is a member of the Legal Services Corporation's Emerging Leaders Council. Today, Amanda tells us about Lagniappe Law Lab—and how the team is incorporating human-centered design in its work, the unique challenges that the Lab's clients face in Louisiana, and how she entered the A2J path.

Dr. Joseph Graves, Jr. received his Ph.D. in Environmental, Evolutionary and Systematic Biology from Wayne State University in 1988. In 1994 he was elected a Fellow of the Council of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS.) In 2012, he was chosen as one of the “Sensational Sixty” commemorating 60 years of the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Award.  In 2017, he was listed as an “Outstanding Graduates” in Biology at Oberlin College; and was an “Innovator of the Year” in US Black Engineer Magazine. His research in the evolutionary genomics of adaptation shapes our understanding of biological aging and bacterial responses to nanomaterials. He is presently Associate Director/co-PI of the Precision Microbiome Engineering (PreMiEr) Engineering Research Center of Excellence (Gen-4 ERC) funded by the National Science Foundation (2022—2027). His book on nanomaterials is entitled: Principles and Applications of Antimicrobial Nanomaterials, (Amsterdam NE: Elsevier),  2021.  His books on the biology of race are entitled: The Emperor's New Clothes: Biological Theories of Race at the Millennium, Rutgers University Press, 2005 and The Race Myth: Why We Pretend Race Exists in America, Dutton Press, 2005; with Alan Goodman, Racism, Not Race: Answers to Frequently Asked Questions, Columbia University Press, 2021. Racism, Not Race was named by Kirkus Reviews as “One of the Best Non-Fiction 2021” and to its “Best Books About Being Black in America 2021”.  Finally, his biopic work entitled, A Voice in the Wilderness: A Pioneering Biologist Explains How Evolution Can Help Us Solve Our Biggest Problems, (New York: Basic Books), 2022. He leads programs addressing underrepresentation of minorities in science. He had aided underserved youth in Greensboro via the YMCA chess program.  He has also served on the Racial Reconciliation and Justice Commission, and COVID Vaccination Task Fore of the Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina. He also served as the science advisor to the Chicago, New Brunswick, and Methodist of Ohio Theological Seminaries through the AAAS Dialogues of Science, Ethics, and Religion (DoSER) program.

  *Content Warning: This episode of Doin' Time may contain audio images and descriptions of Aboriginal and Torres-Strait Islander people who have died, and of deaths in custody. First up on today's program, Marisa speaks with proud Gunditjmara man Alan Brown, an ambassador and life-member (and former chairperson/CEO) of the Victorial Aboriginal Health Service (VAHS), which this year celebrates 50 years of caring for community. He begins with a quick run-down on his experience broadcasting at 3CR with other First Nations Warriors since the 1970s, going on to share his insights on the historical and long-term resilience, courage, and vision of Victorian Aboriginal people, which led directly to the inception of VAHS as an organisation in FItzroy, and what makes it special. Next, Marisa speaks with Ian Rintoul from the Refugee Action Coalition, about their recent media release, entitled: Government must stop its immigration re-detention raids. Lastly, Marisa interviews proud Wurundjeri woman, Sue-Anne Hunter, Deputy chair and Commissioner with the Yoorrook Justice Commission, which on Wednesday will commence two weeks of public hearings as part of its inquiry into the systemic injustices experienced by first peoples within Victoria's child protection and criminal justice systems.  You can watch the hearings online or make a submission at yoorrookjusticecommission.org

Acknowledgement// News Headlines// Sue Anne Hunter - Yoorook Justice Commission//First up, we'll hear a replay from our Dec interview with Sue-Anne Hunter who is a proud Wurundjeri and Ngurai (Nu-Ray) Illum Wurrung woman and Deputy Chair and Commissioner with the Yoorrook Justice Commission. Sue-Anne is a child and family services practitioner who has focused her career around using culture as a foundation for healing trauma and addressing the impacts of colonisation. We spoke about the The Yoorrook Justice Commission's recent investigation into the impact of the child protection and criminal justice systems on First Peoples in ''Victoria''. You can watch the public hearings that occurred from 5-16 December on the Yoorrok website. We know that this content can be distressing, so if you need someone to talk to, please contact 13YARN (13 92 76) to talk with an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander Crisis Supporter, available 24/7.// Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service (VALS) Invasion Day Webinar//On Tuesday the 23rd of January, the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service VALS hosted a panel discussion about the child protection and youth justice systems, reversing colonisation, and ending Aboriginal deaths in custody. This is an edited excerpt of the discussion, hosted by VALS CEO Nerita Waight and featuring panelists Sissy Austin, Nayuka Gorrie and Tyson Lovett-Murray. Listen back to the full conversation and donate to support VALS' vital work for the Victorian Aboriginal community by heading to vals.org.au// Fitzroy Crossing Flood Update (Two Parts)//Earlier this week, Natalie Davey from community radio station Wangki Radio in Fitzroy Crossing, joined 3CR's Emma Hart to speak about the impact of the recent flooding in the Kimberley. This is part one of their conversation. Donate to support community led recovery by visiting https://mwrc.com.au/pages/donations  http://www.wangki.org.au/ // Take a look at our Invasion Day 2023 show and Pay The Rent Songs//Hell No - Flewnt//This is Australia - Marrugeku// 

