This week’s bonus episode is an interview with Marsha Levick, the co-founder and Chief Legal Officer of the Juvenile Law Center. We dive into the infamous Kids for Cash scandal—how it was exposed, the fight for justice, and the larger patterns of corruption that allow people to profit from locking up kids. We also explore the devastating impact of the War on Drugs on juvenile incarceration, the dehumanization of youth in the system, and how policing and policy have evolved from Reagan to today. Where have we made progress, and what work still needs to be done?

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Blume Professor of Law and Director of the Juvenile Justice Clinic and Initiative at Georgetown Law, Kris Henning, sat down with us over Zoom in the summer of 2024 to talk about the War on Drugs. She spoke about what led to her writing her book, “The Rage of Innocence: How America Criminalizes Black Youth,” how drug policies have affected kids in juvenile court and detention centers, the importance of language, and the role dehumanization plays in the War on Drugs.

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Check out ‘The Rage of Innocence: How America Criminalizes Black Youth’ by Kris Henning here: https://www.amazon.com/Rage-Innocence-America-Criminalizes-Black/dp/1524748900

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In this week’s bonus interview, we sit down with Yasmin Cader, Deputy Director of the ACLU and Director of the Trone Center for Justice and Equality, to explore the lasting impact of the War on Drugs on the U.S. criminal justice system. Yasmin shares what led her to become a public defender and her experiences practicing in D.C., NYC, and L.A. at the height of mass incarceration. We dive into the role of punitive drug laws, racial disparities in enforcement, police militarization, and the myths surrounding mass incarceration. Finally, we discuss the critical work being done to challenge the prison industrial complex and explore real solutions for drug policy reform.

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This week, we’re talking all things drug policy, harm reduction, and the lingering effects of the War on Drugs with our special guest, Dr. Sheila Vakharia. Dr. Vakharia is the Deputy Director of Research and Academic Engagement at the Drug Policy Alliance, which is a fantastic organization that addresses the harms of drug use and drug criminalization through policy solutions, organizing, and public education. Dr. Vakharia is also a harm reductionist, social worker, and author of “The Harm Reduction Gap”. Listen as Dr. Vakharia shares stories from her book and personal experiences, including working at a Syringe Service Program and the challenges of advocating for harm reduction in a system designed to perpetuate stigma. And we take a look at what’s next: progressive decriminalization efforts, lessons from Oregon’s missteps, and how the average person can make a difference.

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Check out The Harm Reduction Gap by Dr. Sheila Vakharia: https://www.routledge.com/The-Harm-Reduction-Gap-Helping-Individuals-Left-Behind-by-Conventional/Vakharia/p/book/9781032294735

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Welcome to the land of bonus episodes, where we release long-form interviews with a variety of guests about the war on drugs that we recorded in the summer of 2024. Here is our interview with Montel Williams. Now the host of Let’s Be Blunt, the number one rated Cannabis podcast in 2023, Montel Williams was a Marine and Navy officer where he undertook rescue missions and earned multiple medals of distinction. He then transitioned into the world of television where he became a household name with The Montel Williams Show, winning an Emmy in 1996 for Outstanding Talk Show Host. As you’ll hear in this interview, his show often tackled tough, controversial subjects, including the war on drugs and CIA involvement. We’ll hear about his transition from military service to talk show host, how his MS diagnosis led him to become an advocate of cannabis, and how the US used racism to perpetuate the war on drugs.

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Check out Let’s Be Blunt with Montel Williams: www.letsbebluntmontel.com

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In the final episode of our series on the war on drugs, we take a look at the present and future of this crisis with some help from Montel Williams and Dr. Sheila Vakharia. Yasmin Cader (ACLU) and Kris Henning (Georgetown Law) return for a roundtable discussion to offer their insight on the current state of the war on drugs and offer a hopeful outlook. From policy failures to glimmers of reform, we wonder, where do we go from here?

Stay tuned for bonus content with full interviews!

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Check out The Harm Reduction Gap by Dr. Sheila Vakharia and Let’s Be Blunt with Montel Williams 

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What, you thought we were done talking about The War on Drugs?! Well, think again! We’re back with a special epilogue and we're diving into Operation Pipe Dreams, the infamous federal investigation that led to the arrest of Tommy Chong. Join us as we explore how this operation led by John Ashcroft and Mary Beth Buchanon targeted businesses selling drug paraphernalia across the country. We sit down with journalist Brian Conway for an in-depth look at the operation's impact, and Tommy Chong himself alongside his son, Paris, who share their experience getting busted and reflect on the evolving war on drugs. It's a wild ride through one of the most notable moments in the history of drug enforcement.

