Stay ConnectedAnyone paying attention can tell you that our criminal legal system is perpetuating cruelty and harm, but the complexity of the legal world overwhelms most people simply trying to get through another day.
Public Defenseless explores the rot in the justice system and what we can do about it. Join host, Hunter Parnell, as he interviews top defense attorneys and criminal justice stakeholders from across the country as they pull apart the convoluted web of our criminal justice system.
Today, Hunter was joined by Kyle Giddings and Rebecca Wallace to discuss how tough on crime types shape Colorado criminal justice policy. From the outside looking in, one could be forgiven for thinking that Colorado is one of the most progressive states in the country. After all, it was one of the few places in America that broke towards the left in the 2024 election. Despite the complete control of the government by the Democratic party, Colorado still pursues tough on crime policies. Today, Hunter and guests try and explain how that happens.
Guest:
Kyle Giddings, Deputy Director, Colorado Criminal Justice Reform Coalition
Rebecca Wallace, Policy Director, Colorado Freedom Fund
Resources:
CFF Website and Policy Pages
https://www.coloradofreedomfund.org/denver-muni-reform-toolkit
https://www.coloradofreedomfund.org/2026-legislation
CCJRC Website
** Correction. During the episode, Hunter stated that the report by Dustin Zvonek was shared in the Denver Post. It was actually shared via Denver 7 ABC. The article is linked below**
ABC 7 Reporting on Housing First
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**** ALL OPINONS SHARED BY HOST HUNTER PARNELL DO NOT REFLECT THE THOUGHTS OR OPINIONS OF THE AURORA MUNICIPAL PUBLIC DEFENDER****
Today, Hunter was joined by René Ropac of the Data Collaborative for Justice to discuss their newest report on the impacts, or lack thereof, of New York's bail reforms.
Guest:
René Ropac, Senior Research Associate, Data Collaborative for Justice
Resources:
Read the Report
Contact Rene
https://datacollaborativeforjustice.org/staff/rene-ropac/
Learn More about DCJ
https://datacollaborativeforjustice.org/
Sign up for the ABA Public Defender Summit
https://events.americanbar.org/event/12d07164-1011-4723-9352-e8e3168db945/welcome
Contact Hunter Parnell:
Publicdefenseless@gmail.com
@PublicDefenselessPodcast
@PDefenselessPod
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Today, Hunter was joined by three people, Maggie Bott, Brandon Garcia, and Bob Kolstad, who have lived through the federal occupation of Minneapolis. They join the show to detail what ICE, CBP, and DHS have been doing in the city and how the city has organized and resisted those efforts.
Guest:
Brandon Garcia, Policy Aide to City Council President Elliot Page, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Maggie Bott, Public Defender, Hennepin County, Minnesota
Bob Kolstad, Public Defender, Hennepin County, Minnesota
Resources:
Mutual Aid to Minnesota
https://www.standwithminnesota.com/
Sign up for the ABA Public Defender Summit
https://events.americanbar.org/event/12d07164-1011-4723-9352-e8e3168db945/welcome
Contact Hunter Parnell:
Publicdefenseless@gmail.com
@PublicDefenselessPodcast
@PDefenselessPod
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Today, Hunter spoke with Matthew Guariglia, a historian, scholar, and author of the book Police and the Empire City: Race and the Origins of Modern Policing in New York. In it, Matthew walks the read through the early history of the New York Police Department. By learning this history, the hope is that people understand what some of the essential characteristics of American policing are. Hopefully by understanding the essential characteristics, people can fully understand how and why police operate they way they do.
