The Parade of Horribles Podcast: Recent Episodes
Parade of Horribles
Civil rights attorneys Dan Canon and Joe Dunman interview attorneys and activists working to defend the freedoms and liberty we all deserve. Views presented on PoH do not constitute legal advice or advertisements and do not represent the views of Clay Daniel Walton & Adams, PLC. Send your questions to pohpodcast@gmail.com to be answered on a future show.
Episodes produced by Kenny Marine and Laura Ellis. Profile image by Meghan Fitzgerald.
Our guest for Episode #16 is Vanessa Cantley. Vanessa is not only a well-respected and very successful trial attorney in Kentucky, but she's also a passionate defender of the Seventh Amendment, which protects your right to a jury trial. Vanessa is also the first attorney to use the word "butthurt" in a deposition.
We talk to her about what it's like to be one of the best woman trial attorneys in a conservative state, how the civil justice system works, and also about the never-ending war on the right to a jury being waged by big corporations, doctor's groups, and conservative politicians.
We sit down with Marc Murphy - big firm attorney by day, controversial political cartoonist by night - to talk about his career and his art. Marc's professional experience includes military service as a JAG attorney, a local judgeship, time as lead prosecutor for a major metropolitan area, white collar criminal defense as a partner at a big law firm, and political cartooning for the Courier Journal newspaper in Louisville, Kentucky.
We talk to him about all of this as well as the challenge of staying sane as an intelligent person in the Era of Trump.
We're joined by Jaime Montalvo of Kentuckians for Medical Marijuana to discuss the prospects for the legalization - at least for medical use - of Kentucky's most valuable cash crop. We talk about the current conservative climate in the Bluegrass State and how that may actually advance the efforts to expand medical freedom. We hear from listeners, too, answering questions about marijuana policy and listening to the story of a woman whose life of illness was helped dramatically by the availability of marijuana for medical use.
Kentuckians for Medical Marijuana: http://www.ky4mm.org
We interview the illustrious legal historian Kurt Metzmeier of the University of Louisville Brandeis School of Law about his new book, Writing the Legal Record, and about the ways racism and capitalism intertwine in Kentucky's legal history.
We also discuss the Worst Christmas Songs Ever, including true holiday gems from Bob Dylan, William Shatner, Twisted Sister, and Dokken.
Louisville-area Black Lives Matter organizers Gary Brice and Chanelle Helm join us to discuss the history of the black power movement and the challenges facing anti-racist protest and organizing in the modern age. We also play the game Guess That Quote: Donald Trump or One of History's Greatest Monsters?
Legal Aid Society attorney Soha Saiyed joins us to talk about representing indigent Kentuckians in civil and family cases, the inherent challenges facing the poor when navigating the legal system, "civil Gideon," and what it's like to be a Muslim woman practicing law in Kentucky.
We also field listener questions about the legal ramifications of Pokemon Go, which of course is hilarious.
Shekinah Lavalle of the Kentucky Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty and David Barron of the Kentucky Department of Public Advocacy join us to discuss their political and legal strategies to defeat the death penalty in the Bluegrass State.
We also tackle the timeless question: if you had a time machine, would it be ethical to travel back to the Civil War era to hang Jefferson Davis?
Bill Sharp, legal director for the ACLU of Kentucky joins us to discuss his efforts to secure the rights and liberties of all Kentuckians against the forces of government tyranny. He also shares his unique career trajectory that started with service in the Navy and the Louisville Metro Public Defender's Office before the ACLU.
Dan and Joe tackle listener questions about abortion and birth control, suing elected officials who refuse to do their jobs, and felon voting.
Attorney and mediator Tom Williams of Stoll Keenon Ogden joins us to discuss his work as a facilitator of and advocate for restorative justice, as well as his roles as a mediator and practitioner in civil litigation.
Listener questions: can you wear a mask to avoid red light cameras? Is giving cheap alcohol to prisoners a form of restorative justice? Is it a felony to drive without car insurance? Bonus question: why not raise up baby Hitler right rather than kill him in infancy?
Dr. Kaila Story and Jaison Gardner, the hosts of the WFPL radio show Strange Fruit, join us to talk about the relationship between education and activism, the role of white allies in the fight for racial justice, guess which famous American said something racist or sexist, and we each share our favorite terrible Christmas songs.
Strange Fruit: http://wfpl.org/category/programs/strange-fruit/ and https://soundcloud.com/strangefruitpod
We're joined by Professor Jamie Abrams of the University of Louisville Law School to discuss her scholarship and teaching in the areas of feminism and women's autonomy in health care decision making. We tackle the constitutional and tort issues surrounding child birth as well as the needs of immigrant women coming to the United States.
Listener questions: Is there a statute of limitations for hospital bills? How far is too far in self-defense? What are the issues in the abortion case now before the Supreme Court? And which TV lawyer is the best?
Attorney Greg Belzley discusses his career shift from big money corporate defense attorney to small firm civil rights and prison justice lawyer. He shares tales of unconscionable abuse in jails and prisons in Kentucky and around the United States.
Listener questions: Do safety nets like the Innocence Project make jurors lazy? Can a lesbian choir director sue for discrimination after being fired from a church? Are private prisons worse than public ones? And why don't we send all our inmates to Australia?
Former Louisville Metro Councilwoman and current social justice advocate Attica Scott joins us to talk about activism, community outreach, racial justice, Black Lives Matter, and her term in city government.
Listener questions: What is habeas corpus? Can you sue the dead? Will the impending crackdown on jaywalking by Louisville police really work?
Immigration attorney Becca O'Neill of the Kentucky Refugee Ministries joins us on the show to discuss the depressing legal landscape facing refugees and immigrants to the United States.
Listener Questions: Can you shoot a drone out of the sky over your property? Are verbal contracts enforceable? Is San Francisco liable for the murder of a woman by a resident immigrant? And which mythological deity should determine how we interpret the U.S. Constitution?
We're joined in the studio by legendary constitutional law Professor Sam Marcosson, who describes himself as "worse than the Black Plague." Professor Marcosson responds to the Obergefell case, both academically and personally, and tells some stories about his time at the EEOC—where he worked under a chairman named Clarence Thomas.
Listener Questions: Are sodomy laws still on the books? Which Supreme Court justice would you NOT fight? And if someone's dying wish is to be fed to lions, would you get in legal trouble for catapulting them into the zoo's lion den?
Further Reading: Sam Marcosson's book, "Original Sin: Clarence Thomas and the Failure of the Constitutional Conservatives" http://nyupress.org/books/9780814756409/
On our inaugural show, we're joined by Chris Gadansky, who thinks your city government should be able to do illegal things without getting in trouble. He explains why.
And in this episode's listener questions: Money as speech, open carry vs. concealed carry, how to bribe police officers, and classic rock bands and Supreme Court justices, together again for the first time.