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Follow our Guests:

https://www.instagram.com/heytommychong/?hl=en

https://www.instagram.com/paristchong/?hl=en

https://www.instagram.com/elbrayanmiguel/

https://www.instagram.com/pghindependent/

Sources:

https://www.laweekly.com/chong-family-values/

https://www.justice.gov/archive/opa/pr/2003/February/03_crm_106.htm

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/operation-pipe-dream-10-y_b_2745740

https://collider.com/the-wolf-of-wall-street-jordan-belfort-tommy-chong/

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/real-wolf-wall-street-lived-190304316.html?guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAALUINWjWcu9pmFFwl1XO5zewBMO7I0sXu_qS8YEWYEixh5aJ4UDIIqFJdR06DFb2gbD5B6i09_gPwroh-Z6gvveQYz2JQMzRKxBYKyTtQKjnya-3ud1iCd6YPnkTIzjIKrkT8MC94tyWOl1vH0xVd2-vAjm1HMR1xk70YEw7Mmh2&guccounter=2

https://www.legistorm.com/stormfeed/view_rss/385742/organization/95775/title/operations-pipe-dreams-and-headhunter-put-illegal-drug-paraphernalia-sellers-out-of-business.html

https://www.c-span.org/program/news-conference/anti-drug-initiatives/123135

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ihDXmNzc9JA&t=40s

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It’s the season finale of Fraudsters, and we’re reluctantly exploring the grim origins of America’s opioid crisis. From the Sackler family’s OxyContin empire, built on shameless marketing, fake science, and philanthropy-as-image-laundering, to John Kapoor’s Insys Pharmaceuticals, a scrappy underdog peddling fentanyl sprays, we unravel the fraud that fueled this epidemic. With half a million deaths, shattered communities, and contrasting fates for these corporate villains, it’s a class war in a pill bottle. Who paid the price—and who walked free?

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Follow the Hosts: https://www.instagram.com/seenanow/?hl=en

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Sources:

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/feb/13/meet-the-sacklers-the-family-feuding-over-blame-for-the-opioid-crisis

https://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/01/business/01sackler.html

https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/a12775932/sackler-family-oxycontin/

https://theconversation.com/a-dangerous-method-in-defence-of-freuds-psychoanalysis-5989#:~:text=According to Freud's theory%2C mental,caused by early childhood trauma.

https://www.bmj.com/content/suppl/2005/07/18/331.7509.DC1

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/12-napp-pharmaceutical-holdings-rhmq8hnpfgx

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/sackler-family-oxycontin-opioid-drug-scandal-british-connection-q3wd30s35

https://lithub.com/on-terminal-pain-and-the-origins-of-the-end-of-life-movement/

https://www.nytimes.com/1987/05/27/obituaries/dr-arthur-sackler-dies-at-73-philanthropist-and-art-patron.html

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/19/business/raymond-sackler-dead-of-purdue-pharma.html

al-health-data/

https://casetext.com/case/kottayil-v-insys-therapeutics-inc/

https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1516479/000143774915019892/R12.htm

https://www.justice.gov/usao-ma/page/file/947866/dl?inline

https://www.justice.gov/usao-ma/page/file/1010246/dl?inline

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/10/health/insys-opioid-bankruptcy.html?searchResultPosition=6

https://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/14/business/doubts-raised-about-off-label-use-of-subsys-a-strong-painkiller.html?action=click&module=RelatedCoverage&pgtype=Article&region=Footer

Links to clips:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LaxlJXpwkzs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JTR3R2jYw4Q&t=1127s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkeQifzvSNE&t=80s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtwFZwjCSTE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w327H5VNT9A

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2s8kybr-YFU

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Get ready for one of the most sinister and heartbreaking frauds this week – the Kids for Cash scandal. Judges Mark Ciavarella and Michael Conahan turned Pennsylvania’s juvenile justice system into their very own cash cow, sentencing kids to private detention centers they secretly profited from. How else are you gonna clear $330,000 of credit card debt…? From denying legal representation to forcing minors into facilities over petty offenses, their scheme destroyed lives for kickbacks. Join us as we unravel their twisted web of greed and power with guests Marsha Levick co-founder of the Juvenile Law Center and Corene Kendrick of the ACLU.