Note: In light of the growing body of news and evidence that the King County Jail is dangerous and ineffective at improving safety, the Hacks & Wonks team decided to re-air this illuminating episode about the harm that jail and the current bail system causes our community.   On this Hacks & Wonks midweek show, Chanel Rhymes, Director of Advocacy at the Northwest Community Bail Fund, joins Crystal Fincher to discuss our desperate need for bail reform. The NCBF is dedicated to ending cash bail and pretrial detention in Washington state. They do advocacy for reform, court watching to hold the system accountable, and they raise funds to provide bail for people who can't afford it on their own. Chanel explains the difficulties that jailing people prior to a conviction causes for people before they're even convicted of a crime, and dispels criticisms of bail funds as being dangerous for the community, rather than being a correction against systemic inequality. Crystal and Chanel also breakdown recent data on bail reform that shows that bail reform and eliminating pretrial detention for misdemeanors actually reduces crime in the long run, and doesn't negatively impact whether people show up to court. You can find information on the Northwest Community Bail Fund and resources for its court watching program in the links below. Chanel Rhymes Chanel Rhymes is the Director of Advocacy for the Northwest Community Bail Fund. Prior to joining the Northwest Community Bail fund, Chanel served as the Court Program Analyst for the Washington Supreme Court Minority and Justice Commission, executing the mission of ensuring that all courts in the state of Washington remain free of bias so that justice might be adjudicated in a neutral and fair manner. Previously, she was a Program Manager for the Freedom Education Project of Puget Sound where she developed and coordinated college courses for women seeking to attain their AA degrees while incarcerated at the Washington Correction Center for Women.   Chanel has worked with the Council of State Governments Justice Center, supporting their work on national criminal justice reform. She also has legislative experience as a Political Field Organizer and as a Legislative Liaison for the Washington Student Association, where she lobbied for the interests of students in higher education around issues of affordability, administration transparency, and accessibility. Chnel was raised in Tacoma, Washington, and received her BA from Evergreen State College with a focus in Law and Government Policy. As always, a full text transcript of the show is available below and at officialhacksandwonks.com. Find the host, Crystal, on Twitter at @finchfrii, find the Northwest Community Bail Fund on Twitter at @NWCBailFund.   Resources Northwest Community Bail Fund website   NCBF - Court Watch Resources and sign-up   “The Effects of Misdemeanor Bail Reform” from Quattrone Center for the Fair Administration of Justice   “No More Police: A Case for Abolition” by Mariame Kaba & Andrea J. Ritchie   Washington state court's Criminal Rule 3.2   “A Seattle man began the night in crisis. Then, a sudden death in restraint” by Sydney Brownstone and Greg Kim from The Seattle Times   “In a Sign of Worsening Conditions, Understaffed King County Jail Has Lacked Water for a Week” by Erica C. Barnett from PubliCola   “Public Defenders Union Joins Jail Guards' Call to Address COVID Crisis” by Paul Kiefer from PubliCola   Transcript [00:00:00] Crystal Fincher: Welcome to Hacks & Wonks. I'm Crystal Fincher and I'm a political consultant and your host. On the show, we talk with policy wonks and political hacks to gather insight into local politics and policy in Washington state through the lens of those doing the work with behind-the-scenes perspectives on what's happening, why it's happening, and what you can do about. Full transcripts and resources referenced in the show are always available at officialhacksandwonks.com and in our episode notes. Thank you so much for joining us today. I'm very excited about this show, where we get to talk with Chanel Rhymes, who is the director of advocacy at Northwest Community Bail Fund. Thank you so much for joining us. [00:00:51] Chanel Rhymes: Thank you for having me. I'm really excited to be here. [00:00:54] Crystal Fincher: Excited to have you on. Have been a follower of the organization for quite some time. Obviously, this has been a topic across the country, and really globally. We're behind a lot of the globe on this. But in our country, a topic especially in the past few years, and looking at just what we're doing in terms of our criminal legal system, all of the challenges within it, and what can be done to make our communities more safe, keep our communities more safe, and really move towards a world and communities where we meet basic needs and we don't choose punishment over healing injustice. So I guess starting out, can you tell me just what the Northwest Community Bail Fund is and does, and what brought you to this work? [00:01:46] Chanel Rhymes: The Northwest Community Bail Fund is a nonprofit organization. We post bail for those during pre-trial detention. A lot of folks cannot afford to access the services of a bail bond agency, whether they don't have the means or collateral, so we are here to fill in those gaps. Ultimately we would hope to see an end to pre-trial detention and cash bail, but, because we know that is gonna take time, in the meantime we work to reduce harm. So we post bail as well as just, make sure that the community is not harmed and folks can fight their cases from a position of freedom, which they're entitled to through the constitution and the Washington state constitution. [00:02:33] Crystal Fincher: Absolutely. [00:02:34] Chanel Rhymes: I myself came to this work in- I've been doing criminal justice reform work for a long- or, excuse me, criminal punishment reform work, for a long time. I, myself, am formally incarcerated. I am very passionate about those that have done their time and served their time be- the opportunity to go back into society and be a contributing member. I personally believe, though, that we need to stop trying to fix things after and start things from the beginning. Kind of like the, the babies in the river. I'm not gonna keep taking the babies out. I'd rather let's not put the babies in. So I'm trying to, we, myself and our organization, is trying to work to so that folks are just not incarcerated. And a lot of times folks are incarcerated just because of not having means. [00:03:25] Crystal Fincher: And this is such an important conversation. One, just as we talk about right now, we're sitting here in the midst of a crisis as defined by our public defenders, staff at jails. We had a historic letter earlier this year where both public defenders and corrections officers are saying, "hey, we can't handle the population here at the King County jail. It's unsafe. It's beyond what we can tolerate." And I don't think a lot of people realize that a lot of people who are in jail have not been convicted of anything. This is a pre-trial detention. They've not been sentenced. They're not serving a crime. They've not been found guilty of anything. It is simply because of a financial reason that they are sitting in jail and all of the challenges that, that presents. What does it mean and what kind of challenges does it pose when we detain people before their trials? [00:04:25] Chanel Rhymes: Oh, plethora. You could risk losing your housing. You can lose your children, custody of your children. You can lose your employment. And with all that comes, a rippling effect of other things, whether that be financial instability, just the trauma itself of going to jail. A lot of people that, say "lock them up," or "they just need to go to jail," never seen the inside of a jail. It's one of the most horrific places. On top of, with us being in a pandemic, you could potentially die, ultimately, from sitting in jail because there are still COVID outbreaks in jails every week. And so ultimately you could lose your life for something you haven't even been convicted of yet. And that's no way to bake it. That's not the way our system is designed. It's not supposed to be set up that way. Or at least they say that. [00:05:24] Crystal Fincher: At least they say that. It is certainly not what we've been sold. And so it's such a challenge. It is very destabilizing. And even in the case that someone does wind up pleading guilty or serving time, we're relying on them having the means to pay whatever fines they're going to be charged to do all that. And so if they don't have a job, if they have lost, as a result of being detained, all of the ability to fulfill the terms of whatever punishment they've been handed, that's a challenge in and of itself. And the bottom line is, a lot of people think putting people in jail makes us safer. If we didn't have this, they would be out committing crimes. And every now and then there's a case that gets publicized where they say, see, look, this is- bail reform caused this. Is that the case? [00:06:24] Chanel Rhymes: It's not the case. Number one, judges decide what bail is. Number two folks have a constitutional right to bail. The purpose of bail - and our Washington Supreme Court has said this - the state is not in the primary interest of collecting bail bond forfeitures. It is more concerned with folks showing up to court. That is what the purpose is. That, whether somebody is released or not, does not make us safer. There are tons of people who are arrested for violent crimes and don't spend a day in jail because they have the means to bail themselves out. Where are the folks asking about them? I think it's very interesting that bail reform and, nonprofits, people who don't make money off of this business, are the ones under the microscope, but yet bail bond agencies make millions of dollars every day bailing people out that sometimes do go on to commit new crimes. We don't hear about those in the news. We only hear about the less fortunate, which is those folks that are coming to a community bail fund or, mutual aid fund, and it's because we demonize poverty in this society. And it's just bizarre to me, in a sense, that we've gotten to this point. As if folks don't understand that wages have been stagnant for 40 years. The cost of living is going up. People can't make it can't survive. And so putting them in jail, and then if they are convicted or plead guilty just to get out, they now have a criminal conviction. So then that creates barriers to getting employment. And the other thing that you need, housing, that is the first, one of the major things that disqualifies most folks for housing, is a criminal conviction. So if we're also criminalizing homelessness, locking people up, then convicting them, and then they get out and they can't rent anywhere, and then we're like, "why are you homeless?" We are just creating this cycle and it's really a cycle of abuse. [00:08:38] Crystal Fincher: Yeah, and one really has to ask is the offense that people really are in jail for whatever they've been accused of, or is it just that they're poor and can't afford bail? And even just the issue of bail overall, for some reason, we have landed in a place where we think that a dollar amount is indicative of whether or not someone is in danger or is safe regardless of what they have been accused of, regardless of what kind of flight risk someone may be deemed to be. Hey, if you have enough money to, if you're rich, and and you can pay for whatever, it really doesn't matter. You're not gonna be in jail. And, we have seen several examples of people who are, just a small misdemeanor accusation which, often can result in dropped charges overall for lack of evidence, for just not being worth it to pursue in the system, yet they have been in jail and have experienced, like you talked about, the loss of job, the loss of housing, and that being destabilizing. And in fact that increasing the chance that someone is likely to be involved in their criminal legal system in the future, as opposed to if they were able to maintain their connections in community. And then also on the back end, just about everyone we're sending into jail is going to come out on the other end. So don't we have an interest in making sure that we are doing all we can to set people up for success and to not drop them into another pit, which it seems this just sets up people to do. What do you tell people when they're like, "it's there to make sure they come back and if they don't have bail, then they won't come back. So bail is necessary and if they can't afford it, then you know, they could just leave and never come back anyway?" what do you tell people who just say bail is necessary to get people to show up? [00:10:48] Chanel Rhymes: They can find us anywhere. The world we live in now, if they wanna find you, they really can find you. But, ultimately, most people do wanna get this resolved. Nobody wants this hanging over their head. A lot of times people don't show up, not on purpose. People, don't FTA, or Failure to Appear, on purpose. Life happens. There's life circumstance. Also, too, people wanna get it taken care of because they probably didn't do it. People aren't really decking and dodging. I will add though that even if we have a lot of folks saying people they need to go to jail or they need to do this, a misdemeanor? It's max fine, like 90 days in jail. So I think too, people have a misconception of what our punishments, our sentencing structure is, and the difference between jail and the difference between prison, and misdemeanors, gross misdemeanors, and felonies. Even with our gross misdemeanor, the max jail time is a year, up to a year, but after that, okay, they serve their time, they're back out, what are we going to do to help folks? What I tell people is how is this solving anything? Why would you want your tax dollars just to be wasted to keep doing this? And wouldn't you want your tax dollars to be used to help people. So they're not back in this situation? The amount of money that we spend on criminal punishment and police is just ridiculous when you compare it to what we spend on education. So if we really wanted to make changes, we would be investing our money in education, healthcare, mental healthcare, reproductive rights, all of those things. Never in our 40 years of plus doing this whole drug war or anything, have cops, police, arrest helped make us any safer or do any type of harm reduction. There's tons of studies out there that show when you reinvest that many within the community and provide people's services, recidivism goes down. I think it's odd that we just keep having to have this conversation over and over again, because we obviously know what's not working, but we are very, afraid to try what some people or some municipalities and governments have done that work. [00:13:11] Crystal: Well. And it feels like, for people who've looked into this, for the people who are the loudest on this issue on either side, they do know what the data says. They do know that the evidence shows conclusively, repeatedly - there was just a new study that came out and reiterated this just last month - that bail reform, not relying on bail and releasing people pre-trial, not subjecting them to all of the harms that result from that, doesn't hurt people appearing in court over people who have been detained, doesn't hurt their likelihood of committing a crime again, over people who have been in bail. So there is actually no advantage safety-wise. There's no advantage in the court system. It's not, "hey, a lot of people were failing to appear - weren't failing to appear - now they are with bail reform. It is actually the opposite. This is working to keep people safer. This is working to help people show up and we are not contending with how expensive this is to us as a society financially and in terms of just our safety and our health within the community. My goodness, courts are expensive to run and administer. Prisons and jails are so expensive to run and administer. All of the staff, all of everything required to do that is so costly. We're sitting here talking about upcoming budget shortfalls here in, the city of Seattle, throughout the state in different cities, yet when you look at the city's budget, such a huge percentage of it and their county's budget, such a huge percentage is dedicated to locking people up. And especially pre-trial, what benefit are we getting out of it? Why do you think people are so resistant to saying, "wow. Number one, we aren't getting the results that we want from our current system. It would actually save us money that we could invest in areas that we all know need it." Yet, lots of people still aren't there. Why do you think that is? [00:15:22] Chanel Rhymes: Because people are being misinformed, and fear-mongered by their local news and reporters, who I'm shocked at the things that they write and put out. And it's clear that a lot of reporters locally here have no clue about criminal law or criminal procedure. They are flat out lying to the public. And so then folks see that on TV, they read it in their newspapers, they read it online and they think that the sky is falling. Everything is super dangerous. I also think poverty is a lot more visible now. So people, their senses seem to think "oh, it's bad, it's more." And it's no, just more people are hurting and you're seeing it more. It's not hidden. It's coming into your neighborhoods. I truly believe it's miseducation, misinformation, and 30 years of watching Law and Order that people think they know the system and how things work. I blame our media to be quite honest, because they're just not being truthful. And most of the information that, it seems to me, that they're getting are coming either straight from prosecutors or straight from police. They are refusing to talk to anybody from the other side. [00:16:42] Crystal Fincher: And even, not from either, quote unquote side, there are actual experts on crime. They're called criminologists. We have lots of them at our wonderful universities, research universities here in the area, who are able to speak on what the evidence and research shows is and is not effective and useful and working in terms of keeping people safe, keeping people from committing crimes. And over again, they are coming up with data that says detaining people pre-trial just because they cannot afford to get out of jail does not keep us safer. Does not do anything to help our system to help reduce crime. It just doesn't do that. In fact if it had, if it has, any effect, it's the opposite effect. It actually makes outcomes worse. It makes people more likely to do that because they have been made more unstable and put in a more precarious position because of that. So if you were to talk to a lot of the local media, what would you advise that they do? [00:17:53] Chanel Rhymes: Educate themselves on the way that criminal law, that criminal procedure, works before just going with conjecture and their feelings and how they feel. There are laws, there are court rules, reasons why things are done. Ultimately too, the fact that they're saying, "okay, so we're holding people because they can't afford it." If they were so dangerous, no bail would be set. Obviously, a bail has been set, so that judge has deemed them safe enough to go back into the community once they pay that money. So you can't have it both ways either, it's completely they're there because they're a danger or is it really they're there because they can't afford it? Because if they were such a danger, then why is there a dollar amount that they could pay that says they're not dangerous? It just doesn't make any sense. I mean the argument of it makes us safer- it just doesn't. And I just think we've just been recycling the same thing over and over again. And then also, too, people, the internet, your phone, every social media, people are getting lots of just different images and things like things are horrible. "Seattle is dying, oh my gosh, they've closed my Starbucks." And it's really like people are homeless and hungry and that's, what's really- The fact that too, we are still within a pandemic and we have a lot of people in charge that want folks to just keep on going just out. "No, everything's fine." people are still financially hurting. We also hear a lot about, I'll just say that, media's writing a lot about retail. Nobody writes about wage theft. More money is stolen in wages than it is in deodorant. What does that tell you? I'm reading a police report and somebody is charged with stealing body wash, deodorant, razors. They're trying to survive. Those are essential items. Like we need to look at that. Like what services can we get that person so they don't have to steal the basic needs just to be a human and live in this society? [00:20:12] Crystal Fincher: I'm with you, I'm with you. So as we look moving forward, right now, you and Northwest Community Bail Fund are filling in this gap in our current system. Obviously there's a lot of changes that would be more effective if we made them. In terms of bail, what is it that you would like to see changed about our current system? Would you like to move to a system where judges just make the decision as they have in some other localities across the country? "Hey we're not really doing bail. We are making the determination about whether we feel this person is a flight risk or a threat to society. And if yes, we're detaining them and if, no, we're not." And throwing the idea of bail out the window in lieu of that? Or something different? What would you like to see in terms of bail in the system we're in? [00:21:10] Chanel Rhymes: There should be no bail. There should be no pre-trial detention. Folks are innocent until proven guilty. There's no reason for anybody to be caged. That's what they are, is caged. Before they have been convicted by a judge or jury of their peers. They've just been accused. We should be moving completely away from that. I would say, even just to start, we could have judges actually, follow court rule 3.2, which says you need to use the least restrictive means to release people. So that would be a start. We do court watching in courts around the area, particularly Seattle Municipal Court. We watch arraignment hearings. We, we take, track, demographic data, race, perceived age, age, date of birth. But we also track if court rule 3.2 is brought up by judges, by the prosecutor, or by the defense. And we recently had our data analyzed and it was only 13% in all of the cases that we had listened to that it was brought up. That's a very low number for a court rule to not even be mentioned during arraignment. And that has to do with whether folks are, public safety issue or, the means to pay to get out. So I think one, first thing is if y'all going, institute these rules and create these policies, you should follow them first. You're not even following your own policies, so can you accurately say if it's working or not? I don't think so, but ultimately it's a no. I'm an abolitionist. Get rid of them all. I just got my no more police book. I just started on that. This, it's not working. All we're doing is harming people and it's not sustainable and it costs too much. We could be investing those dollars in so many other ways that would actually give us a better return on investment because all we're doing is churning out more debt, ultimately, because if they can't get a job, they can't get housed, we're still gonna end up having to pay for it another way. [00:23:27] Crystal Fincher: Yeah. We're paying for it no matter what, just depends on whether it's an investment that's gonna yield a return later on. If we're dealing in, education and health and mental health and behavioral health support and treatment that do yield benefits for our entire community or whether we are dealing in the aftermath of pain and harm and paying to keep people in prison and incarcerated, which is just so terribly expensive and costly financially, and to our community, to that person, to the community, to everyone involved. What would you say to the people who- Obviously we always hear examples of violent crimes, horrible crimes, some horrible crimes happen that should never happen. And they see what someone has been accused of. They hear evidence against them and they're like, "that person is not safe on the street." And say, "we're afraid of what can happen. That they're a danger to society and based on what they've done, they should be detained." What do you say to people in that circumstance? [00:24:50] Chanel Rhymes: You have no proof that evidence is actually evidence that is true, or that can convict him. People are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law, not public opinion. There's a process that you go through during criminal procedure where the judge gets to decide what evidence gets to come in and what doesn't. We don't just get to decide oh, that's true. That piece of evidence that the reporters said right there is true. Also, we all know police lie all the time. We're just gonna take the word of police because that's who most reporters are getting their information from, they're just reading it from police reports and statements or their, communications officer or whoever it may be. So how is it that untrained people in law, just the regular general public would be able to determine who's safe and who's not? I also think if a judge has set bail, who are you to say that, better than that judge about the case? I don't understand that. Either we believe in these systems and y'all want these systems to do their job, or y'all just want to do it out in the public. Are we going back to that? Where we just doing the public, in the public square, and then everybody we decide how things go? No. To me, it's just bizarre that somebody be like this is what happened. You really don't know that's just what it was reported. People have to be convicted in a court, not in public opinion, it's just not the way it works. [00:26:24] Crystal Fincher: Which is true. And once again, this most recent study in Houston, which backs up prior studies, under consent decree where more people had to be released within 24 hours of a misdemeanor arrest, there was a 6% decrease in new prosecutions over the three years that followed that they followed those defendants. They said, "okay, everybody's saying we need to see whether or not people, are really gonna show up. We need to see whether you letting people out is really going to, make things safer as these people claim, let's follow these defendants. Let's follow these people." Over a period of years, not even beyond, not even stopping at, okay this one case, their current case was adjudicated, whatever happened, they went beyond. Eliminating bail, taking that out as a factor, releasing them and not detaining them simply because they can't afford bail, resulted in a decrease over the existing system. Meaning that locking people up made it more likely that someone was going to commit a crime again. Made it more likely that things would be less safe in our community. I'm for what makes people more. We talk about all of these things. A lot of it is punishment related. And I think in so many of these conversations, we have to decide whether we are going to prioritize punishing people or whether we're gonna prioritize keeping our community safe, because they really are at odds. And punishment is not working for us, any of us, and it's really expensive. It is so harmful to the person involved, it's harmful to the community and it's so costly. And we talk about funding for jails. We talk about funding for police. There is only a certain amount of money in the whole bucket. So if we're giving more to one area, we're taking it from somewhere else or preventing it from being invested in somewhere else. And I'm sure everyone listening to this thinks, "hey, we need, we do need more behavioral health support. We do need more substance use disorder. Treatment and accessibility and availability. We do need to make sure people have access to these things without having to be involved in the criminal legal system to get clean or to get healthy." And so it's just such an important issue and I thank you for just being vocal about this. For helping people in this organization and doing something that is making our community safer. Really appreciate it. If people want to learn more or to get involved or donate to the Northwest Community Bail Fund, how can they do that? [00:29:11] Chanel Rhymes: You can go to our website, which is N-W- C-O-M-B-A-I-L-F-U-N-D.org So nwcombailfund.org. You can follow us on Twitter and Instagram. I'm so grateful to have this conversation with you and inviting me on to talk about the organization that I dearly love, and we truly do wanna make our community safer and we wanna stop harming folks. [00:29:42] Crystal Fincher: Yeah, absolutely. Wanna stop harming folks. One thing that I do have to mention: I saw a report that you produced, and I feel like this was last year at some time now. You're not only doing this work, but you are, as an organization, being accountable, being transparent about the activity that's going on. You are showing results for what you're doing in a way that goes be above and beyond a number of others that I've seen. I appreciate that transparency in this organization. And then also wanted to mention, you brought up your court watching, also, earlier, which is such a useful and valuable tool. And just enlightening and informative because, to your point, lots of people don't know what happens in court. People have very limited experience, maybe someone contests a parking ticket or a speeding ticket or something. Lots of people have never stepped foot in one. And so have this idea from TV shows what it's like. It's nothing like what on TV shows. And so I sincerely appreciate that too. We're gonna link those court watching resources in the show notes, also for people to be able to access and follow. [00:31:05] Chanel Rhymes: Thank you. That is also available on our website, we're always looking for more court Watchers. We really need folks to go in person to courts. Seattle Municipal Court and Tacoma Municipal Court offer virtual courts so people can actually court watch from the comfort of their own home. If you're interested in court watching with us, please go to our website and fill out an interest form. [00:31:25] Crystal Fincher: Thank you so much for all of your information today, for what you do. It's been a pleasure to have you on Chanel. [00:31:31] Chanel Rhymes: Thank you. [00:31:32] Crystal Fincher: Thank you all for listening to Hacks and Wonks. The Producer of Hacks & Wonks is Lisl Stadler, our Assistant Producer is Shannon Cheng, and our Post-Production Assistant is Bryce Cannatelli. You can find Hacks & Wonks on Twitter at @HacksWonks, and you can follow me at @finchfrii spelled F I N C H F R I I. You can catch Hacks & Wonks on iTunes, Spotify, or wherever else you get your podcasts. Just type Hacks & Wonks into the search bar. Be sure to subscribe, to get our Friday almost-live shows and our midweek show delivered right to your podcast feed. If you like us, leave us a review wherever you listen. You can also get a full transcript of this episode and links to the resources referenced in the show at officialhacksandwonks.com and in the episode notes. Thanks for tuning in. Talk to you next time.

Amanda Parker, PhD. Dr. Amanda Parker is a writer, researcher, and educator from Albuquerque, New Mexico. She has a PhD focused on critical race studies in education and society and speaks regularly at national and international conferences where she presents her work on the intersection of race and gender, building solidarity, and raising critically conscious children. Dr. Parker is the Director of the Equity in Justice Program at the State Bar of New Mexico. In this role she is fostering community relationships, leading educational efforts, and building programs to address equity and inclusion for judges, lawyers, and law students. She collaborates with the Equity in Justice Commission and other entities that are working together on reform. She lives in Albuquerque with her daughters.Gavin Alexander, is an experienced and passionate advocate and thought leader in the areas of mental health, well-being, and diversity, equity and inclusion in the legal profession and beyond. He is an attorney and Certified Corporate Wellness Specialist, and he currently serves as the Wellness Director of Jackson Lewis P.C., a law firm with over 950 attorneys and over 60 offices across the United States. Before joining the firm, Gavin served as the firstever Fellow of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Standing Committee on Lawyer Well- Being. Gavin shared his own personal experiences with depression and near-suicide in Depressionto Dedication: How Chief Justice Gants Saved My Life and Catalyzed Ongoing Advocacy forMental Health in the Legal Profession, 62 B.C. L. Rev. 2759 (2021), and “Trailblazing TowardBetter Mental Health & Well-Being in Law: Q&A with Gavin Alexander, Well-Being Advocate,”Thomson Reuters Practical Law (Apr. 26, 2022), and he regularly speaks at law firms, law schools, conferences, courts, bar associations, and other legal institutions. Gavin studied Theater and Mathematics at Wesleyan University, and he graduated from Harvard Law School magna cum laude in 2012. After law school, Gavin clerked for Chief Justice Ralph D. Gants at the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. From 2013-2020, Gavin was an associate in the corporate department of Ropes & Gray LLP's Boston office.Gavin has served as a Co-Chair of the Massachusetts LGBTQ Bar Association and as a board member of the National LGBTQ+ Bar Association. Presently, he serves as a member of the Mass. Supreme Judicial Court Standing Committee on Lawyer Well-Being, as a board member and the DEI Chair of Lawyers Depression Project, and as a board member of Leadership Brainery. He also serves on the ABA Commission on Lawyer Assistance Programs' DEI Committee, ABA Legal Opportunity Scholarship Fund Committee, Institute for Well-Being in Law DEI Committee, Boston Bar Association DEI Section Steering Committee, and the Chief Justice Ralph D. Gants Access to Justice Fund Advisory Committee. Gavin was named one of the Best LGBT Attorneys Under 40 by the National LGBTQ+ Bar Association in 2017, selected as one of Mass. Lawyers Weekly's 25 “Up & Coming Lawyers” for 2019, featured on the Mass. Super Lawyers “Rising Stars” list for 2018-2020, and inducted as a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation in 2020. In 2021, he received the Mass. Association of Hispanic Attorneys' Leadership Award, where he was described as “by far one of the most committed allies in the areas of inclusion, equity and social and racial justice,” and in 2022, he received the Kevin Larkin Memorial Award for Public Service from the Mass. LGBTQ Bar Association.Disclaimer:Thank you for listening! This episode was produced by the State Bar of New Mexico's Well-Being Committee and the New Mexico Lawyer Assistance Program. All editing and sound mixing was done by BlueSky eLearn. Intro music is by Gil Flores. The views of the presenters are their own and are not endorsed by the State Bar of New Mexico, Jackson Lewis P.C., the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, or any other group or organization with which any of the presenters may be affiliated. The content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment or legal advice. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. 

