We can do better. Listen and have your eyes opened:
• See criminal justice reality and needed reforms through real-life stories of people with lived experience with crime on both sides of the law.
• Learn about practical solutions for breaking the cycle of crime, achieving healing for victims, and building safer communities.
Hosted by David Risley, former career federal prosecutor and former Director of Public Safety Policy in the Illinois Governor's Office.
Co-hosting many episodes is Lynard Joiner, who went to prison for 17 years in a case prosecuted by Mr. Risley, and who is now Executive Director of Shifting Into New Gear (SING), delivering reentry services and support to people returning to society after release from prison.
What Makes Us Unique
• Unexpected Partnership: The partnership of Mr. Risley and Mr. Joiner, who first met on opposite sides of a federal courtroom on opposite sides of the law, enables listeners to get the real story from both perspectives and demonstrates the power of forgiveness and healing.
• Beyond Theory: We bring you raw, honest stories from people who've lived through incarceration, police our streets, experienced victimization, live in high-crime communities, or work daily in the justice system—paired with concrete examples of cost-effective problem-solving that actually work.
• New Vision of Justice: Instead of legal and social barriers amounting to permanent punishment, we showcase successful reentry programs, community-driven approaches to healing trauma as both a cause and effect of crime, crime prevention, problem-solving courts, and restorative practices that help both victims and offenders rebuild their lives.
Featured Topics
• Life before and inside prison
• Life after prison: challenges, barriers, and successes
• Restorative justice in action
• Effective, community-centered solutions
• Victim healing and offender accountability
• Trauma-informed approaches to crime prevention
• Criminal justice policy reform
Justice Voices is essential listening for concerned citizens, policy-makers, justice professionals, community leaders, and anyone interested in how we can create safer communities by shifting from a punishment approach to justice to a problem-solving approach.
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We can do better. Listen and have your eyes opened:
• See criminal justice reality and needed reforms through real-life stories of people with lived experience with crime on both sides of the law.
• Learn about practical solutions for breaking the cycle of crime, achieving healing for victims, and building safer communities.
Hosted by David Risley, former career federal prosecutor and former Director of Public Safety Policy in the Illinois Governor's Office.
Co-hosting many episodes is Lynard Joiner, who went to prison for 17 years in a case prosecuted by Mr. Risley, and who is now Executive Director of Shifting Into New Gear (SING), delivering reentry services and support to people returning to society after release from prison.
What Makes Us Unique
• Unexpected Partnership: The partnership of Mr. Risley and Mr. Joiner, who first met on opposite sides of a federal courtroom on opposite sides of the law, enables listeners to get the real story from both perspectives and demonstrates the power of forgiveness and healing.
• Beyond Theory: We bring you raw, honest stories from people who've lived through incarceration, police our streets, experienced victimization, live in high-crime communities, or work daily in the justice system—paired with concrete examples of cost-effective problem-solving that actually work.
• New Vision of Justice: Instead of legal and social barriers amounting to permanent punishment, we showcase successful reentry programs, community-driven approaches to healing trauma as both a cause and effect of crime, crime prevention, problem-solving courts, and restorative practices that help both victims and offenders rebuild their lives.
Featured Topics
• Life before and inside prison
• Life after prison: challenges, barriers, and successes
• Restorative justice in action
• Effective, community-centered solutions
• Victim healing and offender accountability
• Trauma-informed approaches to crime prevention
• Criminal justice policy reform
Justice Voices is essential listening for concerned citizens, policy-makers, justice professionals, community leaders, and anyone interested in how we can create safer communities by shifting from a punishment approach to justice to a problem-solving approach.
Healing from trauma and helping others heal from trauma in the high crime community of East St. Louis, Illinois, Skyla Pawnell and Gloria Hicks share their powerful stories of transformation from being victims to community healers.
Rickey Brown shares his story of breaking free from an addiction-driven cycle of crime and jail. He graphically describes what it is like to see the world through the eyes of an addict.
Exploitation of women in prison by prison guards--the problem and solutions. Rachelle Conley shares her eye-opening story of being incarcerated nine times to becoming a correctional officer. Rachelle presents a vivid narrative of her challenging childhood, struggles with addiction, and the systemic exploitation and personal obstacles she faced within the prison system.
Restorative justice and justice in healthcare: two aspects of the justice mission of the Faith Coalition for the Common Good in Springfield, Illinois.
This episode features a conversation between host David Risley and three guests from the Faith Coalition: Tyshianna Bankhead (executive director); Vanessa Knox (transformational justice chair); and Quonie Barney (transformational justice community organizer).
How can a high crime community turn around and what does it take to make that happen? Deana Perez of Bright Star Community Outreach discusses the TURN model as a big part of the answer.
Pastor Chris Harris speaks about Bright Star Community Outreach, NATAL training, the TURN Center in Bronzeville in south Chicago, and the TURN Model of coalition building to reduce trauma and build safer communities.
Judge Jeff Ford (ret.), a pioneer of problem-solving courts and past president of the Illinois Association of Problem-Solving Courts, provides an inside look into this growing approach to criminal justice and explains his experience with creating and managing problem-solving courts in Champaign County in central Illinois.
Virgia Brewer. To meet this wonderful woman today, you would have no idea she is a survivor of decades of abuse and trauma, beginning as a sexually exploited child – exploited and abused by family members no less, beginning at age seven. Now she is happy. Hear what made the difference.
