From Words to Weapons Episode 3 focuses on Chester Hollman III, who spent nearly three decades in prison for a murder he didn’t commit, and the broader political fight over state-administered compensation for people who've been wrongfully convicted. A few years ago, Chester was the subject of a Netflix documentary; this episode picks up where that story left off. We talk with Chester about how he’s managing his mental health after being exonerated and now helping others rebuild their lives after prison. Through Chester’s post-incarceration story, we also unpack efforts and obstacles to support exonerees legislatively (fruitless thus far in Pennsylvania, among just a dozen states without wrongful conviction compensation laws) and politically (the Pa. GOP’s quest to oust Philly’s progressive district attorney was peaking while Chester was engaging with us for this podcast).
Links of interest:
Race and Wrongful Convictions in the United States
Pennsylvania State House Bill 1470
Exonerated Justice ordinance and resolution before Philadelphia City Council
Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner impeachment:
The Prosecution: Wrong Place, Wrong Time (Netflix’s The Innocence Files, ep. 7)
Popular Podcasts
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark
My Favorite Murder is a true crime comedy podcast hosted by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark. Each week, Karen and Georgia share compelling true crimes and hometown stories from friends and listeners. Since MFM launched in January of 2016, Karen and Georgia have shared their lifelong interest in true crime and have covered stories of infamous serial killers like the Night Stalker, mysterious cold cases, captivating cults, incredible survivor stories and important events from history like the Tulsa race massacre of 1921. My Favorite Murder is part of the Exactly Right podcast network that provides a platform for bold, creative voices to bring to life provocative, entertaining and relatable stories for audiences everywhere. The Exactly Right roster of podcasts covers a variety of topics including historic true crime, comedic interviews and news, science, pop culture and more. Podcasts on the network include Buried Bones with Kate Winkler Dawson and Paul Holes, That's Messed Up: An SVU Podcast, This Podcast Will Kill You, Bananas and more.