Criminal Justice Matters on CUNY TV: Equal Justice for All? Life After Gideon

The right to a lawyer, regardless of whether you can afford it, has been a cornerstone of American justice for 50 years, ever since a landmark US Supreme Court ruling in 1963. But thousands of Americans–and New Yorkers—still can’t exercise that right. New York State Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman discusses what our courts and politicians must do to live up that promise, on the 50th anniversary of the Court’s Gideon v Wainright decision, in a freewheeling conversation with host Stephen Handelman on “Criminal Justice Matters.” Also on the program: Kumar Rao, an attorney with The Bronx Defenders; and Damon Joe, a 19-year-old CUNY student whose future was saved when a public defender took his case.

Host: Steve Handelman, Director of the Center on Media, Crime and Justice, John Jay College of Criminal Justice/CUNY.

Guests:
– New York State Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman,
– Kumar Rao, attorney wth The Bronx Defenders,
– Damon Joe, a 19-year-old CUNY student whose future was saved when a public defender took his case.

Original tape date: March 26, 2013.

First aired: April 3, 2013.