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PODCAST

Next Witness...Please

WOUB Public Media

Ever found yourself lost in legal jargon? Fear not! Our mission is to decode complex legal concepts into everyday language, making them accessible to all. Meet your hosts, the dynamic duo known as the Judicial Twins! Retired judge Tom Hodson brings over 50 years of legal expertise as a trial judge, defense attorney, and former Judicial Fellow at the Supreme Court of the United States. Retired judge Gayle William-Byers, with more than two decades of public service as a prosecutor and judge, is now

government politics

All Episodes

59:18

Trump and Musk Declare War on Bureaucracy—But...

Next Witness...Please ·

2025/02/17

As President Donald Trump and his cohort Elon Musk target huge cuts in the federal bureaucracy, the public trusts bureaucrats more than politicians. In an interesting 2024 survey by the Partnership for Public Service, 63 percent of Americans said they did not trust the federal government while only 31 percent said the federal government had a positive impact on the United States. However, 91 percent believe competent civil servants are important to a strong democracy and 95 percent believe civil

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64:52

Trump's War on DEI: Executive Orders Spark Legal...

Next Witness...Please ·

2025/02/10

Amid President Donald Trump’s early slew of executive orders, at least four seek to eliminate Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives started as long ago as the presidency of Lyndon Johnson.This edition of Next Witness…Please examines the concept of executive orders, charts some voluntary compliance and delves into current and upcoming litigations challenging the constitutionality of the orders. The executive orders seek to eliminate DEI initiatives in government, the military, the

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63:48

Trump’s Felony Sentencing: Why It Still Matters Amid...

Next Witness...Please ·

2025/02/03

As the first weeks of President Donald J. Trump’s presidency devolve into chaos within the federal government, the Next Witness…Please podcast takes a retrospective look at Trump’s felony sentencing in New York and why it is still important.Retired judges Gayle Williams-Byers and Thomas Hodson talk about the reasoning used by Judge Juan Merchan for his sentence, the sentencing proceeding itself and the Supreme Court decision leading up to the sentencing. Our hosts define, in understandable terms,

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66:06

TikTok’s Future in America Hangs by a ThreadTikTok’s...

Next Witness...Please ·

2025/01/18

As TikTok, the video app, skyrockets in popularity, a legal battle rages to see if a Congressional ban to shut it down takes effect on Jan.19.The U.S. Supreme Court recently heard 2.5 hours of oral arguments in a lawsuit filed by ByteDance, the parent company who owns TikTok, along with some creators, against legislation passed last April by Congress. The Congressional action said that TikTok either had to cease operations in the United States by Sunday, Jan. 19 or sell ByteDance to an American

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62:41

Countdown: Trump Awaits Sentencing as Legal Battles...

Next Witness...Please ·

2025/01/09

As we approach the inauguration of President Donald Trump, his only remaining active criminal cases are approaching conclusion.Trump is scheduled to be sentenced on January 10 in a New York courtroom by Judge Juan Merchan for the 34 felonies for which a jury found Trump guilty. Judge Merchan has indicated there would be no jail time and no official probation and that the cases would be “unconditionally discharged” – meaning no punishment. However, leading up to the scheduled sentencing, there

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59:52

Transgender Rights Under Fire: Legal Battles and...

Next Witness...Please ·

2024/12/21

Issues affecting transgendered people are hot legal topics in our highest courts and in our state legislatures across the country. The U. S. Supreme Court recently heard oral arguments on a Tennessee law that bans gender affirming care for minors. Half of our states have similar bans. The law prevents minors who claim their genders don’t align with their sex at birth from having access to puberty blockers and other medications needed to transition to the opposite sex. Court observers

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64:26

Hunter Biden’s Blanket Pardon Sparks Controversy:...

Next Witness...Please ·

2024/12/11

The blanket pardon of Hunter Biden by his father President Joseph Biden has sparked widespread controversy and there will be more pardons to come before President Biden leaves office in January.The broad pardoning of his son Hunter Biden for all “offenses against the United States which he has committed or may have committed or taken part in during the period from January 1, 2014, through December 1, 2024” has been criticized by Republicans, Democrats and the judiciary. Many argue that the pardon

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64:06

Young Thug's Legal Saga: A Sentence That Defines a...

Next Witness...Please ·

2024/12/03

Rapper Young Thug pleaded guilty in Atlanta, in October, to gang, drug, and gun charges a year after his racketeering trial had begun.He pleaded guilty to one gang charge, three drug charges, and two gun charges. He also pleaded no contest to another gang charge and racketeering conspiracy. His story is one of a long a protracted legal proceeding with twists and turns that are material for a novel. He had three different judges. One judge was removed during the trial. There were secret meetings

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Trump's Legal Storms: What's Next for the...

Next Witness...Please ·

2024/11/26

As Donald Trump approaches his second term as President, he leaves a landscape cluttered with unresolved legal issues, both criminal and civil.In this episode of Next Witness…Please, retired judges and co-hosts Gayle Williams-Byers and Thomas Hodson give you a post-election update on Trump’s pending legal cases. They delve into the status of the cases and predict what to expect next. Most importantly, they translate the legal jargon and processes into understandable terms using examples that

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61:40

Honoring the Icons: Role Models Who Shaped the Law...

