Here in 2024, the 13th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution still states; “Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime, whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction”. This year, on the California ballot, was Proposition 6, a ‘yes’ vote would amend the California Constitution and prohibit the state from punishing incarcerated individuals with involuntary work assignments AND from disciplining those who refuse to work. Prop 6 didn’t pass and so slave labor may continue within the California prison system. Nicolas Tirado, of the Anti-Recidivism Coalition, spent 11 years in various California prisons, working at jobs that would have no transferrable skills, back in the community, and making $.86 a day, PRE tax and restitution. His recent online op-ed, in Teen Vogue, was an eye opening article about ending “modern-day slavery” and well worth the read.

Unfortunately, the cycle of domestic abuse can be handed down, from generation to generation, and it is an inheritance that can prove deadly. Such was the case for Kelly Savage-Rodriguez. Kelly grew up in an abusive family, and her mother was constantly, in the criminal justice system. Kelly herself was in a domestic violence situation when sadly she lost her 4 year old son, at the hands of her then-husband. While Kelly’s husband was sentenced to LWOP - Life Without Parole, Kelly herself was charged, at the time, with the California failure to protect law. Kelly served 23 years behind the wall and she also lost her baby daughter to her ex-husbands family. But Kelly wasn’t going to quit fighting for her release, and in November of 2018 had her LWOP sentence commuted by then-California Governor Brown. Through all of Kelly’s pain, she used her time in prison to not only improve herself but help others, including taking on a role with the California Coalition of Women Prisoners, as a Drop LWOP Coordinator. Kelly is still in that role today, but fortunately outside the wall.

On September 10, 2024, in Philadelphia Pennsylvania, Attorney Alex Van Dyke, of famed legal firm, Kline & Specter, along with 67 million viewers tuned in to watch the Presidential debate between Vice President, Kamala Harris, and Donald Trump. What transpired that evening, would once again put the former Central Park Five, now known as the Exonerated Five, back in the spotlight. That night at the podium, Donald Trump relayed false information, stating that the Exonerated Five plead guilty to the assault and rape of the jogger and that she, in-fact, died of her injuries. Neither of these statements are true. In 1989, these five men, then teenagers, were arrested for the rape and assault of that woman. All five pled not guilty, yet were sentenced to years in prison. The victim of this infamous attack suffered horrific injuries, but she did survive. In 2002, with more conclusive DNA evidence, and a confession from the actual rapist, these five men were exonerated and their charges vacated. Fast forward 35 years, and the Exonerated Five have filed a defamation lawsuit against Donald Trump. Listen in as we open this episode with a preamble from Attorney Bill Newman and then, Attorney Alex Van Dyke, from the Exonerated Fives’ legal team, joins us for a first look at this new civil lawsuit against Donald Trump.