In 1997, Ricky Kidd was sentenced to life without parole for a double homicide he says he didn't commit. And he says his court-appointed lawyer is the reason. In the U.S. justice system, everyone has the right to an attorney, even if you can't afford one. But what happens when your lawyer is overworked, underfunded and unable to do their job? From the PBS NewsHour, a look inside Missouri's public defender system at a crisis point and what it means for serving justice in America. PBS News is supported by - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/about/funders. Hosted on...
Latest episodes
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30 min
An update from Ricky Kidd
It's been about a year since Ricky Kidd was exonerated of charges for a 1996 double homicide he didn't commit. As he's set out to build a new life after 23 years in prison, the wor…
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25 sec
Introducing America, Interrupted
Much of what we've heard about the coronavirus is from major cities like New York. But what's happening to hospitals in rural America, where there are more high-risk patients, fewe…
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35 sec
Epilogue: Life after life in prison
Ricky Kidd is finally free -- thanks to his pro bono legal team, led by law professor Sean O'Brien. In this bonus episode, Ricky and Sean tell us about adjusting to life after pris…
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36 sec
Episode 5: Where do we go from here?
After 23 years behind bars, and a crushing defeat in 2009, Ricky Kidd finally gets a new day in court. Plus, we take a look inside a new St. Louis County prosecutor's campaign to u…
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23 sec
Episode 4: Public defenders fight back
The most common tool used to attack problems in public defender systems is the class action lawsuit. But what if there's a better strategy? Steve Hanlon, a longtime advocate for sy…
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28 sec
Episode 3: When things go wrong
The American justice system is based around the idea that you can get to the truth when two opposing sides make their cases in court. But what happens if your defense attorney is s…
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29 sec
Episode 2: How did we get here?
Americans didn't always have the right to an attorney. It all started with a pool hall robbery in Florida, and an unlikely legal advocate: a poor drifter named Clarence Earl Gideon…
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25 sec
Episode 1: Triage
Can an attorney handle more than 100 criminal cases at a time? That's the reality for a public defender like Jeff Esparza, who represents defendants unable to afford their own lawy…
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1 min
Broken Justice Trailer
In 1997, Ricky Kidd was sentenced to life without parole for a double homicide he says he didn't commit. And he says his court-appointed lawyer is the reason. In the U.S. justice s…