Everyday Injustice

In this week’s episode of Everyday Injustice, host David Greenwald speaks with author and researcher Delani Bartlette about her new book, The Dumond Affair, which unpacks a little-known but profoundly disturbing case that exposed the dangerous collision of criminal justice, politics, and conspiracy theory. At the center of the story is Wayne Dumond, a man convicted of raping a 17-year-old Arkansas cheerleader who happened to be distantly related to then-Governor Bill Clinton. Despite a conviction and sentencing by a jury, Dumond became a cause célèbre among evangelical and right-wing circles who claimed he was a political prisoner — a narrative that ultimately led to his release under Governor Mike Huckabee.

Bartlette traces how Dumond’s wife and a network of evangelical figures, including a powerful Baptist radio preacher, weaponized conspiracy theories to frame Dumond’s imprisonment as a Clinton vendetta. This pressure campaign found a receptive audience in Huckabee, who had benefited politically from that same religious network. When Huckabee took office, he pushed the parole board to release Dumond — despite protests from law enforcement, prosecutors, and the original victim. Tragically, Dumond went on to rape and murder two women in Missouri, a fact that still haunts the case and raises questions about the cost of political intervention in the justice system.

What makes The Dumond Affair so relevant today, Bartlette argues, is its eerie foreshadowing of the disinformation-fueled movements that have come to dominate American politics in the Trump era — from Pizzagate to QAnon to January 6. She connects the dots between 1990s Arkansas, the right-wing media ecosystem that took root there, and the modern conspiracy infrastructure we see now. The same rhetorical strategies and manufactured outrage that once fueled attacks on the Clintons now animate the broader assault on democracy itself.

At its core, the story is also a cautionary tale about the erosion of legal standards when ideology eclipses evidence. As Bartlette emphasizes, the justice system failed not because of a lack of process, but because of pressure to subvert it. From the sheriff who kept Dumond’s testicles in a jar, to the media’s complicity in elevating tabloid claims to national prominence, to the chilling aftermath of Dumond’s release, The Dumond Affair offers a compelling narrative of how justice goes awry — and what that means for our politics today.

Today on Everyday Injustice, we revisit a case that has haunted the justice system for nearly half a century—the case of Chief Douglas Stankewitz. Back on the show is attorney Alexandra Cock, who has devoted years to fighting for Chief’s release. Her legal work has uncovered a disturbing pattern of official misconduct, evidentiary irregularities, and racial bias that cast deep doubt on the integrity of the conviction. As someone who was just five years old when Chief went to prison—and is now over 50—I find it unconscionable that this case is still unresolved.

We first covered Chief’s habeas hearings in 2024, which raised compelling questions about forensic evidence, trial testimony, and lost or mishandled evidence. Despite these serious concerns, the judge ultimately denied the habeas petition—mischaracterizing key facts and offering little accountability. With the habeas route closed, Chief’s legal team is now turning to a full re-sentencing hearing and two Racial Justice Act motions that may finally open the door to his release. These motions highlight the deeply racialized context of the prosecution and trial, including the removal of the only Native American juror and inflammatory rhetoric used during sentencing.

In this episode, Alexandra walks us through the latest legal developments and the broader implications of this case. From questions about prosecutorial overreach to the sheer human toll of decades in solitary confinement, we examine what it means when a justice system refuses to correct its mistakes—even in the face of overwhelming evidence. Alexandra’s insights also touch on Chief’s life behind bars, his extraordinary resilience, and the powerful support network rallying for his freedom.

This conversation is not just about one man’s fight for justice—it’s about what kind of society we are willing to be. It asks whether courts are capable of acknowledging past wrongs, and whether political expediency will once again override moral clarity. As we prepare for a critical re-sentencing hearing, this episode serves as both a legal update and a call to action. Because after 47 years in prison, the question isn’t whether Chief deserves freedom—it’s what excuse the system will offer next for denying it.