Laura Tuggle has been the Executive Director of Southeast Louisiana Legal Services(SLLS) since May 2014 after beginning her career at SLLS in 1993. She previously managed SLLS' Housing Law Unit during the years immediately following Hurricane Katrina from 2005-2010. Over her public interest career, she has excelled in many areas including direct services, systemic work, and policy advocacy resulting in increased access to housing for special populations including the homeless, peopleliving disabilities, and disaster survivors. Impact litigation filed by Laura resulted in significant legal victories for low-income tenants including millions of dollars in federal relocation assistance and establishing a private right of action for voucher assisted tenants to challenge utility allowances in federal court. She is an author of the Federally Subsidized Housing Program portion of the Louisiana Legal Services Desk Manual and coauthor of the housing portion of the Brookings Institute New Orleans Index at 5.Laura has received national, state, and local awards for her work in the interest of housing justice. Laura graduated from LSU in 1984 and received her Juris Doctorate degree from Tulane Law School in 1987. She currently serves on the Board of the New Orleans Family Justice Center, Shared Housing, as Co-Chair of the Legal Services Corporation's National Disaster Task Force Relationship-Building and Integration ofLegal Services into the Nation's Emergency Management Infrastructure Committee, on the Louisiana Access to Justice Commission's Funding, Technology, Disaster, and Building Brides Committees and on the Louisiana State Bar Association's Access to Justice Committee. She was recently appointed to the Legal Services Corporation's Housing Task Force. She also serves on several task forces to improve civillegal services and housing opportunities for vulnerable people.To learn more about the work of the Foundation, please visit braf.org.

Staff from City Bar Office for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging sat down with a Commissioner and the Special Counsel for the New York City Racial Justice Commission to discuss the process through which the Commission chose the measures that will appear on New York City ballots, and what changes New Yorkers can expect if the measures pass. Learn more about the Racial Justice Commission ballot measures at the RJC website: https://racialjustice.cityofnewyork.us/ Don't Forget! Early voting in NYC begins on October 29. Learn more about early voting: https://www.nycvotes.org/how-to-vote/early-voting/

The Racial and Justice Commission for NYC is supported by Mayor Eric Adams to educate New Yorkers about the three ballot proposals they will … Read More

Marie Kenyon, attorney and director of the Peace and Justice Commission for the Archdiocese of St. Louis, details her experience at the border and explains how Catholics are called to support immigrants and the law. 

In the 80s and 90s legal dramas ruled TV viewing in my household. Liability law and litigation seemed to be where the action was at least in that genre. What is the state of play today when it comes to being a successful lawyer? Meet Jamie E. Wright one of the most highly sought-after millennial lawyers and crisis communicators based in Los Angeles, CA. Being at the intersection of the law, business, pop culture and politics, Wright has made a name for herself in legal and business circles as an expert in managing multidimensional businesses and clients with keen insight on the law and a forward-thinking flare. She is an attorney and principal in the J. Wright Law Group, P.C. Wright, who is licensed to practice law in the State of California, and graduated from the University of California, Berkeley. While at Berkeley, she worked for the mayoral campaign of the former Mayor of Berkeley, Tom Bates. Due to her commitment to the campaign and work ethic, Wright was appointed to the City of Berkeley, Peace and Justice Commission at age 19. After graduating from UC Berkeley, Jamie attended the University of California, Hastings College of the Law. While at Hastings, Jamie was a member of the Negotiations Team and won second overall Mediator and second overall team in the National Negotiations Competition in Chicago. Additionally, she was the President of the Phi Alpha Delta Law Fraternity, and the Competitions Co-Chair for the Western Regional Black Law Students Association, a sub-division of the National Black Law Students Association. Wright was awarded a scholarship from the American Bar Association Business Section, as well as the Charles Houston Bar Association for academic excellence. She has gone on and had a successful career to date. Jamie is a recipient of the LA's most influential under 40 award and the Legacy Award from the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) and the 2nd Supervisorial District. Most recently, Jamie was appointed to the Marijuana Task Force where she is one of three Board members who draft regulations for physicians prescribing cannabis. Wright currently serves as the Secretary to the Board of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, Southern California and Chairs the Emerging Leaders Committee which is comprised of young adults ages 18 to 35 who are engaged in combating social injustice in communities of colour. Additionally, she was the former Chairperson of the Board of Directors for the Inglewood Airport Area Chamber of Commerce. She is also a volunteer lawyer for a collective of minority cannabis growers in South Los Angeles. We hear from Jamie on: The most common type of liability lawsuitin which you stand to lose assets is one resulting from an accident, according to one article I came across. Clearly, your work is more than the art of “ambulance chasing” – explain what you do in a typical day. Quite simply, liability means legal responsibility for one's actions. Failure to meet this responsibility leaves a person open to a liability lawsuit for any resulting damages. In order to win a lawsuit, the claimant must prove that the accused party is liable. What role does the lens of liability law play in any successful legal practice in the USA and perhaps the world? What are some of the biggest challenges in this area of law today in 2022? What aptitudes make a great lawyer, especially in the liability practice arena? Medicinal cannabis is very mainstream these days but not always. How has that area of law evolved as society has become more accepting of its benefits for chronic pain sufferers, and what are the challenges you face? Take away: What is your final takeaway message for us on The Politics of Liability Law?   CONTACT INFO: Web: About Jamie - The Wright Law Firm Employment Lawyers (jamiewrightesq.com) LinkedIn:  (15) Jamie E. Wright | LinkedIn   If you are a podcaster who wants to record quality sound with ease, sign up to Zencastr Professional account today for a 30% discount. To reclaim this amazing Zencastr offer designed for The Politics of Everything audience, just use the Link: zen.ai/thepoliticsofeverything and use Promo Code: thepoliticsofeverything.

On this Hacks & Wonks midweek show, the Chanel Rhymes, Director of Advocacy at the Northwest Community Bail Fund, joins Crystal Fincher to discuss our desperate need for bail reform. The NCBF is dedicated to ending cash bail and pretrial detention in Washington state. They do advocacy for reform, court watching to hold the system accountable, and they raise funds to provide bail for people who can't afford it on their own. Chanel explains the difficulties that jailing people prior to a conviction causes for people before they're even convicted of a crime, and dispels criticisms of bail funds as being dangerous for the community, rather than being a correction against systemic inequality. Crystal and Chanel also breakdown recent data on bail reform that shows that bail reform and eliminating pretrial detention for misdemeanors actually reduces crime in the long run, and doesn't negatively impact whether people show up to court. You can find information on the Northwest Community Bail Fund and resources for its court watching program in the links below. Chanel Rhymes Chanel Rhymes is the Director of Advocacy for the Northwest Community Bail Fund. Prior to joining the Northwest Community Bail fund, Chanel served as the Court Program Analyst for the Washington Supreme Court Minority and Justice Commission, executing the mission of ensuring that all courts in the state of Washington remain free of bias so that justice might be adjudicated in a neutral and fair manner. Previously, she was a Program Manager for the Freedom Education Project of Puget Sound where she developed and coordinated college courses for women seeking to attain their AA degrees while incarcerated at the Washington Correction Center for Women.   Chanel has worked with the Council of State Governments Justice Center, supporting their work on national criminal justice reform. She also has legislative experience as a Political Field Organizer and as a Legislative Liaison for the Washington Student Association, where she lobbied for the interests of students in higher education around issues of affordability, administration transparency, and accessibility. Chnel was raised in Tacoma, Washington, and received her BA from Evergreen State College with a focus in Law and Government Policy. As always, a full text transcript of the show is available below and at officialhacksandwonks.com. Find the host, Crystal, on Twitter at @finchfrii, find the Northwest Community Bail Fund on Twitter at @NWCBailFund. Resources Northwest Community Bail Fund website: https://www.nwcombailfund.org/    NCBF - Court Watch Resources and sign-up: https://www.nwcombailfund.org/es/courtwatch/    “The Effects of Misdemeanor Bail Reform” from Quattrone Center for the Fair Administration of Justice: https://www.law.upenn.edu/institutes/quattronecenter/reports/bailreform/#/    No More Police: A Case for Abolition by Mariame Kaba & Andrea J. Ritchie: https://thenewpress.com/books/no-more-police  Washington state court's Criminal Rule 3.2: https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_rules/pdf/CrR/SUP_CrR_03_02_00.pdf   Transcript [00:00:00] Crystal Fincher: Welcome to Hacks & Wonks. I'm Crystal Fincher and I'm a political consultant and your host. On the show, we talk with policy wonks and political hacks to gather insight into local politics and policy in Washington state through the lens of those doing the work with behind-the-scenes perspectives on what's happening, why it's happening, and what you can do about. Full transcripts and resources referenced in the show are always available at officialhacksandwonks.com and in our episode notes. Thank you so much for joining us today. I'm very excited about this show, where we get to talk with Chanel Rhymes, who is the director of advocacy at Northwest Community Bail Fund. Thank you so much for joining us. [00:00:51] Chanel Rhymes: Thank you for having me. I'm really excited to be here. [00:00:54] Crystal Fincher: Excited to have you on. Have been a follower of the organization for quite some time. Obviously, this has been a topic across the country, and really globally. We're behind a lot of the globe on this. But in our country, a topic especially in the past few years, and looking at just what we're doing in terms of our criminal legal system, all of the challenges within it, and what can be done to make our communities more safe, keep our communities more safe, and really move towards a world and communities where we meet basic needs and we don't choose punishment over healing injustice. So I guess starting out, can you tell me just what the Northwest Community Bail Fund is and does, and what brought you to this work? [00:01:46] Chanel Rhymes: The Northwest Community Bail Fund is a nonprofit organization. We post bail for those during pre-trial detention. A lot of folks cannot afford to access the services of a bail bond agency, whether they don't have the means or collateral, so we are here to fill in those gaps. Ultimately we would hope to see an end to pre-trial detention and cash bail, but, because we know that is gonna take time, in the meantime we work to reduce harm. So we post bail as well as just, make sure that the community is not harmed and folks can fight their cases from a position of freedom, which they're entitled to through the constitution and the Washington state constitution. [00:02:33] Crystal Fincher: Absolutely. [00:02:34] Chanel Rhymes: I myself came to this work in- I've been doing criminal justice reform work for a long- or, excuse me, criminal punishment reform work, for a long time. I, myself, am formally incarcerated. I am very passionate about those that have done their time and served their time be- the opportunity to go back into society and be a contributing member. I personally believe, though, that we need to stop trying to fix things after and start things from the beginning. Kind of like the, the babies in the river. I'm not gonna keep taking the babies out. I'd rather let's not put the babies in. So I'm trying to, we, myself and our organization, is trying to work to so that folks are just not incarcerated. And a lot of times folks are incarcerated just because of not having means. [00:03:25] Crystal Fincher: And this is such an important conversation. One, just as we talk about right now, we're sitting here in the midst of a crisis as defined by our public defenders, staff at jails. We had a historic letter earlier this year where both public defenders and corrections officers are saying, "hey, we can't handle the population here at the King County jail. It's unsafe. It's beyond what we can tolerate." And I don't think a lot of people realize that a lot of people who are in jail have not been convicted of anything. This is a pre-trial detention. They've not been sentenced. They're not serving a crime. They've not been found guilty of anything. It is simply because of a financial reason that they are sitting in jail and all of the challenges that, that presents. What does it mean and what kind of challenges does it pose when we detain people before their trials? [00:04:25] Chanel Rhymes: Oh, plethora. You could risk losing your housing. You can lose your children, custody of your children. You can lose your employment. And with all that comes, a rippling effect of other things, whether that be financial instability, just the trauma itself of going to jail. A lot of people that, say "lock them up," or "they just need to go to jail," never seen the inside of a jail. It's one of the most horrific places. On top of, with us being in a pandemic, you could potentially die, ultimately, from sitting in jail because there are still COVID outbreaks in jails every week. And so ultimately you could lose your life for something you haven't even been convicted of yet. And that's no way to bake it. That's not the way our system is designed. It's not supposed to be set up that way. Or at least they say that. [00:05:24] Crystal Fincher: At least they say that. It is certainly not what we've been sold. And so it's such a challenge. It is very destabilizing. And even in the case that someone does wind up pleading guilty or serving time, we're relying on them having the means to pay whatever fines they're going to be charged to do all that. And so if they don't have a job, if they have lost, as a result of being detained, all of the ability to fulfill the terms of whatever punishment they've been handed, that's a challenge in and of itself. And the bottom line is, a lot of people think putting people in jail makes us safer. If we didn't have this, they would be out committing crimes. And every now and then there's a case that gets publicized where they say, see, look, this is- bail reform caused this. Is that the case? [00:06:24] Chanel Rhymes: It's not the case. Number one, judges decide what bail is. Number two folks have a constitutional right to bail. The purpose of bail - and our Washington Supreme Court has said this - the state is not in the primary interest of collecting bail bond forfeitures. It is more concerned with folks showing up to court. That is what the purpose is. That, whether somebody is released or not, does not make us safer. There are tons of people who are arrested for violent crimes and don't spend a day in jail because they have the means to bail themselves out. Where are the folks asking about them? I think it's very interesting that bail reform and, nonprofits, people who don't make money off of this business, are the ones under the microscope, but yet bail bond agencies make millions of dollars every day bailing people out that sometimes do go on to commit new crimes. We don't hear about those in the news. We only hear about the less fortunate, which is those folks that are coming to a community bail fund or, mutual aid fund, and it's because we demonize poverty in this society. And it's just bizarre to me, in a sense, that we've gotten to this point. As if folks don't understand that wages have been stagnant for 40 years. The cost of living is going up. People can't make it can't survive. And so putting them in jail, and then if they are convicted or plead guilty just to get out, they now have a criminal conviction. So then that creates barriers to getting employment. And the other thing that you need, housing, that is the first, one of the major things that disqualifies most folks for housing, is a criminal conviction. So if we're also criminalizing homelessness, locking people up, then convicting them, and then they get out and they can't rent anywhere, and then we're like, "why are you homeless?" We are just creating this cycle and it's really a cycle of abuse. [00:08:38] Crystal Fincher: Yeah, and one really has to ask is the offense that people really are in jail for whatever they've been accused of, or is it just that they're poor and can't afford bail? And even just the issue of bail overall, for some reason, we have landed in a place where we think that a dollar amount is indicative of whether or not someone is in danger or is safe regardless of what they have been accused of, regardless of what kind of flight risk someone may be deemed to be. Hey, if you have enough money to, if you're rich, and and you can pay for whatever, it really doesn't matter. You're not gonna be in jail. And, we have seen several examples of people who are, just a small misdemeanor accusation which, often can result in dropped charges overall for lack of evidence, for just not being worth it to pursue in the system, yet they have been in jail and have experienced, like you talked about, the loss of job, the loss of housing, and that being destabilizing. And in fact that increasing the chance that someone is likely to be involved in their criminal legal system in the future, as opposed to if they were able to maintain their connections in community. And then also on the back end, just about everyone we're sending into jail is going to come out on the other end. So don't we have an interest in making sure that we are doing all we can to set people up for success and to not drop them into another pit, which it seems this just sets up people to do. What do you tell people when they're like, "it's there to make sure they come back and if they don't have bail, then they won't come back. So bail is necessary and if they can't afford it, then you know, they could just leave and never come back anyway?" what do you tell people who just say bail is necessary to get people to show up? [00:10:48] Chanel Rhymes: They can find us anywhere. The world we live in now, if they wanna find you, they really can find you. But, ultimately, most people do wanna get this resolved. Nobody wants this hanging over their head. A lot of times people don't show up, not on purpose. People, don't FTA, or Failure to Appear, on purpose. Life happens. There's life circumstance. Also, too, people wanna get it taken care of because they probably didn't do it. People aren't really decking and dodging. I will add though that even if we have a lot of folks saying people they need to go to jail or they need to do this, a misdemeanor? It's max fine, like 90 days in jail. So I think too, people have a misconception of what our punishments, our sentencing structure is, and the difference between jail and the difference between prison, and misdemeanors, gross misdemeanors, and felonies. Even with our gross misdemeanor, the max jail time is a year, up to a year, but after that, okay, they serve their time, they're back out, what are we going to do to help folks? What I tell people is how is this solving anything? Why would you want your tax dollars just to be wasted to keep doing this? And wouldn't you want your tax dollars to be used to help people. So they're not back in this situation? The amount of money that we spend on criminal punishment and police is just ridiculous when you compare it to what we spend on education. So if we really wanted to make changes, we would be investing our money in education, healthcare, mental healthcare, reproductive rights, all of those things. Never in our 40 years of plus doing this whole drug war or anything, have cops, police, arrest helped make us any safer or do any type of harm reduction. There's tons of studies out there that show when you reinvest that many within the community and provide people's services, recidivism goes down. I think it's odd that we just keep having to have this conversation over and over again, because we obviously know what's not working, but we are very, afraid to try what some people or some municipalities and governments have done that work. [00:13:11] Crystal: Well. And it feels like, for people who've looked into this, for the people who are the loudest on this issue on either side, they do know what the data says. They do know that the evidence shows conclusively, repeatedly - there was just a new study that came out and reiterated this just last month - that bail reform, not relying on bail and releasing people pre-trial, not subjecting them to all of the harms that result from that, doesn't hurt people appearing in court over people who have been detained, doesn't hurt their likelihood of committing a crime again, over people who have been in bail. So there is actually no advantage safety-wise. There's no advantage in the court system. It's not, "hey, a lot of people were failing to appear - weren't failing to appear - now they are with bail reform. It is actually the opposite. This is working to keep people safer. This is working to help people show up and we are not contending with how expensive this is to us as a society financially and in terms of just our safety and our health within the community. My goodness, courts are expensive to run and administer. Prisons and jails are so expensive to run and administer. All of the staff, all of everything required to do that is so costly. We're sitting here talking about upcoming budget shortfalls here in, the city of Seattle, throughout the state in different cities, yet when you look at the city's budget, such a huge percentage of it and their county's budget, such a huge percentage is dedicated to locking people up. And especially pre-trial, what benefit are we getting out of it? Why do you think people are so resistant to saying, "wow. Number one, we aren't getting the results that we want from our current system. It would actually save us money that we could invest in areas that we all know need it." Yet, lots of people still aren't there. Why do you think that is? [00:15:22] Chanel Rhymes: Because people are being misinformed, and fear-mongered by their local news and reporters, who I'm shocked at the things that they write and put out. And it's clear that a lot of reporters locally here have no clue about criminal law or criminal procedure. They are flat out lying to the public. And so then folks see that on TV, they read it in their newspapers, they read it online and they think that the sky is falling. Everything is super dangerous. I also think poverty is a lot more visible now. So people, their senses seem to think "oh, it's bad, it's more." And it's no, just more people are hurting and you're seeing it more. It's not hidden. It's coming into your neighborhoods. I truly believe it's miseducation, misinformation, and 30 years of watching Law and Order that people think they know the system and how things work. I blame our media to be quite honest, because they're just not being truthful. And most of the information that, it seems to me, that they're getting are coming either straight from prosecutors or straight from police. They are refusing to talk to anybody from the other side. [00:16:42] Crystal Fincher: And even, not from either, quote unquote side, there are actual experts on crime. They're called criminologists. We have lots of them at our wonderful universities, research universities here in the area, who are able to speak on what the evidence and research shows is and is not effective and useful and working in terms of keeping people safe, keeping people from committing crimes. And over again, they are coming up with data that says detaining people pre-trial just because they cannot afford to get out of jail does not keep us safer. Does not do anything to help our system to help reduce crime. It just doesn't do that. In fact if it had, if it has, any effect, it's the opposite effect. It actually makes outcomes worse. It makes people more likely to do that because they have been made more unstable and put in a more precarious position because of that. So if you were to talk to a lot of the local media, what would you advise that they do? [00:17:53] Chanel Rhymes: Educate themselves on the way that criminal law, that criminal procedure, works before just going with conjecture and their feelings and how they feel. There are laws, there are court rules, reasons why things are done. Ultimately too, the fact that they're saying, "okay, so we're holding people because they can't afford it." If they were so dangerous, no bail would be set. Obviously, a bail has been set, so that judge has deemed them safe enough to go back into the community once they pay that money. So you can't have it both ways either, it's completely they're there because they're a danger or is it really they're there because they can't afford it? Because if they were such a danger, then why is there a dollar amount that they could pay that says they're not dangerous? It just doesn't make any sense. I mean the argument of it makes us safer- it just doesn't. And I just think we've just been recycling the same thing over and over again. And then also, too, people, the internet, your phone, every social media, people are getting lots of just different images and things like things are horrible. "Seattle is dying, oh my gosh, they've closed my Starbucks." And it's really like people are homeless and hungry and that's, what's really- The fact that too, we are still within a pandemic and we have a lot of people in charge that want folks to just keep on going just out. "No, everything's fine." people are still financially hurting. We also hear a lot about, I'll just say that, media's writing a lot about retail. Nobody writes about wage theft. More money is stolen in wages than it is in deodorant. What does that tell you? I'm reading a police report and somebody is charged with stealing body wash, deodorant, razors. They're trying to survive. Those are essential items. Like we need to look at that. Like what services can we get that person so they don't have to steal the basic needs just to be a human and live in this society? [00:20:12] Crystal Fincher: I'm with you, I'm with you. So as we look moving forward, right now, you and Northwest Community Bail Fund are filling in this gap in our current system. Obviously there's a lot of changes that would be more effective if we made them. In terms of bail, what is it that you would like to see changed about our current system? Would you like to move to a system where judges just make the decision as they have in some other localities across the country? "Hey we're not really doing bail. We are making the determination about whether we feel this person is a flight risk or a threat to society. And if yes, we're detaining them and if, no, we're not." And throwing the idea of bail out the window in lieu of that? Or something different? What would you like to see in terms of bail in the system we're in? [00:21:10] Chanel Rhymes: There should be no bail. There should be no pre-trial detention. Folks are innocent until proven guilty. There's no reason for anybody to be caged. That's what they are, is caged. Before they have been convicted by a judge or jury of their peers. They've just been accused. We should be moving completely away from that. I would say, even just to start, we could have judges actually, follow court rule 3.2, which says you need to use the least restrictive means to release people. So that would be a start. We do court watching in courts around the area, particularly Seattle Municipal Court. We watch arraignment hearings. We, we take, track, demographic data, race, perceived age, age, date of birth. But we also track if court rule 3.2 is brought up by judges, by the prosecutor, or by the defense. And we recently had our data analyzed and it was only 13% in all of the cases that we had listened to that it was brought up. That's a very low number for a court rule to not even be mentioned during arraignment. And that has to do with whether folks are, public safety issue or, the means to pay to get out. So I think one, first thing is if y'all going, institute these rules and create these policies, you should follow them first. You're not even following your own policies, so can you accurately say if it's working or not? I don't think so, but ultimately it's a no. I'm an abolitionist. Get rid of them all. I just got my no more police book. I just started on that. This, it's not working. All we're doing is harming people and it's not sustainable and it costs too much. We could be investing those dollars in so many other ways that would actually give us a better return on investment because all we're doing is churning out more debt, ultimately, because if they can't get a job, they can't get housed, we're still gonna end up having to pay for it another way. [00:23:27] Crystal Fincher: Yeah. We're paying for it no matter what, just depends on whether it's an investment that's gonna yield a return later on. If we're dealing in, education and health and mental health and behavioral health support and treatment that do yield benefits for our entire community or whether we are dealing in the aftermath of pain and harm and paying to keep people in prison and incarcerated, which is just so terribly expensive and costly financially, and to our community, to that person, to the community, to everyone involved. What would you say to the people who- Obviously we always hear examples of violent crimes, horrible crimes, some horrible crimes happen that should never happen. And they see what someone has been accused of. They hear evidence against them and they're like, "that person is not safe on the street." And say, "we're afraid of what can happen. That they're a danger to society and based on what they've done, they should be detained." What do you say to people in that circumstance? [00:24:50] Chanel Rhymes: You have no proof that evidence is actually evidence that is true, or that can convict him. People are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law, not public opinion. There's a process that you go through during criminal procedure where the judge gets to decide what evidence gets to come in and what doesn't. We don't just get to decide oh, that's true. That piece of evidence that the reporters said right there is true. Also, we all know police lie all the time. We're just gonna take the word of police because that's who most reporters are getting their information from, they're just reading it from police reports and statements or their, communications officer or whoever it may be. So how is it that untrained people in law, just the regular general public would be able to determine who's safe and who's not? I also think if a judge has set bail, who are you to say that, better than that judge about the case? I don't understand that. Either we believe in these systems and y'all want these systems to do their job, or y'all just want to do it out in the public. Are we going back to that? Where we just doing the public, in the public square, and then everybody we decide how things go? No. To me, it's just bizarre that somebody be like this is what happened. You really don't know that's just what it was reported. People have to be convicted in a court, not in public opinion, it's just not the way it works. [00:26:24] Crystal Fincher: Which is true. And once again, this most recent study in Houston, which backs up prior studies, under consent decree where more people had to be released within 24 hours of a misdemeanor arrest, there was a 6% decrease in new prosecutions over the three years that followed that they followed those defendants. They said, "okay, everybody's saying we need to see whether or not people, are really gonna show up. We need to see whether you letting people out is really going to, make things safer as these people claim, let's follow these defendants. Let's follow these people." Over a period of years, not even beyond, not even stopping at, okay this one case, their current case was adjudicated, whatever happened, they went beyond. Eliminating bail, taking that out as a factor, releasing them and not detaining them simply because they can't afford bail, resulted in a decrease over the existing system. Meaning that locking people up made it more likely that someone was going to commit a crime again. Made it more likely that things would be less safe in our community. I'm for what makes people more. We talk about all of these things. A lot of it is punishment related. And I think in so many of these conversations, we have to decide whether we are going to prioritize punishing people or whether we're gonna prioritize keeping our community safe, because they really are at odds. And punishment is not working for us, any of us, and it's really expensive. It is so harmful to the person involved, it's harmful to the community and it's so costly. And we talk about funding for jails. We talk about funding for police. There is only a certain amount of money in the whole bucket. So if we're giving more to one area, we're taking it from somewhere else or preventing it from being invested in somewhere else. And I'm sure everyone listening to this thinks, "hey, we need, we do need more behavioral health support. We do need more substance use disorder. Treatment and accessibility and availability. We do need to make sure people have access to these things without having to be involved in the criminal legal system to get clean or to get healthy." And so it's just such an important issue and I thank you for just being vocal about this. For helping people in this organization and doing something that is making our community safer. Really appreciate it. If people want to learn more or to get involved or donate to the Northwest Community Bail Fund, how can they do that? [00:29:11] Chanel Rhymes: You can go to our website, which is N-W- C-O-M-B-A-I-L-F-U-N-D.org So nwcombailfund.org. You can follow us on Twitter and Instagram. I'm so grateful to have this conversation with you and inviting me on to talk about the organization that I dearly love, and we truly do wanna make our community safer and we wanna stop harming folks. [00:29:42] Crystal Fincher: Yeah, absolutely. Wanna stop harming folks. One thing that I do have to mention: I saw a report that you produced, and I feel like this was last year at some time now. You're not only doing this work, but you are, as an organization, being accountable, being transparent about the activity that's going on. You are showing results for what you're doing in a way that goes be above and beyond a number of others that I've seen. I appreciate that transparency in this organization. And then also wanted to mention, you brought up your court watching, also, earlier, which is such a useful and valuable tool. And just enlightening and informative because, to your point, lots of people don't know what happens in court. People have very limited experience, maybe someone contests a parking ticket or a speeding ticket or something. Lots of people have never stepped foot in one. And so have this idea from TV shows what it's like. It's nothing like what on TV shows. And so I sincerely appreciate that too. We're gonna link those court watching resources in the show notes, also for people to be able to access and follow. [00:31:05] Chanel Rhymes: Thank you. That is also available on our website, we're always looking for more court Watchers. We really need folks to go in person to courts. Seattle Municipal Court and Tacoma Municipal Court offer virtual courts so people can actually court watch from the comfort of their own home. If you're interested in court watching with us, please go to our website and fill out an interest form. [00:31:25] Crystal Fincher: Thank you so much for all of your information today, for what you do. It's been a pleasure to have you on Chanel. [00:31:31] Chanel Rhymes: Thank you. [00:31:32] Crystal Fincher: Thank you all for listening to Hacks and Wonks. The Producer of Hacks & Wonks is Lisl Stadler, our Assistant Producer is Shannon Cheng, and our Post-Production Assistant is Bryce Cannatelli. You can find Hacks & Wonks on Twitter at @HacksWonks, and you can follow me at @finchfrii spelled F I N C H F R I I. You can catch Hacks & Wonks on iTunes, Spotify, or wherever else you get your podcasts. Just type Hacks & Wonks into the search bar. Be sure to subscribe, to get our Friday almost-live shows and our midweek show delivered right to your podcast feed. If you like us, leave us a review wherever you listen. You can also get a full transcript of this episode and links to the resources referenced in the show at officialhacksandwonks.com and in the episode notes. Thanks for tuning in. Talk to you next time.