Guest:
Matthew Guariglia, Historian, Scholar, Author, Police and the Empire City: Race and the Origins of Modern Policing in New York
Resources:
Contact and Read more from Matthew Here
https://www.matthewguariglia.com/
https://bsky.app/profile/mguariglia.bsky.social
https://www.instagram.com/mguarig/
https://www.eff.org/about/staff/dr-matthew-guariglia-0
Pick up a Copy of the Book Here
https://www.dukeupress.edu/police-and-the-empire-city
Sign up for the ABA Public Defender Summit
https://events.americanbar.org/event/12d07164-1011-4723-9352-e8e3168db945/welcome
Contact Hunter Parnell:
Publicdefenseless@gmail.com
@PublicDefenselessPodcast
@PDefenselessPod
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Today, Hunter spoke w/Stacey Lowe, Executive Director of the Southwest Oregon Public Defender Services. They discussed why Stacey joined Shannon Wilson's lawsuit challenging the new contract conditions put in place by the Oregon Public Defense Commission.
Guest:
Stacey Lowe, Executive Director, Southwest Oregon Public Defender Services
Resources:
SWOPDS
Contact Stacey
slowe@swopds.org
Read More About the Suit
https://www.pdmarion.org/information-for-the-media
OPDC Response
"We are unable to comment on pending litigation, but for questions about workload standards, I refer you to pages 20-22 (pages 26-28 in the search) of our recent status report. The section on long-term planning describes our goal of transitioning to a workload model.
For questions about contracts, I encourage you to visit our website, where you can find the following information:
OPDC's contracts are based on maximum attorney caseloads. The MAC standards in the 2025-2027 contracts are identical to those that were in the 2023-2025 contracts. The MAC standards can be found in Exhibit B of the 2025-2027 contracts. They are listed on page 19 under the section titled Rolling Annual Caseload Limits. They are listed on page B-1 under Annual Caseload Limits in the 2023- 2025 contracts."
Sign up for the ABA Public Defender Summit
https://events.americanbar.org/event/12d07164-1011-4723-9352-e8e3168db945/welcome
Contact Hunter Parnell:
Publicdefenseless@gmail.com
@PublicDefenselessPodcast
@PDefenselessPod
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Today, Hunter spoke w/Shannon Wilson and Stephen Hanlon. Last fall, Shannon, the Executive Director of the Marion County Public Defender, filed a lawsuit against the Oregon Public Defense Commission to challenge new requirements in Oregon Public Defender contracts. Now, Shannon and Stephen join the show to explain why and what comes next for Oregon Public Defense.
Guest:
Shannon Wilson, Executive Director, Marion County Public Defender, Oregon
Stephen Hanlon, Public Interest Lawyer
Resources:
Contact Shannon
https://www.pdmarion.org/shannon-wilson
Read More About the Suit
https://www.pdmarion.org/information-for-the-media
(The hearing can be found here!!)
Contact Stephen
Sign up for the ABA Public Defender Summit
https://events.americanbar.org/event/12d07164-1011-4723-9352-e8e3168db945/welcome
Contact Hunter Parnell:
Publicdefenseless@gmail.com
@PublicDefenselessPodcast
@PDefenselessPod
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www.patreon.com/PublicDefenselessPodcast
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Today, Hunter was joined once again by Emily Galvin Almanza, the Co-Founder and Executive Director of Partners for Justice and author of a new book, The Price of Mercy. In it, Emily expertly weaves together stories from her decades of work in Public Defense with social science that shows the benefits of non-carceral solutions to public safety issues.
Guest:
Emily Galvin Almanza, Author, The Price of Mercy, Co-Founder and Executive Director, Partners for Justice
Resources:
Pick up a Copy of the Book!!
https://www.emilygalvinalmanza.com/
Follow Emily on Social Media
https://bsky.app/profile/galvinalmanza.bsky.social
Sign up for the ABA Public Defender Summit
https://events.americanbar.org/event/12d07164-1011-4723-9352-e8e3168db945/welcome
Contact Hunter Parnell:
Publicdefenseless@gmail.com
@PublicDefenselessPodcast
@PDefenselessPod
Subscribe to the Patreon
www.patreon.com/PublicDefenselessPodcast
Donate on PayPal
https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=5KW7WMJWEXTAJ
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Trying to find a specific part of an episode? Use this link to search transcripts of every episode of the show!
https://app.reduct.video/o/eca54fbf9f/p/d543070e6a/share/c34e85194394723d4131/home
Today, Hunter was joined by Luke Brownfield, the Chief Public Defender in Humboldt County, California. With a shortage of attorneys willing to come to the county and the county being short on funding, Luke and his team face serious issues with workloads. Without more support from the state, it is unclear how Luke and his team will tackle the workload crisis without going unavailable like the San Francisco Public Defender Office.
