Category Archives: Penology

Post Interview – Podcast April 4, 2022

A Modern-Day Form Of Slavery. Steve Williamson and Karen McClelland welcome international human rights attorney Dianne Post to discuss the abuses and disproportionate cost of for-profit private prisons. Post was first on our show in 2013 to discuss the same … Continue reading

Posted in Arizona Politics, Capitalism, Civil Liberties, Civil Society, Constitutional Issues, Corporate Welfare, Corporations, Corrections Policy, Corruption, Criminal Justice Reform, Ethics, Government, Human Rights, Immigration, Interviews, Mass Incarceration, Morality, National Politics, Penology, Private Prisons, Privatization, Public Accountability, Public Policy, Public Private Collaboration, Refugees, Slavery | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Post Interview – Podcast April 4, 2022

Stienstra Interview – Podcast March 29, 2021

Restoration Versus Retribution. Co-hosts Hava Derby and Steve Williamson welcome Dustin Gilman Stienstra, Executive Director of Northern Arizona Restorative Justice, to address the failures of our current justice system and how restorative justice can help break the cycle of crime. … Continue reading

Posted in Civil Society, Corrections Policy, Criminal Justice Reform, Criminology, Cultural Change, Education, Interviews, Jurisprudence, Justice System, Mass Incarceration, Penology, Social Contract, Social Psychology | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Stienstra Interview – Podcast March 29, 2021

Podcast February 8, 2021

Unequal Under The Law. Steve Williamson, Hava Derby and Gary LaMaster continue the discussion on criminal justice reform. To begin the conversation, they note that the U.S. incarcerates more people than any other nation – 2.1 million as of 2018. … Continue reading

Posted in Bigotry, Civil Liberties, Class Conflict, Compassion, Corrections Policy, Criminal Justice Reform, Criminology, Cultural Change, Domestic Violence, Drug Trafficking, Education, Government, Human Rights, Income Inequality, Judicial System, Justice System, Law Enforcement, Mass Incarceration, Mental Health Programs, Morality, Penology, Policing, Race and Class, Racial Discrimination, Racism | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Podcast February 8, 2021

Scott Thomas Anderson Interview — Podcast October 2, 2017

The Cutting Four-Piece: Scott Thomas Anderson, Investigative Reporter, On the Crime and Tragedy of Prison Overcrowding.  Mike Cosentino interviews Scott Thomas Anderson, crime reporter for the Sacramento News and Review. His book, The Cutting Four-Piece, offers an illuminating tour through the … Continue reading

Posted in Corrections Policy, Criminal Justice Reform, Digital Revolution, Interviews, Investigative Journalism, Journalism, Judicial System, Justice System, Law Enforcement, Mass Incarceration, National Politics, Penology, Podcasts, Policing, Private Prisons, Public Accountability, War On Drugs | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Scott Thomas Anderson Interview — Podcast October 2, 2017

David Brushwood Interview — Podcast March 20, 2017

The Opioid Epidemic: What Happens When the Quest for Effective Chronic Pain Management Encounters the War on Drugs. David Brushwood, professor emeritus of Pharmaceutical Outcomes and Policy at the University of Florida College of Pharmacy talks to Democratic Perspective regulars Mike Cosentino, Gary LaMaster and Steve Williamson, … Continue reading

Posted in Criminal Justice Reform, Department of Veterans Affairs, Domestic Policy, Health Care, Health Care Delivery, Interviews, National Politics, Penology, Podcasts, Public Health Policy, Social Services, War On Drugs | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on David Brushwood Interview — Podcast March 20, 2017

The Justice Department Is Phasing Out Its Use of Private Prisons: Will the States Follow Suit? — Podcast August 29, 2016

Has the Justice Department Just Struck the First Significant Blow In the Battle Against Rent-Seeking In Our Correctional Systems? Democratic Perspective hosts Mike Cosentino, Gary LaMaster, and Steve Williamson review the Justice Department’s announcement that some federal contracts with private prison corporations are being phased out. This … Continue reading

Posted in Arizona Law Enforcement, Arizona Politics, Corrections Policy, Corruption, Criminal Justice Reform, Justice System, Law Enforcement, National Politics, Penology, Podcasts, Private Prisons, Privatization | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on The Justice Department Is Phasing Out Its Use of Private Prisons: Will the States Follow Suit? — Podcast August 29, 2016

Debt Peonage as a Source of Revenue: Paying for Government by Fining the Poor — Podcast April 27, 2015

On the Backs of the Poor: The Great Recession and the Criminalization of Debt. Democratic Perspective’s Mike Cosentino, Gary LaMaster and Steve Williamson analyze the effect on the poor, especially minorities, of the disturbing recent trend toward financing hard-pressed local governments through … Continue reading

Posted in Arizona Law Enforcement, Capitalism, Class Conflict, Constitutional Issues, Corrections Policy, Corruption, Democratic Governance, Income Inequality, Justice System, Law Enforcement, Legal Issues, Local Politics, Mass Incarceration, Minimum Wage, Penology, Podcasts, Policing, Private Prisons, Racism | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Debt Peonage as a Source of Revenue: Paying for Government by Fining the Poor — Podcast April 27, 2015

Alessandra Soler Meetze Interview — Podcast April 20, 2015

The ACLU in Arizona, 2014/15: Some Good News for a Change. Democratic Perspective’s Gary LaMaster and Steve Williamson discuss some recent civil liberties litigation victories with Alessandra Soler Meetze, Executive Director of the ACLU for Arizona. Dreamers got their driver’s licenses, Joe Arpaio was enjoined from … Continue reading

Posted in Anti-Gay Discrimination, Arizona Law Enforcement, Arizona Politics, Civil Rights, Constitutional Issues, Corrections Policy, Education Policy, Immigration, Interviews, Justice System, Law Enforcement, Penology, Podcasts, Policing, Private Prisons | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Alessandra Soler Meetze Interview — Podcast April 20, 2015

President Obama and Edward Snowden: Two Perspectives On the State of the Nation — Podcast December 1, 2014

American Dream or American Nightmare? It Depends On Who You Ask: Democratic Perspective’s Mike Cosentino reflects on the story of the United States in the Twenty-First Century as told from two very different viewpoints: first, that of Laura Poitras’s film Citizenfour, about the fugitive NSA … Continue reading

Posted in Bigotry, Capitalism, Class Conflict, Constitutional Issues, Corrections Policy, Democratic Governance, Economic Policy, Financial Sector, Fiscal Policy, Foreign Policy, Government, Homeland Security, Immigration, Income Inequality, Intelligence Agencies, International Relations, Jobs and Employment, Justice System, Law Enforcement, Mass Incarceration, Military Policy, Minimum Wage, National Politics, National Security, Penology, Podcasts, Policing, Poverty, Public Education, Racism, Renewable Energy, Surveillance Programs, Unemployment | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on President Obama and Edward Snowden: Two Perspectives On the State of the Nation — Podcast December 1, 2014

The Death Penalty: Our National Debate Intensifies — Podcast July 28, 2014

Lethal Injection: Incompetence In the Service Of Barbarism? Democratic Perspective’s Mike Cosentino, Gary LaMaster, and Steve Williamson investigate the roots of the political infighting which led us to the recent spate of botched executions by lethal injection in Ohio, Oklahoma and our own state, Arizona. Why is it now … Continue reading

Posted in Arizona Law Enforcement, Arizona Politics, Capital Punishment, Constitutional Issues, Death Penalty, Justice System, National Politics, Penology, Podcasts, U.S. Court System | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on The Death Penalty: Our National Debate Intensifies — Podcast July 28, 2014