Dan reports on Aundray Evans, Governor Evers' appointee to Wisconsin's Juvenile Justice Commission who is not only a conviced felon, but also faces two open cases for gun possession and armed robbery.

Diane & Rick address Carolina's email about her hateful ex-husband, who is remarried with a new baby five years after the divorce - but still has a major axe to grind with her even though she is trying to include him in major decisions.  What causes some people to hang on to their vengeful attitudes many years after the divorce? Find out in this episode!To get a special discount on therapy through BetterHelp,  visit www.BetterHelp.com/DilemmaBecome a CPDilemmas VIP patron and support our work with co-parents. Visit our Patreon page to get special listener perks like VIP access to our monthly live Q&A sessions!Diane talked about research regarding how the well-being of the custodial parent is vital to good outcomes in children (and why torturing or making your other parent's life miserable is not going to fare well for your kids). Here is more info on the subject: Functioning of the primary residential parent is important. According to Lye (1999),  “Children of divorce do better when the well-being of the primary residential parent is high. Primary residential parents who are experiencing psychological, emotional, social, economic, or health difficulties may transfer these difficulties to their children and are often less able to parent effectively.” However, she also found that well-being improves with time since the divorce. According to Furstenberg & Cherlin (1991), “It is likely that a child who alternates between the homes of a distraught mother and an angry father will be more troubled than a child who lives with a mother who is coping well and who once a fortnight sees a father who has disengaged from his family.” Further, Johnston (1995) said that “Joint custody is especially harmful when one of the parents is abusive, rigid, manipulative, or angry that he [or she] is divorced.”  Kelly and Emory (2003), in their research review article, conclude that “When custodial parents provide warmth, emotional support, adequate monitoring, discipline authoritatively, and maintain age-appropriate expectations, children and adolescents experience positive adjustment compared with children whose divorced custodial parents are inattentive, less supportive, and use coercive discipline.” Furstenberg, F.F., Jr., & Cherlin, A.J. (1991), Divided Families: What Happens to Children When Parents Part. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Johnston, J.R. (1995), Children's adjustment in sole custody compared to joint custody families and principles for custody decision-making, Family and Conciliation Courts Review, 33, 415. Lye, D.N. (1999). What the experts say: Scholarly research on post-divorce parenting and child well-being, Report to the Washington State Gender and Justice Commission and Domestic Relations Committee. Kelly, J.B. & Emery, R.E. (2003). Children's adjustment following divorce: risk and resilience perspectives. Family Relations, 52, 352-362.Shop for cool NON-Impossible merchandise and purchase something fun! Support from our listeners keeps us going!CLICK HERE to subscribe to our monthly podcast email to get a sneak peak into upcoming topics!Do you have a co-parent dilemma? Call our voicemail number at 1-234-DILEMMA (1-234-345-3662) or email 1234Dilemma@gmail.comSupport the show

Patson Netha is 67 years old, married to Faith with 3 boys. His firstborn is 38 years old and his twins are 35 years old. He has 3 beautiful daughters, some call them daughters-in-law, and 4 grandchildren. Patson is currently a Bishop at Newlife For All Fellowship Church International and a Director of Turning Matabeleland Green which is a Christian-based organization. Their Vision is “ Unlocking the Productive Engine of small scale farmers in Africa”. The mission is “To equip small scale farmers with agriculture skills, inputs, and markets that enable them to reach their godly potential”. The organization values putting “God First, looking unto God and not being ashamed of proclaiming the Gospel. Social Responsibility, We have a duty to capacitate and empower small-scale farmers. Innovation, Creativity in content, delivery, and production. Continuous Improvement, Growth, and development of the team and quality of service delivered. Collaboration, Working together as a team, and working together with communities. Patson served as the former Ethics, Peace and Justice Commission of Associations of Evangelical in Africa from 2001 to 2011. He was also part of the Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe General Secretary from 1992 to 2001. Tune into our podcast today and learn more about Patson and the wonderful things he is doing in his home country! Inspiring humans brings you weekly podcast conversations with incredible people from our Global Community, whose stories will speak to the magic of life and the incredible human spirit. Our guests will motivate, inspire and speak to the incredible spirit within, calling you forward to step closer towards your passion and purpose. Listen to the latest episodes on your preferred streaming service. For more episodes of the Inspiring Humans Podcast check out the links below. Apple: https://buff.ly/3xJm1Yc Spotify: https://buff.ly/3iNJ4fQ Youtube: https://buff.ly/37SNueU

In this episode we talk about virtual reality in courts and how it can promote access to justice. Having to go to court can be once in a lifetime experience for quite many people. It might be nerve-racking and even scary not knowing what is going to happen at court, especially for self represented litigants. A lot of courts might not even see this problem because for courts and people who work there, it's everyday life. Besides financial resources, not being familiar with the court processes might affect people to seek resolution to their cases just because the whole concept is so hard to understand. We meet with Dan Jackson, Molly French and Shikha Silliman Bhattacharjee who have created The Colorado Virtual Courthouse, a guided 360-degree virtual tour of a Colorado courthouse, designed to help Self Represented Litigants navigate court and improve access to justice. It introduces key court staff, explains common court procedures, and provides resources and information to promote better legal outcomes for self represented litigants. Tune in to hear how courts could make the real experience of visiting the court more familiar and less daunting. Dan Jackson has directed the NuLawLab at Northeastern University School of Law since 2013. Dan is a 1997 graduate of Northeastern Law and a 1990 graduate of Northwestern University. Following a postgraduate clerkship with The Hon. Hugh H. Bownes at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, Dan worked for 13 years with the law firm of Bingham McCutchen, ultimately serving as the firm's director of attorney development after practicing in the employment law group. Molly French currently works as Technology Manager at Colorado Legal Services in Denver, CO. She is on the advisory board of the Legal Services National Technology Assistance Project, and has served as the Chair of the Colorado Access to Justice Commission's Technology Committee, and is currently serving as a member of the Communications and Technology Committees. Shikha Silliman Bhattacharjee jointly founded HELM Social Design Studio in 2015, the first social design studio in South Asia dedicated to partnering with human rights defenders and their organizations to ideate, fund and build social design solutions that promote human rights and access to justice (http://helmstudio.org/).

