Aider and Abettor Podcast

Aider and Abettor Podcast

Public Defenders Sajid Khan and Avi Singh podcast on the criminal system on Aider and Abettor. The show includes discussions about the mismatch between the criminal system's purported values and actual function. Sajid Khan is a public defender in San Jose, CA. Sajid is a the author of Closing Arguments, a blog focused on criminal law and social justice. His work is published by the National Association of Public Defense. Sajid graduated from UC Berkeley and UC Hastings College of Law. Avi Singh is a public defender in San Jose, CA. Avi graduated from UC Davis and Harvard Law School. He is on the Board of the Asian American Criminal Trial Lawyers' Association. Avi coaches a high school mock trial team that competes in the Constitutional Rights Foundation program. You can follow @thesajidkhan and @avanindar on Twitter. Please send comments and suggestions to aiderandabettor@gmail.com. You can also follow us on twitter @aiderandabettor. Our website is https://medium.com/@aiderandabettor

Episodes

October 15, 2020 63 mins
On this episode of the pod, we talk all about Proposition 25 and what pretrial justice would look like in a Prop. 25 world. To do this, we get together with Carlie Ware (@carlieware11) and Carson White. Carlie and Carson specialize in pretrial release advocacy and pre-arraignment representation. Omniboi composed the intro and outro for this pod. Send us your thoughts on Prop. 25 (@thesajidkhan @avanindar @aiderandabettor)
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In this episode, Sajid and guest host Sarah Ruby (fellow pd out of San Jose) interview Assemblymember Ash Kalra (twitter @ash_kalra) about the Racial Justice Act (https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=201920200AB2542) https://sanjosespotlight.com/san-jose-legislators-racial-justice-act-passes-senate-committee/ The bill passed the legislature and is on Governor Newsom's desk. To support the AB 2542,...
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Sajid and Avi meet with Eliza Orlins. Eliza has been a public defender in New York for around 10 years. She decided to run for District Attorney of Manhattan. They talk about what called her to the work and her decision to run for DA. Learn more about Eliza’s work and campaign here: https://twitter.com/elizaorlins Omniboi composed and performed the intro, outro, and break remix.
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“For the People”: Finding the Humanity in Our Criminal Legal System with Sajid Khan and Avi Singh: In this crossover episode with the cohosts of Aider and Abettor podcast, Bay Area public defenders Avi Singh and Sajid Khan join DA Boudin and Rachel to examine what it means when a prosecutor represents “the people.” The group asks who are the people represented by the system at each stage and is the system really serving them? Ho...
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July 9, 2020 48 mins
Sajid joined Another Not Guilty Pod for a two-part interview. Part 1 is about what happened when Sajid wrote a blog post calling for civil rights protesters to look at what District Attorneys have done to contribute to the system of mass incarceration and abusive police practices. Part 2 will come out next week. Sajid will debrief on a homicide trial ANG. You can check out and support their excellent work here: https://www.anot...
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May 1, 2020 69 mins
COVID: Courts, Content, Care Avi and Sajid talk about what defense practice looks like during the COVID-19 pandemic, including video arraignments in mostly empty courthouses. They also talk about the content that they have enjoyed consuming and self-care practices while sheltering in place. Lee Rosevere (@leeroservere) composed and performed the intro and outro of the pod. Omniboi (@omniboi) composed and performed the music d...
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March 19, 2020 66 mins
Avi and Sajid discuss COVID-19 with Adnan Khan (!akhan1437). Adnan is the co-founder and executive director of Re:Store Justice (@restore_cal). Adnan was incarcerated at 18 for a felony murder conviction. He advocated for reform and was released after California largely abolished felony murder liability. They discuss COVID-19 from the perspective of people held in jails and prisons. Adnan describes the tension people face when...
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Scott Hechinger (@scotthech) joins Sajid (@thesajidkhan) and Avi (@avanindar) to talk about public defender movement building. @Scotthech talks about the Zealo.us, a project to train public defenders on movement building and media advocacy. They talk about the termination of two public defenders who filed an amicus brief in support of providing counsel to people at the first court appearance. They talk about the movement that f...
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January 24, 2020 36 mins
This episode is all about the Orange County Informant Scandal. Avi and Sajid talk with Somil Trivedi (@somilbtrivedi). Somil is a senior staff attorney with the ACLU’s Criminal Reform Project. They discuss what happened in Orange County, why it matters, how it was uncovered, and what happens next. You can find Somil’s bio here: https://www.aclu.org/news/by/somil-trivedi/ Somil referenced Scott Moxley’s reporting. Follow hi...
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December 30, 2019 51 mins