In this episode of Everyday Injustice, host David Greenwald welcomes Raj Jayadev, founder of Silicon Valley De-Bug, to discuss the grassroots origins of one of the most transformative movements in criminal justice today: participatory defense. Originally launched as a worker collective to give voice to the overlooked communities of Silicon Valley’s booming tech economy, Silicon Valley De-Bug evolved over the years into a hub of grassroots organizing for families facing the carceral system. Jayadev recounts how their early efforts to create community-driven platforms laid the groundwork for deeper engagement with issues of racial profiling, police violence, and court advocacy.

A pivotal moment in De-Bug’s evolution came with the police killing of Rudy Cardenas in 2004, an act of mistaken identity that galvanized the organization to support families seeking justice. As more families affected by police brutality and prosecution turned to De-Bug, the group realized that courtrooms, not just city streets, needed to be sites of community organizing. What began as informal meetings with families soon formalized into a national movement known as participatory defense—where community members actively support and reshape court outcomes by working alongside public defenders and their loved ones facing charges.

Jayadev shares how participatory defense has grown far beyond Silicon Valley, inspiring over 55 hubs nationwide and producing tangible results: shortened sentences, case dismissals, and strengthened communities. He explains how this approach, rooted in collective problem-solving and storytelling, has even bridged long-standing divides between public defenders and the communities they serve. Social biography packets, court support, and direct advocacy have transformed what once seemed like solitary battles against overwhelming odds into collective campaigns for justice.

Throughout the episode, Jayadev underscores a powerful lesson: real systemic change doesn’t require waiting for permission or institutional reform. It starts with families and communities refusing to be bystanders and instead inserting themselves into the process—with courage, audacity, and relentless hope. He encourages listeners to find or build participatory defense hubs in their communities, and to believe that even in the face of daunting systems, ordinary people have the power to bend the arc of justice back toward humanity.

This week on Everyday Injustice we speak with Bianca Tylek from WorthRises.

In her new book The Prison Industry: How It Works and Who Profits, Bianca Tylek pulls back the curtain on the vast network of corporations, investors, and government actors that profit from human incarceration. Drawing on her background in both Wall Street and public interest law, Tylek reveals how the $80 billion prison economy monetizes every aspect of imprisonment—from phone calls to healthcare—and disproportionately exploits Black, brown, and low-income communities.

While private prisons are often the face of the system, Tylek emphasizes they represent only a fraction of the problem. Far more insidious are the industries that operate within prisons, profiting off captive markets with little oversight.

The book traces financial connections to powerful private equity firms like H.I.G. Capital and Platinum Equity, which invest heavily in prison telecom and healthcare services, often delivering substandard care while reaping massive profits.

Tylek recounts organizing divestment campaigns, including one in which a public school worker demanded her pension not be invested in incarceration.

With the looming possibility of renewed mass immigration enforcement and expanded detention under a second Trump administration, Tylek warns that these financial actors are preparing for a “gold rush” fueled by human suffering.

Yet the book isn’t just an exposé—it’s a blueprint for resistance. Tylek highlights divestment campaigns, legislative advocacy, and public pressure as tools to make incarceration less profitable and more transparent. Through vivid storytelling and firsthand accounts,

The Prison Industry humanizes those caught in this web of exploitation and urges readers to see incarceration not as an inevitable system, but as a constructed one that can be dismantled.

Tylek’s message is clear: “Justice and profit are incompatible.”

This week on Everyday Injustice, former Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price reflected on her tenure and the broader political moment during a wide-ranging interview.

She spoke candidly about the rise of authoritarianism in the U.S., drawing parallels between Trump’s second term and historical fascist regimes, particularly Nazi Germany. Price warned of escalating attacks on immigrants and civil liberties, citing Guantánamo deportations and racialized immigration enforcement.

She detailed systemic trauma within the DA’s office, describing outdated technology, lack of wellness support, and the emotional toll on prosecutors handling violent cases. She emphasized the need for trauma-informed approaches and internal reform in the justice system.

Price also addressed the media’s hostile treatment of her, noting that she received nearly triple the coverage of her predecessor—most of it negative. She connected this media scrutiny to her identity as a Black woman and a reform-minded prosecutor. She criticized local media for ignoring major stories, like the jury discrimination scandal in Alameda death penalty cases, which she believes triggered backlash against her reforms.