Learn about the new draft CDC Opioid Guideline, how it impacts the mito community and how you can raise your voice to address important topics still to be decided by the CDC. We will hear from: Charles Mitter, Ph.D. Emeritus Professor, College of Computer, Mathematical and Natural Sciences, University of Maryland; Former Chair, Department of Entomology Caroline Sanders Senior Policy Director, California Pan-Ethnic Health Network George Lippman Social Justice Advocate, Chair of the City of Berkeley Peace and Justice Commission

NCAJ Executive Director Kim Crouch says there are three words that capture the spirit of women in law today: confidence, competence and resilience.  In this episode, recorded during the Fourth Annual NCAJ Women's Caucus Retreat, host Amber Nimocks leads a powerful discussion about the past, present, and hopeful future for women attorneys. Her guests, Judge Linda McGee and Kim Crouch, have both held leadership roles for NCAJ.  Kim says the biggest challenges now facing women attorneys are work-life balance and supporting other women in law.  “The next big chapter for women in the profession is going to be for women to be able to lean on other women, to continue to support other women, and for all of us to lift one another up,” Kim says.  For women entering the field today, Judge McGee has nothing but kind words.  “[These women] have already seen challenges,” she says. “They've been leaders. They've been active. They've been involved. They want to give to others. They need to be able to pat themselves on the back about the things that they've already accomplished. They've gotten through law school, they've passed the bar, and they're out there ready to practice law. So I think they need to feel proud of those accomplishments already.”  Judge McGee encourages new graduates to follow their passions, find what will bring them the most joy in their next career move, and be open to where the journey leads.  

A note from Talking Taiwan host Felicia Lin: Dr. Michi Fu and Dr. Tsuann Kuo are helping 228 Survivors deal with trauma.   This year marks 75 years since the 228 Massacre and this week we continue our discussion on the topic. 228 refers to February 28, 1947, which could be argued is a misnomer because tensions leading up to the massacre of tens of thousands of people had been building for quite some time before February 28th, ever since the Chinese Nationalists (the Kuomintang) had fled from China to Taiwan in 1945. Some Taiwanese dissidents have used the term March Massacre instead of 228 since the massacres that happened were mostly in March of 1947.   Last week we talked about the lasting impact of 228. Under the subsequent authoritarian rule of the Chiang regime, there was 38 years of martial law and the White Terror era. Anyone could be disappeared, executed or worse for just saying or doing the wrong thing, or for what was seemingly wrong in the eyes of the authorities. The people of Taiwan were horrified and terrified. Generations dared not speak of 228.   If you haven't already listened to last week's episode, I encourage you to listen to it first to understand the trauma that 228 has inflicted on generations of Taiwanese.   My guests on this week's episode will talk about some of the ways they have helped 228 survivors and their relatives to start to heal their trauma.   I am welcoming back Dr. Michi Fu and Dr. Tsuann Kuo to talk about the work they did with the Transitional Justice Commission's “caring projects” that were set up specifically to help 228 survivors and their relatives. Three sites were set up for the “caring projects” and Tsuann and Michi were at the Taichung site at the end of 2020 up until February 28, 2021. Please note that the comments and experiences they share are limited to the work that they did through the “caring project” in Taichung and their personal opinions. They are not representing the Transitional Justice Commission, which as you'll hear in the interview, has a much broader scope with five main objectives.   The Transitional Justice Commission was set up in 2018 to investigate the actions taken by the Kuomintang between 15 August 1945 and 6 November 1992 (This includes 228, the martial law era and White Terror era).   Special thanks to Michi for her help in assembling all the guests for this episode and the previous one, both dedicated to discussing the topic of 228.   This episode of Talking Taiwan has been sponsored by the Taiwan Elite Alliance 優社 and the Taiwanese United Fund.   The Taiwan Elite Alliance 優社was established in 2000 to promote Taiwanese and Taiwanese American arts and literature, and to protect and enhance the human rights, freedom and democracy of the people in Taiwan.   The Taiwanese United Fund is an arts and culture foundation that celebrates the cultural heritages of Taiwanese Americans. Established in 1986, the foundation's mission is to facilitate cultural exchange between the Taiwanese American community and other American cultural communities, hoping to enrich and expand our cultural experiences. To learn more about TUF visit their website  http://www.tufusa.org/    About this episode's guests   Dr. Michi Fu is a second-generation Taiwanese American and a NATWA II member. She became a Taiwanese citizen after spending a sabbatical year as a mid-life adult. As a Taiwanese returnee, identity politics was an inevitable part of the ethnic identity development process. As such, she has been educating herself on Taiwanese history, including the 228 Massacre, that her family has traditionally remained silent about.     Tsuann Kuo, Ph.D. was trained as a gerontologist and has had both clinical and managerial work experiences in the United States before returning to Taiwan. Currently, Dr. Kuo works as an Associate Professor at the School of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University in Taichung City, Taiwan. She is actively involved in a number of organizations as the President of Taiwan Association of Family Caregivers, the Executive Director of Taichung Dementia Integrated Care Center and the President of Red Cross in Taichung City.     Here's a little preview of what we talked about in this podcast episode:   The five objectives of the Transitional Justice Commission How Tsuann and Michi got involved with the Transitional Justice Commission The caring projects that extended help to the survivors of 228 and their descendants at three sites (Taipei, Taichung and Kaohsiung) Michi's related work with the Museum of Tolerance and survivors of the Armenian genocide The challenges and difficulties in gaining the trust and cooperation of 228 survivors How survivors and their relatives were impacted by 228 How the program's activities helped survivors to reflect on their past and to make sense of it, and to build their social networks How 228 survivors tried to make sense of why their fathers were killed or jailed The workshops that Michi and Tsuann conducted to help 228 survivors deal with their trauma by discussing what PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) and post traumatic growth is How they used art as a creative form of expression How difficult it was for the 228 survivors to see something good in their lives that they could appreciate in their lives How they were able to get the 228 survivors to be more expressive The changes they saw in 228 survivors at the end of the program Michi's comparisons between the survivors of 228 and the Armenian genocide What Tsuann and Michi learned from the experience of working with 228 survivors How 228 survivors and their relatives struggled to be accepted in society What types of documents were made public and how they impacted the relatives of 228 survivors or victims If the Transitional Justice Commission has achieved its goals How the work of the Transitional Justice Commission is temporary The proposition by some legislators to continue the work of the Transitional Justice Committee as a Human Rights Committee The debate over the Chiang Kai-shek memorial Green Island, where political prisoners were sent Green Island prison museum The Jing-mei Human Rights Museum in Taipei The 228 Peace Park in Taipei How the work of the Transitional Justice Commission in Taiwan compares to transitional justice work done in South Africa The question of who should be held responsible to apologize for the atrocities that happened as a result and connected to 228 The challenge for people in Taiwan who are not able to face or identify the perpetrators of crimes related to 228 What can we learn from the 228 Massacre How Michi and Tsuann's families have reacted to their work with 228 survivors through the Transitional Justice Commission Tsuann's work with the Chinese veterans that came to Taiwan with Chiang Kai-shek and the Kuomintang after World War II     Related Links: To view all related links for this article, click link below: https://talkingtaiwan.com/helping-228-survivors-deal-with-trauma-dr-muci-fu-and-dr-sueanne-kuo-work-with-the-transitional-justice-commission-ep-172/

In Episode #050, the final episode of the first year of the How I Lawyer Podcast, I speak with not one but two incredible law firm pro bono counsels about their careers and how to integrate pro bono work into any legal practice. My first guest is Tiffany Graves who is Pro Bono Counsel at Bradley where she runs the firm's pro bono programs across ten offices. Prior to joining Bradley, Tiffany was the Executive Director of the Mississippi Access to Justice Commission an organization created by the Mississippi Supreme Court in order to improve access to civil justice and civil legal aid. She also served as the interim director of the University of Mississippi School of Law's Pro Bono Initiative and Executive Director of the Mississippi Volunteer Lawyers' Project. She is also an adjunct professor at the University of Virginia School of Law and the Co-President of the Association of Pro Bono Counsel. My second guest is Ellyn Haikin Josef who is Pro Bono Counsel at Vinson & Elkins based in Houston, Texas. Ellyn has been leading Vinson & Elkins's pro bono work for 13 years and is a recognized expert in the field. Prior to joining the firm, Ellyn was a staff attorney at the Houston College of Law Legal Clinic. In our conversation we discuss what they do each day in the role of pro bono counsel, the ways in which their firms select pro bono projects, the professionalization of their field and its impact on the quantity and quality of pro bono law projects to lawyers today, how all lawyers (not just junior lawyers) can and should build pro bono into their practice and what they can gain personally and professionally from the experience, what questions law students can ask to determine the actual commitment of individual firms to pro bono work, and what you can do in 2022 to use your law degree (or future law degree) to help your community. It was an inspiring conversation for me and I am sure it will be for you as well. The two articles mentioned in the episode are available here: 1. David Lash, The Case for Professionalizing Pro Bono Services 2. Esther F. Lardent, Making the Business Case for Pro Bono Many thanks for listening all year. The How I Lawyer Podcast will be back in February with new interviews and regular episodes. As always, if you enjoyed this episode, make sure to sign up for future episodes at www.howilawyer.com or subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.

Bolivia's October 2019 national elections convulsed the country as fraud allegations triggered widespread protests and social conflict. On December 13, USIP and WOLA held an in-depth discussion of the Interdisciplinary Group of Independent Experts' findings and an examination of how the GIEI's recommendations can promote the kind of accountability, healing and common understanding across Bolivia's political and identity divides that could ultimately prevent the repetition of the conflict, violence and human rights violations that marked the country's 2019 electoral crisis. Speakers Steve Hege, introductory remarks Deputy Regional Director for Latin America, U.S. Institute of Peace Juan Mendez Former Member, GIEI; Professor of Human Rights Law in Residence, Washington College of Law, American University Patricia Tappatá Valdez Former Member, GIEI Member, Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela Jaime Vidal Former Executive Secretary, GIEI; Coordinator, Follow-Up and Impact Section, IACHR Senator Patricia Arce First Secretary, Justice Commission, Senate of Bolivia Eduardo Rodriguez Velzté Former Interim President of Bolivia  Alejandro Bilbao La Vieja Chargé d'Affaires, of the Embassy of the Plurinational State of Bolivia to the US  Kathryn Ledebur, moderator  Director, Andean Information Network    For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.usip.org/events/bolivias-search-justice-and-reconciliation  

Misty Flowers, Nebraska Indian Child Welfare Coalition (NICWC) Executive Director, and Jill Holt, NICWC Training and Education Director, join us to discuss the mission of their organization in education, advocacy, and bringing people together. Part of this mission is served by serving on the Consortium of Tribal, State, and Federal Courts, which comprises part of the Nebraska Supreme Court's Access to Justice Commission.The consortium was created in 2018 to improve the working relationship between the tribal, state, and federal courts and to improve the public's trust and confidence in the various court systems with the ultimate goal of improving access to justice for all court users in Nebraska.  

The First Peoples' Assembly of Victoria believe truth is fundamental in the process of treaty negotiation, with the Yoo-rrook Justice Commission set to assemble an official record of the systemic injustice experienced by Indigenous people in Victoria since colonisation.

October is Pro Bono Month, and in honor of this, I sat down with Shelley Whitcher and Brynne Howard to discuss Iowa's Access to Justice Commission and the new 2022 Pro Bono Pledge for Iowa attorneys. If you are an attorney in Iowa wanting to pledge 22 hours of pro bono work in 2022, visit the site below.https://www.drake.edu/law/alumni/events/markscadydayofpublicservice/Host: Marissa GaalGuest: Shelley Whitcher, Deputy Director of Iowa Legal and Access to Justice Commission Vice-Chair, and Brynne Howard, Iowa Legal Aid Volunteer Lawyers & Pro Bono Projects Managing AttorneyMusic from The Epic 2  by Rafael KruxLink: https://filmmusic.io/song/5384-the-epic-2-License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Truth telling and Treaty, charting the course for a new shared future in Victoria.

Truth telling and Treaty, charting the course for a new shared future in Victoria.

Yoo-rrook Justice Commissioner Sue-Anne Hunter joins Chris Eddy and Kathryn Arndt to discuss the important truth-telling work of the commission, and how local government might expect to be involved and assist.

Welcome to Sojourner Truth. Thank you for staying with us. This is your host, Margaret Prescod. Today: Poetry for Haiti, the worlds first Black republic, which is struggling to overcome neo-colonialism, imposed poverty, state violence, and natural disasters produced by climate change. In the early morning hours of August 14, 2021, a powerful magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck southern Haiti, killing at least 2,200 people and injuring over 12,000 others, according to France 24. These figures, however, are expected to be much higher and many people remain unaccounted for. The Associated Press reported that at least 136,800 buildings were damaged or destroyed. The August 2021 earthquake that struck Haiti was the deadliest natural disaster of 2021; and it was the worst natural disaster to strike Haiti since the 2010 earthquake. Just two days later, on August 16, 2021, Haiti experienced a direct hit from Hurricane Grace, which poured over 10 inches of rain on the nation. There was further damage from flash flooding and landslides that led to more casualties, especially among those hundreds of thousands of Haitians left homeless by the earthquake. According to the United Nations, at least 1.2 million people, including 540,000 children, had been impacted by the twin devastations of the earthquake and the hurricane. Meanwhile, all of this took place within the context of COVID-19, state violence, political instability, and attacks on the poor. In the Summer of 2021, a benefit for the Haiti Emergency Relief Fund (known as HERF) was organized by longtime Haiti solidarity campaigners. HERF provides concrete material aid directly to the people of Haiti, such as water, food, shelter, medicine, housing, and more. The benefit, dubbed Poetry for Haiti, was an afternoon of soul-nourishing poetry and an opportunity to support Haitis movement for democracy. The event featured Devorah Major, San Franciscos Third Poet Laureate, Tongo Eisen-Martin, San Franciscos current Poet Laureate, and Shanga Labossiere. It also featured a heart-warming tribute by longtime Haiti human rights activist Pierre Labossiere, to beloved elders of the Haiti solidarity movement. They include: Mrs. Solange Aristide, mother of President Jean Bertrand Aristide; Terry Collins, a community leader and co-founder of KPOO-FM; and Jacques Antoine Gwo Lobo, a Haitian DJ, community leader, and activist with the Lavalas movement. The Sojourner Truth Team, myself and Assistant Producer Ramiro Funez, had the honor of meeting Gwo Lobo in 2019, when we traveled to Haiti to cover the grassroots uprising. We bid farewell to these beloved and highly revered elders. Today on Sojourner Truth, we bring you exclusive audio from this historic event, Poetry for Haiti. The event was co-sponsored by the Haiti Action Committee, the Ecumenical Peace Institute, East Bay Sanctuary Covenant, and St. Johns Presbyterian Church Mission and Justice Commission.