Lisa Daniels: Finding Healing Through Restorative Practices Lisa Daniels transformed her grief into purpose after forgiving her son’s killer. As founder of the Darren B. Easterling Center for Restorative Practices, —named after her son—she embodies the principles of restorative justice and the forgiveness teachings from Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount. Through her powerful story, Lisa reveals how the criminal justice system often sidelines victims’ interests and perspectives, even when claiming to seek justice on their behalf. Her perspective comes not from naïve idealism but from lived experience, including her service on the Illinois Prisoner Review Board. There, she reviewed applications […]
On the eve of Christmas, David Risley challenges both the philosophical and moral underpinnings of our prevailing approach to criminal justice and punishment.
Michael Tafolla shares part 1 of his story of childhood trauma from chronic victimization by gang-related gun violence and how as a teenager he became what he feared when he took up the gun, leading him to prison for murder, where he changed his life.
Pastor Jennifer Stephens shares her story of experiencing the trauma of victimization, self-medication with alcohol, jail and prison, support from church and family, reentry to community life after release, barriers faced because of her felony record – amounting to permanent punishment – resource recommendations for formerly incarcerated people in the Chicago area, her path to the ministry in the United Methodist Church, lessons learned, and her concluding message to the public about how to view formerly incarcerated citizens.
Pastor Jennifer Stephens shares her story of experiencing the trauma of victimization, self-medication with alcohol, jail and prison, support from church and family, reentry to community life after release, barriers faced because of her felony record – amounting to permanent punishment – resource recommendations for formerly incarcerated people in the Chicago area, her path to the ministry in the United Methodist Church, lessons learned, and her concluding message to the public about how to view formerly incarcerated citizens.
Eddie Bocanegra Video: His Journey from Gang Violence to READI Chicago Eddie Bocanegra grew up in Little Village on Chicago’s west side. His neighborhood felt like a combat zone. At 14, Eddie joined a street gang for protection, identity, belonging, and respect. By 18, he went to prison for a gang-related murder committed in retaliation for a friend’s shooting. The victim turned out to be neither from the neighborhood nor a gang member – simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. After serving 14 years in prison, Bocanegra transformed his life. He earned a master’s degree in social […]
From a public safety policy and justice reform standpoint, this is one of the most important episodes of Justice Voices published to date.
Richard Lovett, who prefers to go by the name Reality Allah, is the Reentry Coordinator for READI Chicago and a board member of the Fully Free campaign of Heartland Alliance.
After Reality was originally sentenced to serve 85 years in Illinois state prison, that sentence was later reduced due to the reversal of one of his convictions on appeal, so he ended up spending 22 years in prison. Now, he works to prevent others from following the path he did.
His story, experience, and his voice regarding lessons learned and wisdom gained are important.
If you are wondering whether to invest an hour listening to the full conversation, listen to the excerpts in the first five minutes. Even that will be a valuable investment of your time.
Willette Benford is Board Chair of the Fully Free campaign of Heartland Alliance.
In this episode she tells the story of how she was convicted and sentenced to 50 years in prison, developed a transformational relationship with God, worked while in prison to improve her life and the lives of others around her, was released early after serving two decades in prison due to a change in the law, and after release faced – and overcame – illegal denial of housing due to her past record.
She is now a passionate advocate for removing legal and social barriers to successful reentry to community life after people are released from prison.
Cedrick Frison shares wisdom gained from the hard lessons of living life on the streets of the west side of Chicago, including the effects of drug use, the trauma of living with violence both at home and on the street, and going to prison nine times before breaking free from that cycle and becoming the man he is today. A former high school dropout, he is now completing work on a bachelor’s degree, is a nationally certified addiction recovery specialist, has a home and family, and serves as both a board member of the Fully Free campaign of Heartland Alliance […]
We can do better. Listen and have your eyes opened:
• See criminal justice reality and needed reforms through real-life stories of people with lived experience with crime on both sides of the law.
• Learn about practical solutions for breaking the cycle of crime, achieving healing for victims, and building safer communities.
Hosted by David Risley, former career federal prosecutor and former Director of Public Safety Policy in the Illinois Governor's Office.
Co-hosting many episodes is Lynard Joiner, who went to prison for 17 years in a case prosecuted by Mr. Risley, and who is now Executive Director of Shifting Into New Gear (SING), delivering reentry services and support to people returning to society after release from prison.
What Makes Us Unique
• Unexpected Partnership: The partnership of Mr. Risley and Mr. Joiner, who first met on opposite sides of a federal courtroom on opposite sides of the law, enables listeners to get the real story from both perspectives and demonstrates the power of forgiveness and healing.
• Beyond Theory: We bring you raw, honest stories from people who've lived through incarceration, police our streets, experienced victimization, live in high-crime communities, or work daily in the justice system—paired with concrete examples of cost-effective problem-solving that actually work.
• New Vision of Justice: Instead of legal and social barriers amounting to permanent punishment, we showcase successful reentry programs, community-driven approaches to healing trauma as both a cause and effect of crime, crime prevention, problem-solving courts, and restorative practices that help both victims and offenders rebuild their lives.
Featured Topics
• Life before and inside prison
• Life after prison: challenges, barriers, and successes
• Restorative justice in action
• Effective, community-centered solutions
• Victim healing and offender accountability
• Trauma-informed approaches to crime prevention
• Criminal justice policy reform
Justice Voices is essential listening for concerned citizens, policy-makers, justice professionals, community leaders, and anyone interested in how we can create safer communities by shifting from a punishment approach to justice to a problem-solving approach.