She defended her policy legacy, including the use of enhancements and the launch of a public DA Dashboard. Price argued that real change in criminal justice must come from within, despite fierce resistance, and she highlighted the work of fellow reform prosecutors across the country.

Looking ahead, she introduced her podcast, Pamela Price Unfiltered, as a platform for open dialogue about local politics, national uncertainty, and the future of justice.

On a recent episode of Everyday Injustice, host David Greenwald sat down with Francisco Ugarte, immigration attorney with the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office, to discuss the chilling escalation of immigration enforcement under the renewed Trump administration—and why Ugarte sees hope and resistance rising in response.

Ugarte described how mass deportation rhetoric, arrest quotas, and threats to send migrants to places like Guantánamo are being used as deliberate distractions from deeper political agendas. “It’s about getting the country to fight each other so [those in power] can get away with what they’re trying to get away with,” Ugarte said.

While not much has changed legally yet, fear and panic have surged. Ugarte emphasized that immigrants still have rights—especially due process rights—and that power lies in organizing, challenging unlawful actions in court, and telling the real human stories behind these policies. “We’re being gaslit by the national media,” he said, urging people to look beyond Trump’s provocations and see the strength of local resistance, such as San Francisco’s robust sanctuary protections.

The conversation also examined the intersection of immigration and criminal justice. Ugarte explained that immigrants—including green card holders—can face deportation for minor offenses. He discussed how public defenders like himself are fighting back, drawing on California law that allows representation for those unjustly persecuted even in civil matters like immigration.

Perhaps most powerful was Ugarte’s insistence on optimism. Reflecting on his own family’s history of migration from Ireland and Spain, he reminded listeners that the U.S. has always been a nation of immigrants—and that resistance has worked before. “Trump tried to end DACA. We fought back, and we won,” he said.

The podcast ended with a call to action: to resist fear, fight misinformation, and build bridges between immigrants and working-class citizens. “We have to transform how we think about this,” Ugarte said. “We can step up—we’ve done it before, and we can do it again.”

In a new episode of Everyday Injustice, sociologist and author Brittany Friedman discusses her new book Carceral Apartheid, exposing the racialized architecture of the U.S. prison system and its deep historical roots.

Friedman coined the term “carceral apartheid” to describe how modern systems of incarceration enforce racial division and social control. Drawing parallels to South African apartheid, she argues that the U.S. relies on prisons, jails, detention centers, and policing not simply for punishment but to uphold a racial hierarchy. “Apartheid is alive and well,” she says, “and it’s enforced through carceral systems.”

Her journey to this research began with her family history—her grandmother participated in a protest of evicted sharecroppers in 1939 Missouri. That legacy of resistance led Friedman to study the roots of the prison movement in California and the formation of racially segregated prison gangs—developments she links directly to the state’s own design and complicity.

At the heart of Friedman’s critique is the economic exploitation of incarcerated people and their families. She exposes how “carceral debt”—from pay-to-stay policies to overpriced commissary goods—traps families in cycles of poverty. “States force communities to pay for the consequences of mass incarceration,” she explains, detailing how attorney generals have even sued people for unpaid incarceration fees.

Friedman also highlights the continuity between today’s prison system and historic racial oppression, from Black Codes and convict leasing to Jim Crow and mass incarceration. “It’s not a coincidence,” she says. “This is a system designed with racist intent—on purpose, not collateral.”

Yet Carceral Apartheid isn’t just a diagnosis; it’s a call to action. Friedman ends her book with what she calls an “Invitation to Awaken,” encouraging readers to recognize their role in perpetuating or challenging carceral logics.

“People survived,” she reminds us. “And they’re still organizing. Still pillars in their communities. That’s human resilience—and it gives us hope.”

Carceral Apartheid is available now through independent booksellers.

In this episode of Everyday Injustice, we hear from Kwaneta Harris, currently incarcerated at the Lane Murray Unit in Gatesville, Texas — the largest women’s state prison in Texas. With nearly 40,000 women incarcerated across the state, Harris’s story sheds light on a justice system that often fails to see the humanity behind each case.