Next Witness...Please ·

2024/11/18

With all the turmoil and finger pointing going on in the country and with the U.S. Supreme Court in a tizzy, it is sometimes good to look back and honor some positive role models we have had in our lives. November is National Inspirational Role Model Month so Next Witness…Please cohosts and retired judges Gayle Williams-Byers and Thomas Hodson share with you some people who have been their inspirations, especially in the law. Judge Byers highlights Emmeline Parkhurst, known as the mother of women

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52:59

Countdown to Freedom? The Menendez Brothers’ Final...

Next Witness...Please ·

2024/11/11

The Menendez brothers, Lyle and Erik, have been in prison for 35 years after being convicted of the 1989 murders of their parents.However, they are pursuing three different legal strategies to now be released from prison. Originally, they were sentenced to two consecutive life sentences without parole. Their original trial defense was that the murders were in self-defense after Erik had long been sexually abused by his father. The State of California claimed they killed to obtain the estate of

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62:35

Litigating the Vote: 2024 Gears Up to Be the...

Next Witness...Please ·

2024/11/04

Election 2024 is the most litigated election in history, say experts and we have just seen the beginning. In 2020, Donald Trump’s supporters filed 62 lawsuits post-election and lost 61 of them. This year, we already have had 130 lawsuits filed leading up to the election and promises of hundreds more following Election Day. Big time election lawyers are involved on both sides. Gineen Bresso is heading the GOP “election integrity” efforts along with Trump campaign counsel David Warrington. The

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52:14

Supreme Court on Trial: Will the Justices Steer Away...

Next Witness...Please ·

2024/10/25

The U.S. Supreme Court reconvened the first Monday in October for the new term after a summer recess. On the court’s docket are several high-profile cases with several more to be added.Court observers are watching how the court will handle these key matters to determine if the Supreme Court will continue in its MAGA direction or will it right itself and become more centrist. In this episode of the “Next Witness…Please” podcast, the “Judicial Twins,” retired judges Gayle Williams Byers and Thomas

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62:07

State Judges in the Hot Seat: Navigating Election...

Next Witness...Please ·

2024/10/18

Hundreds of election related cases are being filed across the country and most of these cases land in the laps of state trial judges.They must wade through detailed legal arguments concerning voting rights and ballot counting while meeting tight deadlines for rendering their decisions. In many states early voting has already started. This takes a judicial dexterity and a healthy dose of judicial independence. On this episode of Next Witness…Please, retired judges Gayle William-Byers and Thomas

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61:41

Abortion Chaos: How State Courts are Navigating...

Next Witness...Please ·

2024/10/14

Sending the creation and administration of abortion laws and regulations back to the states is causing a patchwork of confusion and is putting the burden on local state courts to determine their constitutionality. The draconian impact of some of these laws is also causing danger and death to innocent women. In this episode of “Next Witness…Please,” retired judges Thomas Hodson and Gayle William-Byers focus on three states as examples of abortion chaos at the state level: Georgia, Louisiana and

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60:48

Why Sean 'Diddy' Combs Remains Behind Bars: Judges...

Next Witness...Please ·

2024/10/07

Why is Sean “Diddy” Combs still in jail and not out on some type of bond, bail, or pretrial release? On this edition of Next Witness…Please, retired judges Gayle Williams-Byers and Thomas Hodson explore the federal criminal charges against Combs and look closely at why he currently is being held in the Metropolitan Detention Center in New York City and not released on bond. Combs is in jail pending a trial date which is expected to be set during a pretrial conference in federal court in New York

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62:07

America’s Public Defender Crisis: How the System...

Next Witness...Please ·

2024/10/01

America’s criminal courts are facing a crisis, namely the lack of public defenders and court appointed attorneys to defend people charged with crimes.Over the past decade, the paucity of defenders for the indigent has grown from an issue lurking just beneath the surface of our judicial system to one of an acute nature. In some states it has grown beyond acute and is, in fact, a critical problem. To understand the issue, we need to go back to 1963 when the Supreme Court of the United States in

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62:07

Behind the Bench: How Judges Maintain Decorum and...

Next Witness...Please ·

2024/09/23

What should judges expect from courtroom participants, and what happens if a judge crosses the line? In this episode of Next Witness...Please, retired judges Gayle Williams-Byers and Tom Hodson tackle the often-overlooked topic of judicial decorum. They offer both insight and entertainment, with personal and humorous examples of maintaining—or losing—judicial decorum. Every court, from state to federal, has codes of conduct requiring judges to be patient, dignified, and respectful in their

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64:33

Trump’s Legal Gauntlet: Two Retired Judges Weigh In

Next Witness...Please ·

2024/09/09

Donald Trump is currently entangled in two major federal criminal cases plus a criminal case in New York and at least two civil cases on appeal. These cases amount to a mixed bag of legal issues – some complex and some bordering on frivolous but all problematic for judges. On this episode of Next Witness…Please, retired judges Gayle Williams-Byers and Tom Hodson guide listeners through Trump’s legal troubles—not as advocates, but through the lens of judicial analysis. They discuss the federal

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56:59

Trump’s Motions Put Judge Merchan in the Hot Seat

Next Witness...Please ·

2024/08/21

New York Judge Juan Merchan is set to rule on pivotal motions from Donald Trump’s legal team, aiming to overturn 34 felony convictions in the hush money and campaign finance cases.Trump’s attorneys argue that improper evidence was used to secure the guilty verdicts, citing the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision on presidential immunity. They claim that testimony involving “official acts” from Trump’s presidency tainted the trial and are pushing for both the convictions and original indictments to

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