Welcome to Sojourner Truth. Thank you for staying with us. This is your host, Margaret Prescod. Today: Poetry for Haiti, the worlds first Black republic, which is struggling to overcome neo-colonialism, imposed poverty, state violence, and natural disasters produced by climate change. In the early morning hours of August 14, 2021, a powerful magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck southern Haiti, killing at least 2,200 people and injuring over 12,000 others, according to France 24. These figures, however, are expected to be much higher and many people remain unaccounted for. The Associated Press reported that at least 136,800 buildings were damaged or destroyed. The August 2021 earthquake that struck Haiti was the deadliest natural disaster of 2021; and it was the worst natural disaster to strike Haiti since the 2010 earthquake. Just two days later, on August 16, 2021, Haiti experienced a direct hit from Hurricane Grace, which poured over 10 inches of rain on the nation. There was further damage from flash flooding and landslides that led to more casualties, especially among those hundreds of thousands of Haitians left homeless by the earthquake. According to the United Nations, at least 1.2 million people, including 540,000 children, had been impacted by the twin devastations of the earthquake and the hurricane. Meanwhile, all of this took place within the context of COVID-19, state violence, political instability, and attacks on the poor. In the Summer of 2021, a benefit for the Haiti Emergency Relief Fund (known as HERF) was organized by longtime Haiti solidarity campaigners. HERF provides concrete material aid directly to the people of Haiti, such as water, food, shelter, medicine, housing, and more. The benefit, dubbed Poetry for Haiti, was an afternoon of soul-nourishing poetry and an opportunity to support Haitis movement for democracy. The event featured Devorah Major, San Franciscos Third Poet Laureate, Tongo Eisen-Martin, San Franciscos current Poet Laureate, and Shanga Labossiere. It also featured a heart-warming tribute by longtime Haiti human rights activist Pierre Labossiere, to beloved elders of the Haiti solidarity movement. They include: Mrs. Solange Aristide, mother of President Jean Bertrand Aristide; Terry Collins, a community leader and co-founder of KPOO-FM; and Jacques Antoine Gwo Lobo, a Haitian DJ, community leader, and activist with the Lavalas movement. The Sojourner Truth Team, myself and Assistant Producer Ramiro Funez, had the honor of meeting Gwo Lobo in 2019, when we traveled to Haiti to cover the grassroots uprising. We bid farewell to these beloved and highly revered elders. Today on Sojourner Truth, we bring you exclusive audio from this historic event, Poetry for Haiti. The event was co-sponsored by the Haiti Action Committee, the Ecumenical Peace Institute, East Bay Sanctuary Covenant, and St. Johns Presbyterian Church Mission and Justice Commission.

Welcome to Sojourner Truth. Thank you for staying with us. This is your host, Margaret Prescod. Today: Poetry for Haiti, the worlds first Black republic, which is struggling to overcome neo-colonialism, imposed poverty, state violence, and natural disasters produced by climate change. In the early morning hours of August 14, 2021, a powerful magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck southern Haiti, killing at least 2,200 people and injuring over 12,000 others, according to France 24. These figures, however, are expected to be much higher and many people remain unaccounted for. The Associated Press reported that at least 136,800 buildings were damaged or destroyed. The August 2021 earthquake that struck Haiti was the deadliest natural disaster of 2021; and it was the worst natural disaster to strike Haiti since the 2010 earthquake. Just two days later, on August 16, 2021, Haiti experienced a direct hit from Hurricane Grace, which poured over 10 inches of rain on the nation. There was further damage from flash flooding and landslides that led to more casualties, especially among those hundreds of thousands of Haitians left homeless by the earthquake. According to the United Nations, at least 1.2 million people, including 540,000 children, had been impacted by the twin devastations of the earthquake and the hurricane. Meanwhile, all of this took place within the context of COVID-19, state violence, political instability, and attacks on the poor. In the Summer of 2021, a benefit for the Haiti Emergency Relief Fund (known as HERF) was organized by longtime Haiti solidarity campaigners. HERF provides concrete material aid directly to the people of Haiti, such as water, food, shelter, medicine, housing, and more. The benefit, dubbed Poetry for Haiti, was an afternoon of soul-nourishing poetry and an opportunity to support Haitis movement for democracy. The event featured Devorah Major, San Franciscos Third Poet Laureate, Tongo Eisen-Martin, San Franciscos current Poet Laureate, and Shanga Labossiere. It also featured a heart-warming tribute by longtime Haiti human rights activist Pierre Labossiere, to beloved elders of the Haiti solidarity movement. They include: Mrs. Solange Aristide, mother of President Jean Bertrand Aristide; Terry Collins, a community leader and co-founder of KPOO-FM; and Jacques Antoine Gwo Lobo, a Haitian DJ, community leader, and activist with the Lavalas movement. The Sojourner Truth Team, myself and Assistant Producer Ramiro Funez, had the honor of meeting Gwo Lobo in 2019, when we traveled to Haiti to cover the grassroots uprising. We bid farewell to these beloved and highly revered elders. Today on Sojourner Truth, we bring you exclusive audio from this historic event, Poetry for Haiti. The event was co-sponsored by the Haiti Action Committee, the Ecumenical Peace Institute, East Bay Sanctuary Covenant, and St. Johns Presbyterian Church Mission and Justice Commission.

Welcome to Sojourner Truth. Thank you for staying with us. This is your host, Margaret Prescod. Today: Poetry for Haiti, the worlds first Black republic, which is struggling to overcome neo-colonialism, imposed poverty, state violence, and natural disasters produced by climate change. In the early morning hours of August 14, 2021, a powerful magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck southern Haiti, killing at least 2,200 people and injuring over 12,000 others, according to France 24. These figures, however, are expected to be much higher and many people remain unaccounted for. The Associated Press reported that at least 136,800 buildings were damaged or destroyed. The August 2021 earthquake that struck Haiti was the deadliest natural disaster of 2021; and it was the worst natural disaster to strike Haiti since the 2010 earthquake. Just two days later, on August 16, 2021, Haiti experienced a direct hit from Hurricane Grace, which poured over 10 inches of rain on the nation. There was further damage from flash flooding and landslides that led to more casualties, especially among those hundreds of thousands of Haitians left homeless by the earthquake. According to the United Nations, at least 1.2 million people, including 540,000 children, had been impacted by the twin devastations of the earthquake and the hurricane. Meanwhile, all of this took place within the context of COVID-19, state violence, political instability, and attacks on the poor. In the Summer of 2021, a benefit for the Haiti Emergency Relief Fund (known as HERF) was organized by longtime Haiti solidarity campaigners. HERF provides concrete material aid directly to the people of Haiti, such as water, food, shelter, medicine, housing, and more. The benefit, dubbed Poetry for Haiti, was an afternoon of soul-nourishing poetry and an opportunity to support Haitis movement for democracy. The event featured Devorah Major, San Franciscos Third Poet Laureate, Tongo Eisen-Martin, San Franciscos current Poet Laureate, and Shanga Labossiere. It also featured a heart-warming tribute by longtime Haiti human rights activist Pierre Labossiere, to beloved elders of the Haiti solidarity movement. They include: Mrs. Solange Aristide, mother of President Jean Bertrand Aristide; Terry Collins, a community leader and co-founder of KPOO-FM; and Jacques Antoine Gwo Lobo, a Haitian DJ, community leader, and activist with the Lavalas movement. The Sojourner Truth Team, myself and Assistant Producer Ramiro Funez, had the honor of meeting Gwo Lobo in 2019, when we traveled to Haiti to cover the grassroots uprising. We bid farewell to these beloved and highly revered elders. Today on Sojourner Truth, we bring you exclusive audio from this historic event, Poetry for Haiti. The event was co-sponsored by the Haiti Action Committee, the Ecumenical Peace Institute, East Bay Sanctuary Covenant, and St. Johns Presbyterian Church Mission and Justice Commission.

In our last episode, we explored how to adopt a client-centered mindset at your firm. In this episode, we'll build on that discussion to understand how to truly put yourself in your clients' shoes. By doing so, you'll be able to provide better service, and to align your firm's interests with those of your clients.Specific topics highlighted in this episode include: The importance of understanding who your clients are Techniques you can use to gain insight into your clients' wants and needs The value of the client journey mapping technique Which technologies and practices make things easier for clients How to increase Access to Justice by serving “the latent legal market” This episode features three practicing attorneys who excel at providing modern client service. To hear what they have to say, listen now!Our Guests:Inti Martínez-AlemánInti Martínez-Alemán, a third-generation lawyer from Honduras, is the winner of the 2020 Reisman Award for Excellence in Client Service. Inti is bilingual and has been practicing law since 2008. Inti practices business, civil, and employment litigation. His bilingual office, Ceiba Fôrte Law Firm, serves Hispanics in the state of Minnesota, and in New York State. Ceiba Fôrte's fees adapt to the needs of every client—especially for hardworking Hispanics, foreigners, expats, transplants, and other immigrants. Foreign clients and companies prefer Ceiba Fôrte because the firm offers alternative fee arrangements like flat fees, contingency, and hybrids. You can follow Inti on Twitter at @LegalMinesRachel RocheRachel Roche LL.M. TEP, Founder and Solicitor Director of Roche Legal in York, England, is an experienced, fully-qualified private client solicitor. In 2018, Rachel was honored as the Law Society of England & Wales' Sole Practitioner of the Year. Roche Legal focuses on Wills & Probate, Powers of Attorney, and Court of Protection work in the UK. In addition to her role at the firm, Rachel is also a Commissioner for Oaths, a full member of the Society of Trust & Estate Practitioners (STEP), and a Full Accredited Member for Solicitors for the Elderly (SFE). Rachel is also the winner of the 2020 Reisman Award for Legal Innovation. You can follow Rachel on Twitter at @Roche_LegalTiffany GravesTiffany M. Graves serves as Pro Bono Counsel at Bradley, a 500-attorney law firm with offices across the southern United States. In her role, Tiffany oversees the development and administration of the firm's pro bono programs. Prior to joining Bradley, Tiffany was the executive director of the Mississippi Access to Justice Commission, where she led a 21-member commission created by the Mississippi Supreme Court and promoted its initiatives to improve and expand access to civil justice to the nearly 700,000 Mississippians living in poverty. In addition, Tiffany previously served as interim director and adjunct professor for the Pro Bono Initiative at the University of Mississippi School of Law, and as executive director and general counsel for the Mississippi Volunteer Lawyers Project. You can follow Tiffany on Twitter at @tiffmgraves

In this episode, Caroline talks to proud Wurundjeri and Ngurai Illum Wurrung woman Sue- Anne Hunter. She is a cultural woman, and academic, who is deeply committed to self-determination and advocating for the rights of all First Nations peoples, having attended Harvard and spending the last 18 years working in the child and family welfare services.They discuss the importance of taking breaks and breathwork, amongst many other things, to cope during lockdown. We are fortunate to hear from Jedda, Sue-Anne's daughter, and a grounding mediation both she and Sue-Anne made for community to manage uncertainty during lockdown. They also discuss Sue-Anne's fascinating childhood growing up with 6 siblings constantly on the move and her longstanding career working closely with and for, Aboriginal communities. Given the many hats Sue-Anne wears, they also unpack strategies to prevent burnout when providing such acts of service.Finally, they discuss the landmark Yoo-rrook Justice Commission. In May 2021, Sue-Anne was appointed to the Yoo-rrook Justice Commission as one of five Commissioners. Yoo-rrook has been established as an independent Royal Commission and it will focus on truth-telling and healing for First Peoples, by inquiring into historic and ongoing systemic injustices perpetrated against First Peoples in Victoria by State and non-State entities since colonisation, until today. Yoo-rrook is the first Aboriginal truth-telling body to be established in Australia. When asked what this process means, Sue remarks that this process it's about the future generations, it's about justice, creating a more culturally rich Victoria with a new narrative' To access Sue and Jedda's meditation, visit the link:Kids connecting to Country Meditation - YouTubeConnection to Country Meditation

Looking at the legal industry through a client-centered lens is already transforming how legal services are delivered. In this episode, we're joined by three guests: a legal consultant and blogger, the president of a bar association, and a practicing Big Law attorney to discuss the major impact that a shift towards client-centered lawyering is having across the legal industry. From the effects that client-centric legal practice has already had on this industry to the effects it will have in the years ahead, this discussion looks at some of the reasons why legal practice will never be the same.Specific talking points featured in this episode include: The short- and long-term significance of client-centered lawyering, at an industry-wide level How client-centered lawyering can unlock "the latent legal market" Why prioritizing client needs is the key for law firms adapting to changing market conditions How adopting a client-centered mindset can help firms address the Access to Justice gap What for-profit law firms can learn about client service from non-profit and Pro Bono legal service providers Our Guests:Jordan FurlongJordan Furlong is a legal industry analyst and consultant based in Ottawa, Canada. In addition to being an author and the founder of the award-winning Law21 blog, Jordan is a Fellow of the College of Law Practice Management, and Past Chair of the College's InnovAction Awards. He's the Strategic Advisor in Residence at Suffolk University Law School in Boston, and he serves as co-chair of the Board of Directors for its Institute for Law Practice Management and Innovation. He's also taught or guest-lectured in courses at Suffolk Law, Queen's Law, and Osgoode Hall Law School that focus on preparing students to provide legal services deep into the 21st century. You can follow Jordan on Twitter at @jordan_law21Charlene TheodoreCharlene Theodore is President of the Ontario Bar Association in Ontario, Canada—the 10th woman and first Black woman to lead the OBA since its founding in 1907. She has served as In-House Counsel for the Ontario English Catholic Teachers' Association since 2012, and in 2020 she was voted one of the Top 25 Most Influential Lawyers in Canada. A leader and trailblazer, Charlene is held in high esteem for her ability to find practical solutions to complex legal issues, as well as the most challenging issues facing the bar and the justice system today. An engaging speaker armed with compassion, Charlene is sought after by those who want to shift perspectives and change the ways leaders and employees think. You can follow Charlene on Twitter at @CharleneYYZTiffany GravesTiffany M. Graves serves as Pro Bono Counsel at Bradley, a 500-attorney law firm with offices across the southern United States. In her role, Tiffany oversees the development and administration of the firm's pro bono programs. Prior to joining Bradley, Tiffany was the executive director of the Mississippi Access to Justice Commission, where she led a 21-member commission created by the Mississippi Supreme Court and promoted its initiatives to improve and expand access to civil justice to the nearly 700,000 Mississippians living in poverty. In addition, Tiffany previously served as interim director and adjunct professor for the Pro Bono Initiative at the University of Mississippi School of Law, and as executive director and general counsel for the Mississippi Volunteer Lawyers Project. You can follow Tiffany on Twitter at @tiffmgraves

No risk, no reward—in this second episode of season two of Matters, we'll take a high-level view of the legal profession—chiefly, why lawyers tend to be so risk-averse, and the effects that this cautiousness has on legal practice, innovation, and firm sustainability.For this discussion, our hosts, Jack and Nefra, welcome renowned legal author Mitch Kowalski, Big Law attorney and Access to Justice expert Tiffany Graves, and award-winning law professor and scholar Bill Henderson.Specific discussion points include: Why so many lawyers and law firms have been slow to adapt to technological changes, as compared to other industries. Why change is scary for many legal professionals, and how resistance to change stifles progress in the industry. How adopting a client-centered mindset encourages legal professionals to be more adaptive and innovative. What progress has been made in recent years, especially as the industry responded to Covid-19. Why lawyers' emphasis on risk management can have strong negative consequences when applied to law firm business decisions. How thinking like a businessperson emphasizes smart risk-taking, and why lawyers should adopt a business mindset. Listen in for these takeaways and more!Our Guests:Mitch KowalskiMitch Kowalski is a lawyer, writer, keynote speaker, legal operations consultant, and author of the critically-acclaimed books The Great Legal Reformation and Avoiding Extinction: Reimagining Legal Services for the 21st Century. A College of Law Practice Management Fellow and a Fastcase 50 Innovator Award honoree, Mitch has general counsel, international law firm partner, and Board of Directors experience. As a legal consultant, he helps teams and law firms to deliver value and perform at higher levels. Mitch speaks on legal service innovation at conferences around the world and writes for a variety of publications about the challenges of legal operations. You can follow him on Twitter at @MEKowalski.Tiffany GravesTiffany M. Graves serves as Pro Bono Counsel at Bradley, a 500-attorney law firm with offices across the southern United States. In her role, Tiffany oversees the development and administration of the firm's pro bono programs. Prior to joining Bradley, Tiffany was the executive director of the Mississippi Access to Justice Commission, where she led a 21-member commission created by the Mississippi Supreme Court and promoted its initiatives to improve and expand access to civil justice to the nearly 700,000 Mississippians living in poverty. In addition, Tiffany previously served as interim director and adjunct professor for the Pro Bono Initiative at the University of Mississippi School of Law, and as executive director and general counsel for the Mississippi Volunteer Lawyers Project. You can follow Tiffany on Twitter at @tiffmgraves.Bill HendersonBill Henderson joined the Indiana University Maurer School of Law faculty in 2003 following a visiting appointment at Chicago-Kent College of Law and a judicial clerkship for Judge Richard Cudahy of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. Drawing upon more than a decade of research, Bill is a sought-after commentator on the changing legal marketplace and has accumulated numerous awards. In the last five years, he has been named one of the 100 Most Influential Lawyers in America by the National Law Journal, the Most Influential Person in Legal Education by National Jurist Magazine, and one of the inaugural group of “Legal Rebels” profiled by the ABA Journal. You can follow Bill on Twitter at @wihender.Learn more about Clio at https://www.clio.com

We speak to the Chair and one of other the four commissioners who will preside over Victoria's ground breaking Yoo-rrook or Justice Commission. And new research has found that local court magistrates are the state-based judicial officers who suffer most from work-related stress.