Avi and Sajid reflect on the year and talk through what’s next in the pod, criminal justice reform, and their public defense practices. They talk about notable episodes from 2019 and share ideas about what they hope to cover in 2020. They talk about accomplishments in criminal justice reform and what they hope to see change in 2020. In the last segment, they share how their approach to pd work has changed over the year and where...
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November 2, 2019 65 mins
Sajid and Avi sit down with Deputy Public Defender Perla Garcia. Perla spoke out about her experience coming to the US from Nicaragua when she was twelve with three younger brothers after the tragic deaths of Oscar Alberto Martinez and his 23-month-old daughter Angie Valeria. Perla describes her multiple attempts to get to the United States (she was twelve and had three younger siblings with her) and her path to public defense. ...
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September 21, 2019 81 mins
Avi and Sajid recorded a live show with SF Public Defender Mano Raju at Hastings College of Law in San Francisco. Mano talked about his background and path to public defense, his vision for the Public Defender’s Office in San Francisco, and where he believes the practice should and could go. Mano took audience questions. At the end of the pod, the three shared a thing. The event was sponsored by the South Asian Bar Association ...
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July 7, 2019 36 mins
Avi and Sajid interview San Francisco Deputy Public Defender Chesa Boudin about his campaign for San Francisco District Attorney. They discuss Chesa's motivation for running and talk through some of his reform proposals. Learn more about Chesa's campaign here https://www.chesaboudin.com/ and https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/24/us/chesa-boudin-san-francisco-da.html Follow Chesa on Twitter @chesaboudin @leerosevere composed the in...
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May 16, 2019 32 mins
Sajid and Avi discuss the execution of Dominique Ray and the Supreme Court’s decision to lift a stay of execution despite religious discrimination. This one is from February. Lots of things have happened since the recording, including a stay of execution in the case of Patrick Murphy based on religious discrimination. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/28/us/politics/texas-execution-buddhist-inmate.html @leerosevere (intero/outr...
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Avi and Sajid get back together with Marc Bookman from the Atlantic Center for Capital Representation. Marc talks about his work on behalf of Kareem Johnson. He gives an update on Ricky Olds (https://soundcloud.com/user-139217541/14-going-on-life-without-parole). They also get an update on Krasner’s work in Philadelphia. The Atlantic Center put out video on Ricky Olds. See it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_XtySsPOP9...
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March 3, 2019 84 mins
This is The Bad Defense bracket. Avi and Sajid join public defenders Kristin Carter and Chris Givens to debate the worst defense attorneys from movies, television, books, documentaries, and podcasts. @leerosevere composed the intro and outro. @omniboi and @chalolo composed music played during the discussion.
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December 20, 2018 52 mins
Avi and Sajid talk to Sergeant Jeremy Jones. Jeremy has been with the Santa Clara Sheriff’s Office for around 10 years. Jeremy grew up on the East Side of San Jose. His father has been in and out of jail for much of Jeremy’s life. He talks about how experiences with his father and police shaped his approach to policing and service. This includes working alongside incarcerated people to build obstacles for a charitable race (ht...
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November 14, 2018 32 mins
In this episode of Aider & Abettor, Avi and Sajid talk about a North Carolina Sheriff’s decision to charge Dazia Lee with involuntary manslaughter of her one year old child. Ms. Lee’s son slipped through her arms after a car accident in flood waters. The discussion goes into some of the moral and legal reasons against turning this tragedy into a criminal prosecution. In the second segment, they debrief on some criminal justice...
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October 1, 2018 49 mins
Avi and Sajid are joined by veteran Public Defender Brian Matthews. They discuss a wave of criminal justice reform in California. The topics include the elimination of cash bail, laws designed to protect kids from prosecution, and a major change to the felony murder rule. The intro clip is Senator Nancy Skinner asking a Public Safety Committee to approve her bill reforming the felony murder rule. Music in this episode is by @leer...
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August 13, 2018 45 mins
In this episode of Aider & Abettor, Avi and Sajid react to an order by Ohio Judge John Russo to gag Franklyn Williams with red duct tape. This type of breakdown does not happen in a vacuum. They discuss the larger context, possible ways to prevent this from happening, and some of their experiences of courtroom volatility. Music in this episode is by @omniboi and @leerosevere. Please check out and support those artists. If yo...
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