Trials that Matter
Teach Your Children Well
In 1968, Graham Nash, later of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, wrote a song about the difficult relationship he had with his father who was sent to jail for receiving stolen goods. The song “Teach Your Children” has beautiful lyrics including this stanza: “Teach your children well, Their father’s hell did slowly go by, Feed…
Read MoreA Man in Las Vegas Tries to Kill the Judge Who Sentences Him for a Crime of Violence
Serge often observes that America is declining into anarchy. Clarke is sometimes pessimistic. Serge and Clarke bring their inclinations to the story of a young man who jumped the bench in a Las Vegas courtroom and beat up the judge who was sentencing him to prison for beating up a person with a baseball bat.…
Read MoreIs the federal government finally satisfied with the Derek Chauvin sentence?
After Derek Chauvin killed George Floyd, the federal government permitted anarchists to loot and burn communities across the country. The State of Minnesota successfully prosecuted Chauvin and he was sentenced to 22 years in prison. However, the federal government was not satisfied. A federal grand jury was convened. Chauvin was federally indicted. Chauvin pled guilty…
Read MoreNot All Prosecutors Think Alike; Some Thoughts on the Marilyn Mosby Case
The United States Attorney for the District of Maryland successfully indicted and convicted former Baltimore City State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby of two counts of perjury. In this weeks episode, Jack Mitchell — a former police officer who worked for Ms. Mosby as an Assistant State’s Attorney — joins Serge and Clarke to discuss Mosby’s perjury…
Read MoreThe Plot Thickens in the Kashef Khan MSP Termination Case
Kashef Khan was the Maryland State Trooper of the Year until he was fired for allegedly writing a false report. The “falsity” in the report was the location of a traffic stop which Khan accurately documented in many ways. Khan uploaded a slightly inaccurate longitude and latitude location from a reporting system that MSP admits…
Read MoreHow to Make a Living While Under Federal Indictment and Ordered Not to Possess a Gun
In this episode, Serge and Clarke acknowledge that Frederick County, Maryland is openly competing with Baltimore City, Maryland for the most upside down criminal justice non-system in America. Frederick County Sheriff “Chuck” Jenkins is under federal indictment accused of lying about machine gun purchases, Jenkins was required to turn over all of his guns to…
Read MoreThe Metamorphosis of Yusef Salaam
This story begins with a 1989 rape in Central Park, involves a New York real estate tycoon who threw gas on a fire, and evolves into a remarkable and inspiring story of citizenship. Serge and Clarke discuss the life (at least so far) of Yusef Salaam. This episode is a short listen about a modern…
Read MoreThe Supremes Aren’t Just Classic Motown: Our Top 5 Cases
Do you have a favorite Supreme Court decision? Join Serge and Clarke and attorney Shawn Vinson in a lively discussion about each person’s top five favorite decisions of the United States Supreme Court. We might surprise you!
Read MoreScot Peterson Acquitted of All Charges for Inaction at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High
Join Serge and Clarke in a discussion with our special guest Kemp Freund as we discuss the charges brought against School Resource Officer Scot Peterson for his inaction during the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School massacre on February 14, 2018. On June 28, 2023 Peterson was found not guilty on all 11 counts brought against…
Read MoreA Fatal Stabbing on the J Train
A fatal stabbing on the J train is the subject of this week’s podcast. Five weeks after Daniel Perry fatally choked Jordan Neely on the New York subway system, 20-year-old Jordan Williams is charged with manslaughter and criminal possession of a weapon for the fatal stabbing of Devictor Ouedraogo. Serge and Clarke discuss the differences,…
Read MoreDebra Saltz on an Idea Whose Time May Have Arrived!
Debra Saltz is one of Maryland’s best attorneys. She clerked for the late, great Joseph Murphy, she worked as a public defender in Baltimore County, and she served as a prosecutor in Howard County for four years. Debra has also been in private practice for many years, especially concentrating in criminal defense. Debra is a…
Read MoreDavid Fischer on the defense of Thomas Caldwell charged with seditious conspiracy
The January 6th breach of the U.S. Capitol resulted in one of the most extensive criminal investigations spearheaded by the FBI in the history of the United States. In today’s episode, Serge and Clarke speak with attorney David Fischer, who represented the alleged mastermind of the breach: Thomas Caldwell. Caldwell’s acquittal of the most serious…
Read MoreAttorney Sam Nalli on Defending a Juvenile Charged with First-Degree Murder
The legal profession is filled with high-extroversion, low-content self-promoters, more interested in lining their pockets than achieving justice for their clients. And then, there is Sam Nalli. Sam tells the listeners about his background and interest in the law, and takes us behind the scenes in the defense of a 17-year-old child charged as an…
Read MoreJudge Hammerman Imposes a 70 Year Trial Penalty — The Gary Baynor Case
In the last episode, Serge and Clarke discussed the idea of a trial penalty. A trial penalty occurs when an accused citizen rejects a plea offer, goes to trial, and is convicted but receives a sentence grossly disproportionate to the plea offer. In this episode, Serge and Clarke interview Gary Baynor about an incredible story…
Read MoreThe Diminishing Trial by Jury
In this episode, Serge and Clarke explore the phenomenon of the diminishing trial by jury. After explaining the statistics — which are shocking — Serge and Clarke seek to answer the questions of why the trial by jury is disappearing and the consequences of this significant change to the criminal justice process in America.
Read MoreKim Potter is Sentenced; Teens in NJ Receive Disparate Treatment at Hands of Police
In this episode, Serge and Clarke discuss two unrelated events: (1) the sentencing of former police officer Kim Potter after her conviction for manslaughter in the shooting death of Daunte Wright, and (2) an unfolding story of disparate treatment of two teenagers — one Caucasian and one African American — by police officers in a…
Read MoreBlack History Month: A Living History Interview with the Hon. F. L. Antonin, Ret. (Part 1)
In honor of Black History Month, Serge and Clarke interview the third African American woman appointed to the Superior Court of New Jersey. Serge was able to secure this interview because Frances Lawrence Antonin, who helped break barriers for African American female attorneys especially in New Jersey, is his mother. Clarke recommends this interview for…
Read MoreA Look at U.S. v. Mosby
On January 13, 2022, the United States Attorney for the District of Maryland announced a four-count federal indictment against the Hon. Marilyn Mosby, the State’s Attorney for Baltimore City. There are two counts of perjury related to making a withdrawal of funds from her retirement account after alleging a Covid hardship and two counts of…
Read MoreOur Thoughts on the Kyle Rittenhouse Trial
On August 23, 2020, a white Kenosha police officer, Rusten Sheskey, shot a black man, Jacob Blake, in the back during a call for service. Riots erupted. Kyle Rittenhouse, a 17-year old armed with a rifle, shot three men during the riots, killing two. Many were outraged and condemned Rittenhouse as a “white supremacist.” Then-candidate…
Read MorePicking a Jury in the Derek Chauvin Murder Trial
In this podcast, your hosts Serge and Clarke discuss the process of picking a jury in the Minnesota trial involving George Floyd’s accused killer, former police officer Derek Chauvin. The hosts discuss whether press reports and discussion with others would render them ineligible to be on the jury, and discuss the process of picking a…
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