Stand Up is a daily podcast. I book,host,edit, post and promote new episodes with brilliant guests every day.  Please subscribe now for as little as 5$ and gain access to a community of over 800 awesome, curious, kind, funny, brilliant, generous souls. Overcoming obstacles is a persistent theme in Tarra Simmons’ life. Raised in Bremerton, Tarra had a difficult upbringing. Surrounded by trauma and violence at home, she dropped out of middle school at the age of 13 and was pregnant by 14. Despite giving birth to a son when she was 15 years old, Tarra managed to find her way back to school and became the first person in her family to graduate from high school. By 21 she had graduated from Pacific Lutheran University with a degree in nursing and embarked on a career as a registered nurse. However – as is often the case for people with adverse childhood experiences – Tarra suffered with behavioral health issues including substance use disorder. Rock bottom came in 2011 when she was sentenced to 30 months in prison. Upon leaving prison, Tarra found herself facing the challenges of re-entering society after incarceration. Despite her nursing degree, she was only able to find a job at Burger King. With her wages still being garnished to pay for court fees, she faced economic insecurity, housing instability, and a lack of employment options, all while trying to rebuild her relationship with her children. Despite these challenges, Tarra continued on her path to recovery and applied to law school so that she could impact change at a higher level. Having experienced the lows of opioid use disorder and been through a justice system that does everything it can to hold people down, she knew that the changes that she needed to make were systemic. After graduating from Seattle University with honors she received the prestigious Skadden fellowship, which supports talented lawyers in pursuing public interest law. Tarra focused her efforts on providing legal counsel to formerly incarcerated people so they could end their involvement with the criminal justice system. However, when the Washington State Bar refused to admit her because of her past, Tarra took a stand for everyone who has been incarcerated. She challenged the Bar all the way to the State Supreme Court, where she won a unanimous, same-day decision. Since then Tarra has continued working to help formerly incarcerated people re-integrate into society. She is the co-founder and director of the Civil Survival Project, a program housed under the Public Defender Association that provides legal services and advocacy for formerly incarcerated people. Gov. Jay Inslee appointed her to the Washington State Reentry Council where she served as co-chair for four years, as well as the Public Defense Advisory Board. She also serves as an advisory board member to the Washington Supreme Court Gender and Justice Commission and is on the board of the Economic Opportunity Institute. Tarra will fight for everyone in our community, because she knows that each and every one of us has immense potential. Having survived poverty, violence, trauma, substance use disorder and incarceration, Tarra knows that sometimes all it takes is a helping hand and a second chance for someone to flourish. She also knows all too well the pitfalls of a criminal justice system that merely punishes people instead of working to uplift and support them. Tarra will fight, as so many people in her community did for her, to build fairer and more equitable criminal justice and education systems. She understands how the law impacts low-income people on a daily basis because she has lived it. As a member of the Public Safety, Civil Rights & Judiciary, and Healthcare & Wellness committees, Tarra brings that lived experience to Olympia where she fights to reduce incarceration, increase access to behavioral and mental health, and ease re-entry of formerly incarcerated people back into society. Tarra still lives in Bremerton with her partner, Eric, their three children (Dévon, Dominic, and Madyson), and the family dog, Anna. ---------------- Born and raised on Buffalo’s East Side as one of six children, India Walton became a full-time working mother at the age of just 14. She earned her GED while pregnant with twins who were born prematurely, an experience that inspired her to become a nurse in the same NICU where her boys’ lives were saved. As a healthcare worker, India became a representative in the 1199 SEIU union, standing up for both workers and patients from picket lines in Buffalo to the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court, where she was invited to speak at a national women’s rights rally in 2014. Continuing to serve as a nurse in Buffalo Public Schools, India witnessed the health disparities among our most vulnerable citizens and became determined to change the systems that cause these injustices. India’s commitment to systemic change called her to become a community organizer for Open Buffalo, establishing herself as a thought leader on a wide range of issues including criminal justice reform and fair housing. Her work on the latter led her to be named the founding executive director of the Fruit Belt Community Land Trust, for which she worked with longtime residents to develop permanently affordable housing. Having proven her passion for caring for people from infants to elders, India is real, resilient, and ready to be the next Mayor of Buffalo. Pete on YouTube Pete on Twitter Pete On Instagram Pete Personal FB page Stand Up with Pete FB page

What is it like to advocate for the poor and oppressed in Pakistan? What are the challenges that Christians and other minorities face? In Episode 4 of the Didomi podcast, Michael Mutzner and Wissam al-Saliby interview Yeshoo Ezra. Yeshoo is a lawyer and partner with Ezra Law Associates. He is also the Executive Director of the Presbyterian Peace and Justice Commission of Pakistan. To learn more on some of this episode's topics: Pakistan: Protect underage girls belonging to religious minorities from abduction & forced marriages, World Evangelical Alliance, 5 October 2020 Pakistan: Abduction, Religious Conversion, and Forced Marriage of Minors from Minority Religious Groups, World Evangelical Alliance, 20 August 2020 Stay up-to-date with Didomi podcasts via Twitter @didomi_co. We appreciate your feedback via email at contact@didomi.co. Music was generously provided by artist C4C.

The podcast version of Omaha's Law Day Lunch 2021. The video version was approved for 1 hour of general CLE credit in Nebraska. Included: (1) 5th Grade Poster Contest, (2) 8th Grade Essay Contest, (3) Lawyers in the Classroom, (4) OBA Public Service Award (Staff of the Douglas and Sarpy County Courthouses), (5) Robert M. Spire Public Service Award (Access to Justice Commission), (6) Alfred G. Ellick Lawyer Referral Service Award, (7) Laurie Smith Camp Integrity in Service Award, and (8) Featured Guest Speaker UNO Professor Mark Scherer - "Celebrating the Rule of Law in our Country"

Our Building a Better Cheyenne co-host, Ken Wallace, sits down with three of the founding board members of his AmeriCorps VISTA site -- Equal Justice Wyoming (EJW) -- for a bonus edition of the podcast. Ten years ago, to this day, the Wyoming Supreme Court approved rules and regulations for the Wyoming Center for Legal Aid (WCLA) -- the first state-sponsored civil legal aid program, which would later be rebranded as EJW. Patrick Day, Stuart Day, and Walter Eggers talk about their individual motivations to get involved in this now decade-long project, the path paved by the Access to Justice Commission, the placement and structure of EJW within the judicial branch, and resistance to the idea of state funding for civil legal services. We wrap up our time, together, by covering results of the recent 2019 statewide Civil Legal Needs Assessment, discussing the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic on legal aid, and getting-into what lies ahead for EJW and its 501(c)(3) arm -- the Equal Justice Wyoming Foundation -- in their 10th year. We're hoping to host similar conversations on this platform, in the near future, to continue celebrating EJW's 10th Year Anniversary and to raise awareness of the resources and services that we -- and our partners [Cheyenne Regional Medical Center Medical Legal Partnership, Legal Aid of Wyoming, the Wyoming Children's Law Center, the Wyoming Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault, the Teton County Access to Justice Center, and the University of Wyoming College of Law] -- proudly offer. Thank you to all the attorneys throughout the state for their work in standing-up and sustaining our program. - About EJW [ https://equaljustice.wy.gov/index.php/about-us ] - Access to Justice Commission [ https://www.courts.state.wy.us/judicial-committees-and-boards/access-to-justice-commission-ajc/ ] - Civil Legal Needs Assessment: Executive Summary [ https://www.courts.state.wy.us/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/20200827_LAW_ExecSum_FINAL.pdf ] - EJW Facebook: [ https://www.facebook.com/EqualJusticeWyoming/ ] - EJWF Facebook: [ https://www.facebook.com/EqualJusticeWyomingFoundation/ ] - EJW Twitter: [ https://twitter.com/equaljusticewyo?lang=en ] - Patrick Day [ https://www.hollandhart.com/showbio.aspx?Show=15689 ] - Stuart Day [ https://www.wpdn.net/professionals/stuart-day/ ] - Walter Eggers [ https://www.hollandhart.com/weggers ]

Acknowledgement of country News headlines Meriki Onus, host of The Black Block, speaks to Wurundjeri woman, Sue-Anne Hunter, about the Yoo-rrook Justice Commission - a truth-telling process expected to begin in July 2021. This episode on The Black Block was aired on 12 April 2021 and you can find the whole episode online. The Black Block is an Indigenous current affairs program that is broadcast on 3CR every Monday from 11am-1pm.  June Riemer, Deputy CEO of the First Peoples Disability Network, joins us to speak about proposed changes to the National Disability Insurance Scheme. We discuss mandatory independent assessments, the experiences of First Nations Peoples when accessing NDIS and the slow rollout of the Covid-19 vaccine to the disability community.  Amanda, an activist scholar of Aboriginal (Brinja-Yuin) and settler (Greek, English) descent, provides some reflections on the 30th anniversary of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody.  Apryl Day, Yorta Yorta, Wemba Wemba and Barapa Barapa woman and daughter of Tanya Day – a proud Yorta Yorta grandmother who died in the custody of Victoria Police in 2017, reads the demands of families whose loved ones have died in custody at the Naarm rally for the National Day of Action to Stop Aboriginal Deaths in Custody on Saturday April 10th. Steph Tzanetis, Harm Reduction Victoria’s DanceWize Program Director and board member of Harm Reduction Australia, which runs Pill Testing Australia, discusses the state of support availability for people who use drugs and/or alcohol and how this has changed over COVID. She speaks about findings from the recent coronial inquest into the deaths of five young men between July 2016 and January 2017 after ingesting what they believed to be MDMA and/or magic mushrooms. Today, 15th April, marks 30 years since the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody. Some events we encourage listeners to tune into: 1pm 15th April - Stop Black Deaths in Custody Webinar organised by NATSILS3pm 15th April 30 Years: Still No Justice organised by FISTT, WAR and Gamilaraay Next Generation6pm Monday 19th April - Stop Black Deaths in Custody Webinar organised by NATSILS SongsPookie - Mad

In a potentially historic move, the city of New York has created a Racial Justice Commission. It will examine the systemic race-based injustices and inequities embedded in the operations of city government, and it will recommend remedies. The commission's chair, Jennifer Jones Austin, joins Bob to discuss this major undertaking.

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On this Democracy Sausage, Gunnai Gunditjmara and Djab Wurrung woman and Greens Senator Lidia Thorpe joins Mark Kenny to discuss truth-telling, the right to self-determination, and the idea of a black caucus.What changes need to occur for Australia’s First People to achieve self-determination? Will the Yoo-rrook Justice Commission in Victoria put pressure on the Federal Government to begin a truth-telling process? And is Australia’s Parliament ready for a treaty? On this episode of Democracy Sausage Extra, Professor Mark Kenny talks to Gunnai Gunditjmara and Djab Wurrung woman and Greens Senator Lidia Thorpe about addressing past and current injustices against Australia’s First People, returning to grassroots conversations, and the lessons from New Zealand’s Treaty of Waitangi. Lidia Thorpe is the first Aboriginal person elected to Victorian parliament as the Greens MP for Northcote and is currently Senator for Victoria. She is The Greens Federal spokesperson for First Nations, Justice, and Sport.Mark Kenny is a Professor in the ANU Australian Studies Institute. He came to the university after a high-profile journalistic career including six years as chief political correspondent and national affairs editor for The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, and The Canberra Times.Democracy Sausage with Mark Kenny is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. We’d love to hear your feedback for this podcast series! Send in your questions, comments, or suggestions for future episodes to podcast@policyforum.net. You can also Tweet us @APPSPolicyForum or join us on the Facebook group.This podcast is produced in partnership with The Australian National University. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Triple premiership Lions player Chris Johnson joins the boys to chat about his role as head of engagement in the Yoo-rrook Justice Commission

The Victorian government has announced the nation's first inquiry into injustices faced by First Nations Australians.

Today we are talking to a rising young leader in legal technology. Her name is Amanda Brown and she's finding new ways that technology can make legal services more efficient, personable, and accessible. Amanda's the Founder and Executive Director of the Lagniappe Law Lab, a Cochair of the Louisiana Access to Justice Commission's Technology Subcommittee, and she's active in the ABA's Young Lawyer Division, where she serves as the Vice Director of the Disaster Legal Services Team. Join the conversation and find out why Amanda is excited about the future of legal technology and what drives her passion for increasing access to justice.   Read full transcript

The Access to Justice Fellows Program, a project of the Massachusetts Access to Justice Commission and the Lawyers Clearinghouse, enables senior lawyers and retired judges to partner with nonprofit organizations, courts, and other public interest entities to increase equal justice for all.  (February 16, 2021)     Questions? Inquiries about program materials? Contact Alan Johnson at ajohnson@bostonbar.org  

DLA Piper's Lisa Dewey talks with Nancy Drane, executive director of the DC Access to Justice Commission, and Becky Troth, executive director of the DC Bar Pro Bono Center, on the need for equal access to justice during the pandemic and beyond.

Preaching for the Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time, Rose Lue offers a reflection on using our God-given gifts fearlessly to cooperate in building God's reign: "Consider the Gospel’s invitation to share the talents entrusted to you in trust and without fear. Know that when shared in this way, there’s a promise of the talents being multiplied! And if we all used our God-given talents in this way, we would be, in fact, cooperating with God in building, in realizing, a world where love, peace and justice reign. " Rose Lue is a community organizer, justice advocate, and spiritual companion. An Advanced Lay Leader in the Diocese of San Jose, California, she has completed 7 years of formation along with the candidates for permanent diaconate. She currently serves on the Justice Commission of the Diocese, Youth Council of her parish, the diocesan committee for Catholic Campaign for Human Development, and the strategy team for Silicon Valley Sponsoring Committee (a group that’s growing a broad-based organization in the Bay Area). She is also a board member of Bay Area Conference for Associates and Religious, co-founder and leader of the Student & Alumni Network for the Graduate Program in Pastoral Ministries at SCU, and the co-founder/co-director of a community called GoGatherAsOne whose mission is to promote and honor our universal unity as one humanity and one people of God. Visit www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/11152020 to learn more about Rose, to read her preaching text, and for more preaching from Catholic women.

On Neighbourhood Watch, Justin and Zoe talked about the coronavirus situation in New South Wales, the released correspondence between Buckingham Palace and Governor-General SIr John Kerr during the sacking of Prime Minister Gough Whitlam in 1974, and a Truth and Justice Commission for Aboriginal People in Victoria.

The need for pro bono legal services for the poor has never been greater. Prior to the pandemic, legal services agencies were only able to meet a portion of the need. For example, due to lack of funding, legal aid programs in Massachusetts were forced to turn away 57 percent of residents who sought help last year. With the coming recession and millions of families in this country facing food and housing insecurity, this gap will surely widen. Pro bono lawyering will be needed to meet the great demand and fill the gap. In this episode, I am very pleased to welcome Sue Finegan who is a nationally recognized leader in pro bono representation. When I first spoke to Sue a year ago about being on the show, I thought it would be a good opportunity to talk about how pro bono can help build your legal skills and increase your career satisfaction. Today I feel it is a moral imperative to encourage practicing lawyers to do their part in proving pro bono legal services.  I invited Sue to talk about the benefits of doing pro bono work and where she thinks the needs will be in the coming year.  We also discuss how she has carved out her own unique career path and found great satisfaction in doing well by doing good. I’m thrilled to talk to someone who has dedicated her career to the cause. Sue is a Member of the law firm Mintz Levin, an AmLaw 100 firm based in Boston.  She is a nationally recognized pro bono pioneer with exceptional advocacy skills and a passion for helping underserved populations. As chair of Mintz’s Pro Bono Committee, she leads groundbreaking cases and manages pro bono matters for the firm. She helped to defeat President Trump’s first immigration travel ban in early 2017, engineer the passage of a Massachusetts restraining order law for sexual assault survivors, and create several innovative statewide model pro bono programs in Massachusetts. Sue was appointed the firm’s first Pro Bono Partner in 2007and manages the firm’s pro bono efforts, consisting of over 300 varied cases annually.  She also advises firm clients on developing and sustaining pro bono programs within their in-house legal departments. As member and current co-chair of the Massachusetts Access to Justice Commission for several years, Sue has been a tireless and innovative advocate for low income people in Massachusetts and beyond. Additional Resources MassProBono is a good starting place in Massachusetts The ABA is compiling a list of students interested in providing pro bono assistance. The registration form can be found here. This directory of non-profits seeking pro bono assistance PSJD, https://www.psjd.org (designed for students seeking public interest career opportunities, but is a great way to learn about different legal services agencies and can be searched by city, state) Pro Bono Net, https://www.probono.net/network/volunteer (offers easy ways to search by region and issue area to allow students to hone in on organizations they want to pursue, and may have specific opportunities for law students posted as well).