Guest:
Luke Brownfield, Chief Public Defender, Humboldt County, California
Resources:
Read the Report
https://lostcoastoutpost.com/2025/jul/31/public-defenders-office-overworked-underfunded-and/
Contact the Office
https://humboldtgov.org/Directory/Home/DepartmentListing?DID=22
Sign up for the ABA Public Defender Summit
https://events.americanbar.org/event/12d07164-1011-4723-9352-e8e3168db945/welcome
Contact Hunter Parnell:
Publicdefenseless@gmail.com
@PublicDefenselessPodcast
@PDefenselessPod
Subscribe to the Patreon
www.patreon.com/PublicDefenselessPodcast
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https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=5KW7WMJWEXTAJ
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Trying to find a specific part of an episode? Use this link to search transcripts of every episode of the show!
https://app.reduct.video/o/eca54fbf9f/p/d543070e6a/share/c34e85194394723d4131/home
Today, Hunter was joined by Judyanne Vallado, the Chief Public Defender in San Joaquin County, California. With a tough on crime DA and large amounts of gun crime, the San Joaquin County Public Defenders have long delt with difficult workloads, but now, with Prop 36 prosecutions increasing felony charges, the office may soon have to make the choice about when enough is enough.
Guest:
Judyanne Vallado, Chief Public Defender, San Joaquin County, California
Resources:
Learn more about the Office Here
https://www.sjgov.org/department/pubdef/home
https://www.instagram.com/sjcpublicdefender/?hl=en
Contact Judyanne
jvallado@sjgov.org
Read more about issues in the County
Sign up for the ABA Public Defender Summit
https://events.americanbar.org/event/12d07164-1011-4723-9352-e8e3168db945/welcome
Contact Hunter Parnell:
Publicdefenseless@gmail.com
@PublicDefenselessPodcast
@PDefenselessPod
Subscribe to the Patreon
www.patreon.com/PublicDefenselessPodcast
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Trying to find a specific part of an episode? Use this link to search transcripts of every episode of the show!
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Today, Hunter was joined once again by Alameda County Chief Public Defender Brendon Woods. This time, they discuss how the office is handling their ever increasing workload due to Prop 36, how ICE enforcement is impacting their clients and communities, and why the state of California desperately needs to give county public defenders the protections they need to be independent voices for their communities.
Guest:
Brendon Woods, Chief Public Defender, Alameda County, California
Resources:
Learn more about the Office Here
https://publicdefender.acgov.org/index.page
https://www.facebook.com/AlamedaCountyPublicDefenders
https://x.com/BrendonWoodsPD?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCO6d0gC0y1H5hrdkstpIt_Q
https://www.instagram.com/alamedacountypd/
https://www.instagram.com/brendonwoodspd/?hl=en
ICE Around Alameda County
https://oaklandside.org/2026/01/28/ice-free-zones-are-coming-to-alameda-county/
Public Defender Independence
https://davisvanguard.org/2025/10/sb485-veto-public-defender-independence/
Sign up for the ABA Public Defender Summit
https://events.americanbar.org/event/12d07164-1011-4723-9352-e8e3168db945/welcome
Contact Hunter Parnell:
Publicdefenseless@gmail.com
@PublicDefenselessPodcast
@PDefenselessPod
Subscribe to the Patreon
www.patreon.com/PublicDefenselessPodcast
Donate on PayPal
https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=5KW7WMJWEXTAJ
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Trying to find a specific part of an episode? Use this link to search transcripts of every episode of the show!
https://app.reduct.video/o/eca54fbf9f/p/d543070e6a/share/c34e85194394723d4131/home
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