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https://x.com/marshalevick?lang=en

Sources:

https://www.congress.gov/congressional-record/volume-152/issue-30/extensions-of-remarks-section/article/E330-1

https://ursdayton.org/about/

https://thearc.org/

https://www.timesleader.com/archive/330195/news-local-news-523246-ciavarellas-wife-files-for-divorce-2

https://www.timesleader.com/top-stories/816416/ciavarella-denied-compassionate-release

https://www.bop.gov/inmateloc/

https://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/21/us/21judge.html?searchResultPosition=1

https://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/12/us/12brfs-JUDGESARECHA_BRF.html?searchResultPosition=13

https://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/28/us/28judges.html

https://graphics8.nytimes.com/packages/pdf/national/20090328_judges_charges.pdf

https://www.newspapers.com/image/535978548/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/508543336/

https://jlc.org/news/lessons-kids-cash-part-2-all-children-must-have-access-legal-representation-court

https://jlc.org/cases/am-v-luzerne-county-juvenile-detention-center

https://www.newspapers.com/image/504007342/

Clips:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xO-bXCdZpMw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jdhsf1u3JVY

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Picture this: it’s the mid-'90s. Coolio’s Gangsta’s Paradise dominates the airwaves, and America’s crime hysteria is peaking. It’s the perfect time for a new villain to emerge: the “superpredator.” Tune in as we unravel the fear-mongering myth born from flawed statistics, Ivy League arrogance, and moral panic—spearheaded by Princeton professor John DiIulio. We explore how this theory intersected with the 1994 Crime Bill, fueling mass incarceration and devastating policies, with guests Kris Henning (Director of the Juvenile Justice Clinic at Georgetown Law) and Yasmin Cader (Deputy Director at the ACLU). Through stories like Terrance Lewis’s—wrongfully imprisoned for 22 years—we reveal the human cost of a lie that reshaped America’s justice system.

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Website: https://fraudsters.fm/

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https://www.instagram.com/yasmin_cader/?hl=en

Sources:

https://www.newsweek.com/did-liberals-put-black-america-behind-bars-297096[↩︎](about:blank#fnref1)

Martinson, R. "What works?—questions and answers about prison reform". Public Interest 1974↩︎

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/03/us/politics/bush-willie-horton.html[↩︎](about:blank#fnref3)

https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/1992-democratic-party-platform[↩︎](about:blank#fnref4)

https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/1994-crime-bill-and-beyond-how-federal-funding-shapes-criminal-justice[↩︎](about:blank#fnref5)

https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/6/20/18677998/joe-biden-1994-crime-bill-law-mass-incarceration[↩︎](about:blank#fnref6)

Clips:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3HY45DY2B8w&t=356s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=izRCGHJmg0M&t=1568s

https://www.pbs.org/video/retro-report-on-pbs-season-1-episode-8-correcting-myth-superpredator/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0uCrA7ePno

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In the summer of 1989, President George H.W. Bush’s War on Drugs needs a dramatic touch for his first national address: a bag of crack cocaine bought steps from the White House. The DEA zeroes in on Keith Jackson, an unsuspecting young dealer, luring him into a dangerous setup to secure the president’s controversial prop. As Bush’s speech electrifies the nation, Keith faces life-altering consequences, sparking questions about political theater, selective justice, and a deeply flawed system. Tune in now as we dive into the chilling tactics used in America’s zero-tolerance crusade with the help of our guest, journalist Jefferson Morley.

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Follow our guest:

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Sources:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/local/longterm/tours/scandal/bushdrug.htm

https://dcplislandora.wrlc.org/islandora/object/dcplislandora%3A347387#page/27/mode/1up

https://file.notion.so/f/f/35cc2dfe-904c-4092-bad6-96c81acda7c4/dcc370ec-f359-4283-9c22-a5758bb6310a/D.C._STUDENT_IS_GIVEN_10_YEARS_IN_DRUG_CASE_-_The_Washington_Post.pdf?table=block&id=f1fbb853-ea9e-4704-b9ac-aa8350205be6&spaceId=35cc2dfe-904c-4092-bad6-96c81acda7c4&expirationTimestamp=1731456000000&signature=nN7Cu00VPq-ylGpJjuj5KroddB_75ZbPMeXMrcoDxus&downloadName=D.C.+STUDENT+IS+GIVEN+10+YEARS+IN+DRUG+CASE+-+The+Washington+Post.pdf

https://file.notion.so/f/f/35cc2dfe-904c-4092-bad6-96c81acda7c4/09fe9751-0988-45e8-8b6c-e25736ed042c/isikoff-0922_1989-full-text.pdf?table=block&id=f872be3d-4ad7-40f3-b412-fa8fa2e85de4&spaceId=35cc2dfe-904c-4092-bad6-96c81acda7c4&expirationTimestamp=1731456000000&signature=1wED3CdhQbVdtakW4sOFmGvfGaI2ElYLF9pJx-NjmOs&downloadName=isikoff-0922_1989-full-text.pdf

Clips:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtlkyBk6rcc&t=1471s

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