The Bail Post
What do we know about criminal justice reforms or bail reform? How do we evaluate whether reforms are helping or making the situation worse? How can we take politics out of criminal justice and focus on public safety? The Bail Post seeks to be a place where legislators and the public can educate themselves on a host of criminal justice/bail reform issues. With various attempts at criminal justice reform from New York to Texas to California, many people are confused as to what is working and what is not. With the passage of time, more and more data is coming to light over what successful reform looks like and what reforms have been found to not be working. The rise in violent crime across the country has been startling and law makers and the public alike are desperate to find legislation that is effective. Some might ask whether some of the reforms making the situation worse? The Bail Post is an on-going discussion that seeks to cut to the core to provide education on the various issues raised and to highlight what successful criminal justice reform looks like and what measures have been disastrous. Join us and educate yourself about the best practices that jurisdictions must implement to keep their communities safe, while ensuring fairness to defendants. As a someone said recently "Public safety is the foundation of a society. Without public safety we do not have a society."
If you would like to listen other episodes of The Bail Post you can find a subject matter index of the different episodes at- https://pbtx.blogspot.com/p/subject-index-to-bail-post-podcasts.html.
The host is Ken W. Good; an attorney in Tyler, Texas who has been licensed for over 30 years. He has argued cases before the Supreme Court of Texas and the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. Mr. Good has written a book on bail called "Goods On Bail." He has also has had numerous papers published on Criminal Justice Reform issues. Mr. Good is a board member of PBT and serves on the legislative committee. Mr. Good is married and has two daughters.
The Bail Post
Episode No. 30- How The Pandemic Failed Crime Survivors With Guest Patricia Weskunas
Patricia Wenskunas is the founder of Crime Survivors (www.crimesurvivors.org), a non-profit organization dedicated to providing hope and healing to victims and survivors of crime. Her organization works to ensure that victims and survivors are protected and their rights supported by working closely with law enforcement, the judicial system and the community.
Patricia nearly died in 2002 when she was viciously attacked in her own home by someone she trusted. A personal trainer, whom she knew and trusted from her local gym, arranged to stop by her condo one day, ostensibly to help her sell Patricia Wenskunasa piece of exercise equipment. Once there, he rendered her unconscious with a pill that he claimed would help her lose weight. When Patricia came-to, she found she was undressed, with the trainer on top of her. While she struggled to get away, the trainer threatened to kill her 12-year-old son, who was not home at the time. Now enraged, the attacker attempted to suffocate her with plastic kitchen wrap. With her last surge of adrenaline, Patricia broke free but found herself with nowhere to run. With her life hanging in the balance, she she made a daring 12-foot leap from her balcony to the hard kitchen floor below. After what seemed like an eternity, she finally made it to the door. Once outside, she screamed into the street for help.
This was not to be the end of Patricia’s ordeal. What ensued was her labyrinthine journey through the criminal justice system. At times it seemed that the system was far more interested in protecting the man who attacked her than it was in securing justice for her. Equally important, it didn’t seem to care about protecting society from her attacker being released to commit additional attacks on other women. Perhaps next time, she thought, he might even be “successful” at killing one or more of them. In the end, Patricia’s attacker served all of 120 days in prison for assault with a deadly weapon and making criminal threats. The judge threw out the charges of attempted murder.
Patricia vowed to do something about the attack and its aftermath by founding Crime Survivors. Always referring to herself as a survivor – never a victim – she became a tireless advocate on behalf of those of endured situations similar her own. She does it with an optimistic tone, believing that life after a violent attack begins in one’s state of mind. A frequent public speaker on the subject, she is dedicated to the notion that with community support, respectful advocacy and hopeful healing, one can survive a violent crime, and even thrive in their personal lives.
For more information:
Website- Crime Surviors- CLICK HERE.
Facebook- CLICK HERE.
Facebook- Be Their Voice Campaign- CLICK HERE.
Twitter- CLICK HERE.
Twitter- Be Their Voice Campaign- CLICK HERE.