Originally from Detroit, Michigan, Harris shares her journey from a nursing career and life overseas to becoming a survivor of domestic abuse. After returning to the U.S., a violent relationship in Texas turned deadly. Harris describes killing her boyfriend in an act of self-defense, only to receive a 50-year sentence despite having no prior criminal record.

Her time inside Texas prisons has included eight and a half years in solitary confinement following what she calls an “escape attempt” — an effort to seek isolation rather than flee. It was during those years in solitary that Harris found her voice, turning to writing and journalism to tell her story and expose the broader injustices faced by incarcerated women.

Her experience is a powerful reminder that behind every sentence is a human story — one shaped by abuse, survival, and a system that too often silences the voices of those most affected.

In this episode of Everyday Injustice, we sit down with Rachel Barkow, a law professor at NYU and an expert on criminal justice reform. We discuss President Biden’s final clemency actions, the larger implications of mass incarceration, and her upcoming book, Justice Abandoned: How the Supreme Court Ignored the Constitution and Enabled Mass Incarceration. Barkow offers a critical look at the failures of our criminal legal system, the role of progressive prosecutors, and the Supreme Court’s role in shaping mass incarceration.

Professor Barkow offered a critical look at the state of criminal justice reform, the failures of the Supreme Court, and President Biden’s last-minute clemency decisions.

Barkow expressed disappointment with Biden’s handling of clemency, noting that while he commuted 37 federal death row sentences and granted some relief for nonviolent drug offenders, he ignored hundreds of cases recommended by the Justice Department. She criticized the flawed clemency process, which requires prosecutors to review their own past cases, making positive recommendations rare.

Discussing the political backlash against criminal justice reform, Barkow argued that progressive prosecutors like Chesa Boudin and Pamela Price were vulnerable because they failed to enact structural reforms. While some jurisdictions elected reform-minded prosecutors, the movement faced well-funded opposition and public fear over crime rates. She noted that lasting change requires legislative reforms, not just individual elections.

Barkow’s upcoming book, Justice Abandoned, examines six Supreme Court cases that fueled mass incarceration, including Terry v. Ohio, which enabled stop-and-frisk policing, and U.S. v. Salerno, which allowed pretrial detention based on “dangerousness.” She argued that the Court has repeatedly ignored constitutional principles in favor of political expediency, contributing to the rise of mass incarceration.

Despite setbacks, Barkow remains hopeful that public awareness and political momentum can lead to long-term reforms. She urged advocates to focus on institutional changes that can outlast political cycles and to challenge harmful Supreme Court precedents that continue to shape the justice system today.

On this week’s Everyday Injustice interview, Chesa Boudin, former San Francisco District Attorney and now Executive Director of the Berkeley Criminal Law and Justice Center, reflects on his experiences in office, the state of criminal justice reform, and his current work at UC Berkeley.

Boudin highlights how political power matters more than individual electoral victories. He notes that during the height of the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020, corporations and politicians rushed to embrace reform, only to later pivot as the political landscape shifted. He emphasizes the importance of long-term organizing to sustain meaningful change.

Discussing the reform prosecutor movement, Boudin acknowledges setbacks in California, where he, George Gascón, and Pamela Price faced significant opposition. However, he points out that nationally, many reform-minded prosecutors have remained in office, such as Larry Krasner in Philadelphia and José Garza in Texas, proving that the movement is still active.

On homelessness and public safety, Boudin criticizes the criminalization of unhoused people, calling it ineffective and counterproductive. He argues that cities like San Francisco push policies that fail to address the root causes, like skyrocketing housing costs and economic inequality.

Now at Berkeley Law, Boudin leads initiatives focused on policy reform, litigation, and research. He discusses a class action lawsuit against CDCR, challenging illegal deductions from the $200 “Gate Money” given to people released from prison. The case underscores systemic failures that make reentry difficult and increase recidivism.

Ultimately, Boudin remains committed to reform, advocating for data-driven policies and institutional accountability while training the next generation of legal professionals at UC Berkeley.