Earlonne Woods and Yahya Johnson of Ear Hustle, the acclaimed podcast, join DA Boudin and Rachel for the powerful and deeply personal Season 2 finale. The episode focuses on how the criminal legal system treats people who are incarcerated—and how it needs to improve. Earlonne and Yahya share their personal accounts of their time in prison; explain the system and laws that sent them there; and describe their experiences with their prosecutors and defense attorneys. The discussion also explores the harms caused by laws like Three Strikes and the many harms caused by mass incarceration-- eve ..read more

Following up on last week's episode on restorative justice, this week, DA Boudin and Rachel step back and look at the treatment of crime victims and survivors throughout the legal process.  To do so, they are joined by two leading advocates for crime survivors: Tinisch Hollins of Californians for Safety and Justice and Sandra Henriquez of Valor US (formerly California Coalition Against Sexual Assault).  What does justice look like for crime victims--and for communities impacted by crime? Do most victims favor retributive justice and maximum sentences? What resources, support, and ser ..read more

In this powerful, must-listen episode, DA Boudin and Rachel are joined by Danielle Sered, the Executive Director of Uncommon Justice, to talk about the process known as restorative justice. While breaking down some of the myths and facts about restorative justice, this episode explores the ways the criminal legal system can better center crime victims and survivors. Danielle explains how restorative justice brings healing along with accountability--and leads to victims reporting greater satisfaction than the traditional legal process.  The group also discusses how restorative justice play ..read more

In the wake of an increase in hate and violence against the AAPI community, DA Boudin and Rachel are joined by Professor Shirin Sinnar to discuss hate crimes.  They explore the history of hate crime laws, the limits of their use, and their impact.  Are hate crime laws helpful in deterring or preventing hate crimes? Do they serve other purposes? How do hate crimes impact different communities who face hate? They also discuss Professor Sinnar's recent report on alternative responses to hate crimes. Link to Professor Sinnar's report, written in partnership between Stanford La ..read more

Season 2 returns from intermission with an insightful episode examining the impact of life sentences. DA Boudin and Rachel are joined by Keith Wattley, the Founder and Executive Director of UnCommon, who represents people sentenced to life sentences in California at their parole hearings. They discuss the impact of life sentences; how the parole process works under the law as well as in practice, and how it can be improved. They also explore the ways in which prisons too often fail those who are sentenced to life by denying their humanity. Finally, they discuss how prosecutors like DA Boudin h ..read more

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DA Boudin and Rachel are joined by Tim Black of the renowned CAHOOTS (Crisis Assistance Helping Out on the Streets) program in Oregon, an innovative program that provides alternatives to policing by sending trained mental health first responders to handle crises involving mental illness, homelessness, and addiction. DA Boudin, Rachel and Tim talk about the criminalization of mental illness throughout the legal system and explore ways the system can better help those struggling with mental health and addiction. Tim shares specific examples from his work with CAHOOTS to help rethink how our lega ..read more

DA Boudin and Rachel are joined this week by Patrisse Cullors, the cofounder of the Black Lives Matter movement. They discuss the long-term impact of the Black Lives Matter movement for people of color in the wake of George Floyd's murder and the trial and conviction of Derek Chauvin. The conversation is both broad and deep as it covers police accountability; mental health; and intersectionality. The group also explores the opposition to progressive prosecutors and the push to hold police accountable. Link to purchase Patrisse's book, When They Call You a Terrorist W Magazine profil ..read more

DA Boudin and Rachel are joined by Zach Norris, Executive Director of the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights and the author of Defund Fear: Safety Without Policing, Prisons and Punishment, to talk about all of the ways the legal system impacts kids.  They discuss the criminalization of kids of color; the impacts of juvenile incarceration; and the differences between the juvenile and adult systems—as well as how it all affects kids and their families.  Zach also discusses the ways in which prosecutors can effect change for kids in the system. For more information: Link to p ..read more

The first thematic episode of Season 2 focuses on immigrants in the criminal legal system. Raha Jorjani, Director of Immigration Defense at the Alameda County Public Defender’s Office and an expert on “crimmigration”—the intersection of criminal and immigration law—joins DA Boudin and Rachel for this in-depth discussion. The conversation explores all the ways in which the criminal legal system fails and can improve its treatment of immigrants—whether as crime victims or as the accused in criminal cases. Raha also discusses the ways in which policy decisions have impacted immigrants throughout ..read more