S4E4: Criminalized Survival: Justine van der Leun on Abuse, Imprisonment, and Unreasonable Women

S4E4: Criminalized Survival: Justine van der Leun on Abuse, Imprisonment, and Unreasonable Women

What happens when a woman’s survival is treated as a crime? In this episode of Just Justice, Jessica Henry speaks with award-winning journalist Justine van der Leun about her new book, Unreasonable Women: Three Stories of Violence, Imprisonment, and Extraordinary Survival. Drawing on seven years of reporting and more than 1,000 accounts from incarcerated women, van der Leun examines how the criminal legal system responds when women commit acts of violence against those who harmed them in order to survive. Together, they discuss criminalized survival, the limits of self-defense law, trauma, punishment, and the stories that are too often missing from public conversations about women convicted of homicide. This episode includes discussion of physical and sexual violence.   For more about Jessica Henry, go to https://jessicahenryjustice.com/ [https://jessicahenryjustice.com/]or join her on Substack at https://jessicahenryjustice.substack.com/.  Production Editor: Kaz Araki

S4E3: From Sing Sing to Columbia University: Prison Education, the Second Look Act, and Prison Conditions

After nearly 25 years in New York prisons, Mujahideen Muhammad, MPS came home in 2024 and went straight to work on criminal justice reform. In this episode of Just Justice, he talks with host Jessica Henry about the New York Second Look Act, how prison education transformed his life at Sing Sing, the book club he built around James Garbarino's Miller's Children, and the humanitarian crisis in New York's prisons — including the death of Robert Brooks and the correctional officers' strike.Now a research assistant at the Columbia University Center for Justice and co-founder of the nonprofit Pillars of Promise, Mujahideen makes the case for re-sentencing reform, second chances, and elevating the voices of incarcerated people. For more about Mujahadeen and his work at Columbia: https://centerforjustice.columbia.edu/people/mujahideen-muhammad For more about Pillars of Promise: https://www.thepillarsofpromise.com/ [https://www.thepillarsofpromise.com/] For more about Jessica Henry, go to https://jessicahenryjustice.com/ [https://jessicahenryjustice.com/]or join her on Substack at https://jessicahenryjustice.substack.com/.  Production Editor: Kaz Araki

S4E2: Iris Eytan on Prosecutorial Misconduct, Wrongful Convictions, and Immunity

In this episode of Just Justice, Jessica Henry sits down with Iris Eytan, founder of Protect Ethical Prosecutors (PEP), to examine prosecutorial misconduct and why it so rarely leads to consequences. Prosecutors hold more power than almost anyone in the American criminal legal system, yet broad legal immunity often shields them even after serious misconduct and ethical violations. Drawing on years of criminal defense experience, Eytan explains how that unchecked authority contributes to wrongful convictions, why prosecutors' offices resist transparency, and what prosecutorial accountability could realistically look like. Along the way, they dig into what prosecutorial misconduct looks like in practice, how absolute and qualified immunity protect prosecutors from civil liability, the institutional barriers that keep this misconduct hidden from public view -- and what can be done about it. Learn more about Iris Eytan and PEP at https://protectethicalprosecutors.org/ [https://protectethicalprosecutors.org/]. Connect with Jessica Henry at jessicahenryjustice.com. If you enjoy this show, please consider leaving a rating and a review on Apple podcasts. It helps other people find the show! Thanks for all you do.

S4E1: A Beautiful Pain: Accountability and Transformation with Damon "Sharuka" Venable

On this episode of Just Justice, Damon "Sharuka" Venable, Community Affairs and Policy Specialist with the New Jersey Office of the Public Defender, shares his journey from a Newark childhood marked by poverty and street violence to spending 35 years in prison before being granted parole on his first attempt. Drawing from his memoir, A Beautiful Pain, Sharuka reflects on accountability, survival, education, and the long process of personal transformation behind prison walls. He also explains why he believes that people must be seen as more than the worst thing they have ever done.   Links:  You can order Sharuka's memoir, A Beautiful Pain, here: https://transformativereentry.com/ [https://transformativereentry.com/]   For more about Jessica Henry, go to jessicahenryjustice@gmail.com [jessicahenryjustice@gmail.com]. Or sign up for her newsletter at https://jessicahenryjustice.substack.com/subscribe [https://jessicahenryjustice.substack.com/subscribe].   Production Editor: Kaz Araki

S3E13: Farming for Justice, with Charles Rosen

In this episode of Just Justice, Jessica Henry speaks with Charles Rosen, founder of Ironbound Farm, about an unusual approach to justice: combining regenerative farming with second-chance employment. Charles shares what he’s learned from hiring people returning from prison, why jobs alone often aren’t enough, and how systems like parole can still derail successful reentry. Drawing on lessons from agriculture, he explores "regenerative justice," based on the belief that repairing people, communities, and even the land requires time, dignity, and connection.Join us for a conversation that highlights both the promise and the challenges of farming for justice.  To learn more about Ironbound Farm and Ciderhouse (including how to visit the farm), go to https://www.ironboundhardcider.com/ [https://www.ironboundhardcider.com/]. To watch Charles' TedTalk where he explains the connection between regenerative farming and regenerative justice, go to: https://www.ted.com/talks/charles_rosen_regenerative_agriculture_as_a_model_for_urban_renewal [https://www.ted.com/talks/charles_rosen_regenerative_agriculture_as_a_model_for_urban_renewal]. To learn more about Jessica Henry, subscribe to her free substack "All Things Justice" or visit her website at jessicahenryjustice.com [http://jessicahenryjustice.com/]. Production Editor: Kaz Araki