# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
ENGLISH MARIO BROS INTERNET SOCIAL MOVEMENT MEME.PNG

# data[].attributes.body
Discuss and type your group's answers to the following points:

1. What social justice issues are present in the podcast? List at least 3.

2. Pick one of those issues to focus on as a group. What information does the podcast provide about how/why that issue occurs?

3. What information about that issue are you still wondering about? What information is left out?

4. What perspectives on the issue are included on the podcast? (Try to include at least 3.) What perspectives on the issue are still missing from the podcast?

5. What questions do you still have about the issue that you would research in order to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the issue at hand? List at least 3.

# data[].attributes.body
1. racial profiling, flexibility of law in courtrooms, corruption in social justice system
2. flexibility of law in courtrooms - Judge Gaul offers no sympathy for these people's plights & imposes his own political agenda upon others.  We can see through Judge Gaul's actions and decisions that he decides based on his own viewpoints and doesn't consider each defendant's personal, unique issue. We see Judge Gaul racially profiling, stereotyping, and even using racial slurs in the courtroom. There is a lack of diversity in the social justice system because of how they are appointed/chosen.
3. I'm wondering what system is behind these judges to supervise them.  Who is reviewing their actions after the judges are elected? Why is there no continued education for these judges (who all attended law school decades ago & times have changed)?
4. Judge Gual's view, Sarah/Emmanuel's shared perspective, attorney's subtle perspective.  We are missing the defendants' views, which are lacking because of an inherent fear of Judge Gaul. The defendant's family's views are lacking, as well as perspectives of minority groups (courts are white-dominated).
5. How do the judges come up with their sentencings? Some laws have statues in place, while other ones are define as felony or misdemeanor but don't specify punishments. This leaves it up to the judge to decide the punishment. Some state have mandatory sentences which limits the judges, but this is not always the case. Who oversees who? It differs by state. The governor can remove a judge, recall elections can take place, and federal judges cannot be removed. Conduct branches are set up to review judges. In Missouri, judges can be impeached through House of Reps or reviewed by a Conduct board. How is the system set up? Missouri's systems of checking up on judges was only put into place in 1972.

# data[].attributes.body
1. (a) Racial Prejudice, (b) subjectivity in the courtroom, (c) Personal Bias

2. Racial Prejudice; When Judge Gaul assumed that one of the defendants didn't know who his father was, Gaul saying that a man deserved 14 years to the rest of his life in prison for a crime he was later acquitted of, Gaul, again, calling "Terrells" son a bad decision, literally.
3.  What can be done about the bias and racial prejudice and why is it still allowed after it has been criticized on multiple accounts. What happens when they make unethical decisions.
4. Perspectives included: The narrator, Judge Gaul, The prosecutor
Perspectives missing: The defendants, defendants families, jury/courtroom, court reporter
5. (5a) Can a judge be put on trial for the conduct of their case?
(5b) Do they sweep the actions of those in power under the rug because of their power?
(5c) What leads judges to racial bias/prejudice and is it rooted from their personal or professional background?
(5d) Is there someone who keeps track of their professional character/ who do the judges answer to?

Q5 Answers
5a. Can a judge be put on trial for the conduct of their case?
-typically a chief judge in place and there is a judicial council to report to and it is said to be investigated further.
5b. Do they sweep the actions of those in power under the rug because of their power?
-Not necessarily, often times misconduct is gone unreported because of how often it occurs in the courtroom
5c. What leads judges to racial bias/prejudice and is it rooted from their personal or professional background?
- Rarely rooted from professional backgrounds but brought from personal ideas and stigmas on how one knows another

# data[].attributes.body
1. Judicial power and lack of checks, racial profiling and stereotypes, lack of advocacy, court room inconsistency, coercion in courtroom
2. coercion: Judge Gaul likes control, "He felt as if Judge Gaul simply wanted submission for its own sake". ... "struck me nothing less than a raging slave master" ; occurs because no one is speaking out against the judge, speaking out as the defendant might get you a harsher sentence
3. We're unaware of what form of monitoring there is over the rulings the judges make; are there already things in place to look at it. Is this a wide spread issue or is it specific to judge Gaul.
4. "it is Judge Gaul's way or no way," "struck me nothing less than a raging slave master," "whatever that process is, it has to be started by somebody"
there was no defense attorney or lawyer in the podcast who talked about the issue, the people who voted Judge Gaul in, a juror, the mayor, the district attorney
5. how does the quality of the lawyer play into it/what is the quality of the lawyers that people are appointed, what is the system in place to monitor rulings, how does a defendant file a complaint/ is there a way to file a complaint anonymously
answers: Federal Judiciary oversight mechanisms deter and prevent fraud, waste, and abuse, and address mistakes should they occur, phone number for you to file a complaint, there's a code of conduct for the judges that they have to follow, the inspector general monitors the government and judges- can file a report to them, whistle-blower hotline and online form, rule against coercion on the code of conduct for judges, a judiciary commission assess judges, all lawyers have to pass the bar exam to practice

# data[].attributes.body
1. Racial profiling, leeway with sentencing between judges, lack of diversity in court system (majority white men)

2. Racial Profiling. It occurs because of the preconceived notions about the black community. Examples of this would be that the father is never in the picture, broken families, drug use, children out of wedlock, being a foster child, lower income.

3. Still wondering about why the court doesn't gather statistics on sentencing. Why do they keep punishing the defendants for the same crime rather than help rehabilitate them?

4. Perspectives: Judge Gaul, his colleagues unbiased witness (narrator)

Missing the perspectives of: family, other judges, lawmakers, the defendants

5. Questions regarding the election process for judges, the corruption of judges (Judge Gaul) in big cities, statistics of the severity of sentencing
Answers: Specifically in Ohio, there is a ballot system with a list of names and votes vote then and there.
There is a huge disparity in the demographic makeup of American prisons. In more than 12 states, the prison population is made up of more than half African American. An African American person is 5.1 times more likely to be incarcerated than a white person. A Latino is 1.4 more likely than a white person.

# data[].attributes.body
1.  Lack of diversity in justice system, racial profiling by judges,   and corruption.

2.  We choose racial profiling. Judge Gaul makes so many different assumptions about each defendant. The podcast provides information about how the judges hold a sort of power over their defendants and can make the defendants do/ say whatever they want. It is recommended that each judge at least attempts to stay emotionally detached from each case, but this judge clearly did not do that.

3.  We would like to know if any other county in Ohio has this issue or just this one. We also wondered how many times each defendant had been inside the judges courtroom before they were heard.

4. Includes different perspectives on Judge Gaul, transcripts from courtroom, and opinions/ testimonies from producer of the podcast. The only one we think should be included would be views from families and outsiders on how Judge Gaul operates his courtroom. Maybe including a perspective from the minority community in the county where these cases are being tried. Or a perspective from another judge inside the justice system.

5. Does racial profiling by judges only occur in certain areas of the country? How does the state/ city government choose which judge you see/ which level of court you go to? Should judges not include politics and bias out of their probation sentencing?

Answers:

1. Yes. Racial profiling occurs across the nation, most notably in the south and midwest.

2.  There are certain courts to hear certain types of cases. They each have procedures to follow for which cases they see and which ones they don't. Each judge chooses which cases they want to hear. Normally you are heard in whatever district court applies and then sent further up in the system if needed.

3. Yes, judges are supposed to remain as neutral as possible in regards to politics. They are there to hear cases and use law to determine the sentence for any given crime. However, when a case is brought in that might involve something political, a judge might have to use their bias there.