As Pro Bono Counsel at a large southern law firm and the former Executive Director of the Mississippi Access to Justice Commission, Tiffany Graves sees how systemic inequities affect minority groups on a daily basis. “Firms have to do more,” she says, to counteract institutional racism and bring much-needed reforms to America’s legal and justice systems.

Today on The B.I.Stander Podcast we welcome: Tarra Simmons About Tarra Simmons Tarra Simmons is a lawyer, a civil rights activist, and a national leader in the fight for criminal justice reform. Raised in Bremerton, she has faced some of the biggest barriers to success and opportunity - from poverty, to opioid use disorder and incarceration. It was with the help of this community - friends, family, colleagues and neighbors - and its resilience - that she was able to overcome these circumstances and become a tireless advocate for change. Tarra doesn't simply talk about challenges - she has faced them herself. After her incarceration, she experienced firsthand the challenges of re-entry. From economic insecurity, to housing affordability and lack of access to healthcare, education and job skills training. These are big challenges that many people from all walks of life in our community face on a daily basis. As a registered nurse, Tarra advocated for her patients and our community for over a decade. After starting her own recovery journey, she decided to go to law school to learn how to make a larger impact on the community. Tarra graduated with honors and received the prestigious Skadden fellowship to help people get the legal counsel they need to move on after criminal justice involvement. When the Washington State Bar refused to admit her, she took her fight to the State Supreme Court - and won in a unanimous same-day decision that highlighted the need for opportunities and second chances for ALL people. Tarra is also the co-founder of the Civil Survival Project, a nonprofit organization that provides legal and policy advocacy to help formerly incarcerated people better reintegrate in their communities. In 2016, Tarra was appointed by Governor Jay Inslee to the Washington State Reentry Council where she was elected by her peers as co-chair. He has also appointed her to the Public Defense Advisory Board, and she serves as an advisory board member to the Washington Supreme Court Gender and Justice Commission. Tarra has played a key role in advocacy efforts on behalf of her community, focusing on education, healthcare, and income equality. Most recently, her activism and leadership helped pass the New Hope Act, a bipartisan piece of legislation that streamlines the process for reintegration after incarceration. In addition to her work with the Civil Survival Project, Tarra serves on the board of the Economic Opportunity Institute and volunteers with the Central Kitsap School District to support policies that end the school to prison pipeline. She recently received Sen. Patty Murray's Golden Tennis Shoe Award and the “Woman of Achievement” award from YWCA Kitsap County. Tarra lives with her husband Eric, their three children, and their dog, in Bremerton.   We talk about her Candidacy for the 23rd Legislative & Kitsap County TODAY'S EPISODE IS SPONSORED BY: MANSCAPED Save 20% and get free shipping with the code TINY The B.I.STANDER Podcast is a conversational podcast unique to Bainbridge Island and Seattle that covers culture, current events, humor, music, sports, technology, politics, island activities, environment, quality of life issues, wellness and just about everything else. The intent is to introduce interesting people, ideas, and conversations. We are not perfect and that's OK! Thank you for your understanding.  Our Podcast is brought to you by: Town Hall Seattle Eagle Harbor Insurance Blue Canary Great Northern Electric B.I.Hoops & More Follow us on Facebook & Instagram  Listen on Spotify, PlayerFM, I-Heart Radio  Apple Podcasts, TuneIN, Castbox, Deezer, and more! Music performed by Band of Steves of The Island Music Guild. Music performed by Ralph Reign 206-780-6911 lessons@islandmusic.org  *additional sound effects from https://www.zapsplat.com Listen on Spotify, PlayerFM, I-Heart Radio  Apple Podcasts, TuneIN, Castbox, Deezer, and more!

For better or worse we can no longer live without our Smartphones. We use them to talk and text our friends; they keep our appointments, pictures, and business notes; they help us with research; they track of our children; they allow us to call 911 in an emergency. It’s a wonder how we ever lived without them, yet they have been here a mere 13 years, arriving in 2007. Smartphones have become a part of court process. They carry messages, photos, and information that are evidence in court hearings and trials. Yet, many courts forbid people from even having them in the courthouse. Must courts accept that Smartphones are everywhere? Is there a middle ground that can be reached? Justice Cynthia Cohen, Jeffrey Morrow, and TJ BeMent, share their insights and conclusions about this critical issue. This is an interesting podcast episode for listeners curious about Smartphones, courtroom security, self-represented defendants, courts, and court administration. Leave a comment or question about the episode at clapodcast@nacmnet.org. About the Speakers Cynthia J. Cohen is a retired Associate Justice of the Massachusetts Appeals Court, where she served from March, 2001 until January, 2017. Since her retirement, she has volunteered as an Access to Justice Fellow, working on special projects for the Massachusetts Access to Justice Commission. While on the Appeals Court, Justice Cohen was a Commissioner on the second Access to Justice Commission. She also chaired the SJC Steering Committee on Self-Represented Litigants, which, over a seven-year period, developed a number of court system initiatives to address the needs of litigants without counsel, including Limited Assistance Representation, judicial guidelines for hearings involving self-represented litigants, and training programs for judges and court staff. Jeffrey P. Morrow has been the Massachusetts Trial Court Director of Security since September 2013. In this capacity Director Morrow is responsible for the management of security operations in the Commonwealth’s 100 courthouses and for oversight of over 1,000 court officers and security staff. Prior to his appointment as the security director, Mr. Morrow served as a special agent with the Naval Criminal Investigative Service for over thirty-one years where his assignments included both executive and field assignments in the areas of criminal investigations and national security matters. Director Morrow is a graduate of St. Anselm College in Manchester, NH and holds a Master of Policy Management degree from the McCord School of Public Policy at Georgetown University. Tracy "T.J." BeMent is the District Court Administrator for the 10th Judicial Administrative District of Georgia. The 10th JAD covers the general jurisdiction superior courts in six circuits in 21 counties. He was previously the Court Administrator for the Athens-Clarke County Courts in Athens, Georgia, where he worked with all six levels of trial courts in the county. He acts as the primary liaison to the state and county governments and serves as a resource for the judges and judicial staff on many issues. Mr. BeMent administers nearly $2 million in state and federal grants and is a federal grant peer reviewer. He has been working in the courts for more than 15 years. Prior to coming to Georgia, he was the Assistant Court Administrator for the Las Vegas Justice Court and previously the Clerk of Court and Chief Administrative Officer of the District of Columbia's Office of Administrative Hearings. He received his undergraduate and graduate degrees from the George Washington University in Washington, DC, and completed his ICM Fellowship in spring 2015.

Episode 25 – Nuts and Bolts of Limited Scope Representation Attorney Damon Goldstein, Caseflow Management Specialist from Judicial Branch Court Operations, explains Limited Scope Representation in Connecticut, including how it came to be, the different types of LSR and how LSR can be used by attorneys. The different types of Limited Scope Representations are: appearances, counseling, coaching and ghost writing. Appearances can be self-explanatory, but the other areas are a bit more nuanced. For example, counseling is different from coaching in that counseling is generally advisory, whereas coaching is an explanation of a procedural nature. Some examples of coaching are how to examine a witness and how to introduce an exhibit. Lastly, ghost writing is something that is not allowed in other jurisdictions, but is allowed in Connecticut with a notation that a document was prepared with the assistance of counsel. Mike’s Rule to Remember: Don’t assume that just because there’s a self-represented party appearance that gives you the right to talk to that party about the case. Resources from this episode: Limited Appearance Form Certificate of Completion of Limited Appearance General Provisions Sections in Connecticut Practice Book: P.B. Sec 3-8(B), and 3-9(C) P.B. Sec 4-2(C), Ghost writing Rules of Professional Conduct: Sec 1.0 Definitions Sec 1.2 (C), Scope of Representation Rule Sec 1.5 (B) and (D) Fees Sec 4.2 Communications with Parties Represented by Counsel Access to Justice Commission

Tackling climate change is a daunting task – it’s only saving the entire world... – so where does one even start?   The Climate Change Committee might have some of the answers. It reckons Britain can get to net zero emissions of greenhouse gases by 2050. So what needs to be done?   In the Spectator’s latest policy podcast, Fraser Nelson gets to the bottom of these questions with Chris Stark, chief exec at the CCC, Laura Sandys, former Tory MP and Co-chair of the IPPR Environment and Justice Commission, and Jo Coleman, Energy Transitions Manager at Shell. Sponsored by Shell.

Amy is the executive director of the Arkansas Access to Justice Commission. She is also running for circuit court judge in the Sixth Judicial District, which covers Pulaski and Perry Counties. We cover a lot in this episode! Uppity Women is hosted by Stephanie Harris, founder of Women Lead Arkansas, a non-partisan nonprofit whose mission is to empower women and girls to engage in politics, policy, and leadership. This podcast is meant to showcase women (and men!) doing cool things; be a place for hard conversations we need to have before we can make progress (race, politics, feminism, etc.); bring people together to figure sh!t out and get stuff done; and generally thumb our noses at anyone who would tell us what we may or may not do as women. Women Lead Arkansas darylshawn.bandcamp.com/music Links: Access to Justice Legal Aid of Arkansas Central Arkansas Legal Services How a failing Atlanta school cut its turnover rate nearly in half (with the help of lawyers) Adverse Childhood Experiences Trauma-Informed Courts and the Role of the Judge UALR Bowen School of Law Rural Practice Incubator Project Preamble: We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America. UA Cooperative Extension Service Amy Dunn Johnson for Judge Facebook Instagram --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/uppitywomenar/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/uppitywomenar/support

It’s obvious that we need to take action to slow down climate change, but given such a daunting task – it’s only saving the entire world... – where does one even start?   The Climate Change Committee might have some of the answers. It reckons Britain can get to net zero emissions of greenhouse gases by 2050. So what needs to be done?   In the Spectator’s latest policy podcast, Fraser Nelson gets to the bottom of these questions with Chris Stark, chief exec at the CCC, Laura Sandys, former Tory MP and Co-chair of the IPPR Environment and Justice Commission, and Jo Coleman, Energy Transitions Manager at Shell. Sponsored by Shell.

Our monthly Legal Roundtable got underway as St. Louis Public Radio reporter Jonathan Ahl delved into a variety of recent local and national stories pertaining to the law with Bill Freivogel, journalism professor at Southern Illinois University-Carbondale, Mark Smith, associate vice chancellor of students at Washington University, Marie Kenyon, director of the Peace and Justice Commission of the Archdiocese of St. Louis.

Olivia Swaak-Goldman is executive director of the Wildlife Justice Commission, a new organization that's working to address the challenge of wildlife trafficking. A large and growing transnational criminal challenge, wildlife trafficking is in fact the fourth-largest crime of this type globally. On this episode of Rule of Law Talk, we discuss the work of the Commission and its impact on the rule of law.

Constance Slaughter Harvey was the first black woman to graduate from Ole Miss Law, and was the first African American judge in Mississippi. The Univeristy of Mississippi Black Law Students Association is named for her and she is a member of the law school’s hall of fame.Aleita Sullivan Fitch was one of the first woman to graduate from Ole Miss Law. She graduated at the top of her class, but had great difficulty finding a job because she was a woman. She has been a leader and mentor for other women. She is also an inductee in the University's Hall of Fame. Mary Ann Connell was the general counsel for the University, and has also been a great leader in our state.Michael Moore was the Attorney General for Mississippi from 1988 to 2004 when he filed the first lawsuit against thirteen tobacco companies, claiming that they should reimburse the State for costs of treating those with smoking-related illnesses. The settlement included $ 4.1 billion for Mississippi.Ralph Nader is an American political activist, author, lecturer, and attorney, noted for his involvement in consumer protection, environmentalism and government reform causes. Nader first came to prominence in 1965 with the publication of the bestselling book Unsafe at Any Speed, a critique of the safety record of American automobile manufacturers.Mississippi Access to Justice Commission recognized the need for a single unifying entity to bring together the various providers of civil legal service. http://www.msatjc.org/MacArthur Justice Center (heard on our April 10th, 2018 show) https://www.macarthurjustice.org/mississippi/ See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Eviction is a terribly destabilizing event that often leads people to a series of further difficulties. In this On The Road episode, host John Williams talks to Eric Hallett, Richard Klinge, Dillon Turman, and Michael Figgins about access to justice in housing law. This panel of housing law experts all provide free legal services to clients facing housing and eviction crises. They discuss what their unique roles look like as they serve their clients and talk about the need for more legal professionals to offer their time to this issue. Eric Hallett is the statewide coordinator of housing advocacy at Legal Aid Services of Oklahoma. Dillon R. Turman is a paralegal at Legal Aid Services of Oklahoma. Richard Klinge is the director of the Pro-Bono Housing Eviction Assistance Program at Oklahoma City University School of Law. Michael Figgins is the chair of the Oklahoma Access to Justice Commission and executive director of Legal Aid Services of Oklahoma.

The Oklahoma Summit on Access to Justice seeks to develop and implement policy initiatives designed to expand access to and enhance the quality of justice in civil legal matters for low-income Oklahoma residents. In this On The Road Report, host John Williams talks to Chief Justice Douglas Combs and Judge Rick Bozarth about their plans to revitalize Oklahoma’s Access to Justice Commission. They discuss the commission’s desire to educate Oklahomans on the importance of access to civil justice and how it affects all residents. They also talk about the ways the commission works to improve access: offering certified interpretation services, coordinating niche services under one umbrella for easier access, and possibly developing programs for educating pro se litigants. Douglas Combs is currently serving as Chief Justice of the Oklahoma Supreme Court. Rick Bozarth is the Associate District Judge of Dewey County, Oklahoma.

Although innovation in the legal field is present, its ability to provide solutions to access to justice issues is progressing slowly. Is the legal profession’s adverse response to empirical research and evidence-based thinking to blame? In this report from On The Road, Kimberly Sanchez interviews Ellen Lawton, April Faith-Slaker, and Amy Johnson about research in legal innovation, why it’s important for access to justice, and current research methodologies they’re using. Ellen Lawton is the co-director of the National Center for Medical-Legal Partnership which is in the Milken Institute School of Public Health at George Washington University, Washington, DC. April Faith-Slaker is at the Harvard Access to Justice Lab, a research lab that broadly focuses on access to justice issues. Amy Johnson is the executive director of the Arkansas Access to Justice Commission, which does research on legal needs and gathers empirical data on how the state allocates resources.

David Thronson is associate dean for experiential education and a professor in the College of Law. Thronson is co-founder of the Immigration Law Clinic and also served as Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. His research and writing seeks to develop frameworks and critical perspectives for analyzing the intersection of family and immigration, with a particular focus on children. He currently serves on the national Interagency Working Group on Unaccompanied Children and his past governmental appointments include service on the Nevada Supreme Court’s Access to Justice Commission, the Nevada Law Foundation, and the Nevada’s Governor’s Commission for National and Community Service. He earned his juris doctor from Harvard Law School.

On October 20, high school seniors in the Catholic high schools of the archdiocese – most of whom were soon-to-be first-time voters – were given a very special opportunity to attend an event called a “Teach-In” sponsored by the Peace & Justice Commission of the Archdiocese of St. Louis where they would learn more about forming their consciences from some experts in Catholic social teaching and moral theology, as well as learn some basic information about voting rules and regulations. Fr. Brian Harrison, chaplain of St. Mary of Victories, also joins the podcast to discuss his newly-acquired U.S. citizenship (which means he'll be voting in the U.S. for the first time) and how to form one's Catholic conscience.

For more than 25 years the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) has terrorized large swaths of Central Africa, roaming between at least four African nations with impunity. While multinational efforts have been made to stop the group and its infamous leader Joseph Kony, the communities of the Eastern provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo are left to deal with the effects. As head of the Catholic Church’s Peace and Justice Commission in northern Congo, Abbé Benoît Kinalegu helped to create an early warning network in which local activists report LRA attacks and movements, as well as set up a rehabilitation center to help children who have escaped the LRA. Kinalegu will be joined by Human Rights Watch Africa Researcher Ida Sawyer for a conversation about the challenges of working in the Eastern Congo, and how NGOs and local communities are working to stop human rights abuses and heal a traumatized region.