Episode 206: Pink Crime

Professor Dan Maurer joins new ACS Director of Policy & Programs Hayley Durudogan to discuss the legal limits on domestic deployment of the military during an election. From the historical roots of these restrictions to the laws governing military activity on American soil, they explore the boundaries of presidential power and the reforms needed to safeguard American democracy.Join the Progressive Legal Movement Today: ACSLaw.orgHost: Hayley Durudogan, Director of Policy and ProgramGuest: Dan Maurer, Associate Professor of Law, Ohio Northern University Pettit College of LawLink: Politics by Other MeansLink: Boots Off Ballots: The Law Link: No Emergency Exception: The Ban on Troops at the Polls Was Built for CrisesVisit the Podcast Website: Broken Law PodcastEmail the Show: [email protected] ACS on Social Media: Facebook | Instagram | Bluesky | LinkedIn | YouTube-----------------Broken Law: About the law, who it serves, and who it doesn’t.-----------------Production House: Flint Stone MediaCopyright of American Constitution Society 2026.

In recent years, the Roberts Court has fundamentally reshaped constitutional law. This Term, the Court will take up cases that could have profound implications for civil rights, public safety, and the health of our democracy. A panel of constitutional and legal experts joins Lindsay Langholz to discuss how far the Court might go to further transform voting rights, access to the courts to pursue accountability for law enforcement abuses, protections for gender and sexual minorities, gun violence prevention efforts, and other civil and constitutional rights.Join the Progressive Legal Movement Today: ACSLaw.orgHost: Lindsay Langholz, Vice President of Policy and ProgramGuest: John Cusick, Assistant Counsel, Legal Defense FundGuest: Danielle C. Jefferis, Schmid Professor for Excellence in Teaching, Associate Professor of Law, University of Nebraska College of LawGuest: Anya Marino, Chief Strategic Programs Officer, Advocates for Trans EqualityGuest: Darrell A.H. Miller, Harry N. Wyatt Professor of Law, University of Chicago Law SchoolLink: Supreme Court 2026 Term Highlights Stakes for Voting Access, Constitutional Protections, and the Rule of LawLink: New Supreme Court term features First Amendment, other challengesLink:  Falsifying TraditionLink: LDF Files U.S. Supreme Court Amicus Brief Opposing Restrictive Arizona Voter Registration Practices and Voter PurgesVisit the Podcast Website: Broken Law PodcastEmail the Show: [email protected] ACS on Social Media: Facebook | Instagram | Bluesky | LinkedIn | YouTube-----------------Broken Law: About the law, who it serves, and who it doesn’t.-----------------Production House: Flint Stone MediaCopyright of American Constitution Society 2026.

Insiders likened aspects of Trump’s proposed “anti-weaponization fund” to a truth and reconciliation commission—a key transitional justice process—to legitimize the corrupt mechanism. Yet, the Trump Administration’s use of transitional justice terms to address supposed abuses of the past brings up important questions about what transitional justice mechanisms might be needed to address rights violations occurring during Trump’s term. Diane Furstenau is joined by Lisa Dicker, Assistant Professor of Law and Associate Director of the Hugh L. Carey Center for Dispute Resolution at St. John’s University School of Law, to discuss Trump’s use of transitional justice terminology, as well as what transitional justice may look like in the post-Trump era. Join the Progressive Legal Movement Today: ACSLaw.orgHost: Diane Furstenau, Director of Policy and ProgramGuest: Lisa K. Dicker, Assistant Professor of Law and Associate Director of the Hugh L. Carey Center for Dispute Resolution, St. John’s University School of LawLink: The Politics of Justice: Analyzing the Politicization of Transitional Justice ProcessesLink: Transitional Justice at HomeVisit the Podcast Website: Broken Law PodcastEmail the Show: [email protected] ACS on Social Media: Facebook | Instagram | Bluesky | LinkedIn | YouTube-----------------Broken Law: About the law, who it serves, and who it doesn’t.-----------------Production House: Flint Stone MediaCopyright of American Constitution Society 2026.

State attorneys general have been in the news a lot lately. But many people don’t fully understand what the job of state attorney general entails, and voters too often skip these races on their ballot because they don’t know anything about the office or the candidates. With 30 states and the District of Columbia holding elections for their attorneys general this November, understanding the role of your state attorney general is important to being an informed voter. Former New Jersey Attorney General Matt Platkin joins Broken Law to talk about what the job of a state AG is and what’s at stake in these elections. Join the Progressive Legal Movement Today: ACSLaw.orgHost: Valerie Nannery, Senior Director of Policy and ProgramGuest: Matthew Platkin | Partner, Platkin LLP; former New Jersey Attorney GeneralLink: ACS Event: Protecting Voters & Our Votes: State Attorneys General on Democracy’s Frontlines Link: State Attorneys General Project Link: Voter Protection Volunteer Opportunities  Visit the Podcast Website: Broken Law PodcastEmail the Show: [email protected] ACS on Social Media: Facebook | Instagram | Bluesky | LinkedIn | YouTube-----------------Broken Law: About the law, who it serves, and who it doesn’t.-----------------Production House: Flint Stone MediaCopyright of American Constitution Society 2026.

The first ballots of this year's midterms have been sent out, and with that, it is officially election season.  Katie Waldo of We the Action and Nicholas Gothard of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law join Ashley Erickson to discuss ways that lawyers and law students can get involved in election protection efforts in 2026.Join the Progressive Legal Movement Today: ACSLaw.orgHost: Ashley Erickson, Senior Director of Network AdvancementGuest: Katie Waldo, Managing Director, We the ActionGuest: Nicholas Gothard, Senior National Coordinator, Election Protection, Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under LawLink: 2026 Guide to Voter Protection Opportunities for Lawyers, We the ActionLink: Sign Up to Volunteer for the 1-866-OUR-VOTE HotlineLink: Sign Up to Be a Poll WorkerLink: State Voting Laws Roundup, Brennan Center for JusticeVisit the Podcast Website: Broken Law PodcastEmail the Show: [email protected] ACS on Social Media: Facebook | Instagram | Bluesky | LinkedIn | YouTube-----------------Broken Law: About the law, who it serves, and who it doesn’t.-----------------Production House: Flint Stone MediaCopyright of American Constitution Society 2026.

The Department of Justice is in crisis. The bedrock principle of non-interference, once held sacrosanct by administrations of both parties, has been jettisoned. The Attorney General has directed the Department to represent the President and his agenda above all else. Thousands of attorneys and professionals have left or been forced out as leadership pursues personal and political grudges at the President’s open direction. What reforms can be instituted to restore the department’s independence? What can be done by Congress or outside organizations to bring oversight to the abuses taking place within the department? What can future administrations do to restore the Department’s professionalism and reputation?Join the Progressive Legal Movement Today: ACSLaw.orgHost: Diane Furstenau, Director of Policy and Program, ACSGuest: Rachel Rossi, President, Alliance for Justice (and Panel Moderator)Guest: Rupa Bhattacharyya, Legal Director, Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection, Georgetown LawGuest: Stuart Delery, Partner, Gibson DunnGuest: Stacey Young, Founder & Executive Director, Justice ConnectionLink: Blanche won't pledge DOJ independence from Trump, by Andrew PantaziLink: How the Trump administration erased centuries of Justice Department experience, by Eric Tucker and Alanna Durkin RicherLink: How Trump is weaponizing the DoJ to ‘bully, prosecute, punish and silence’ his foes, by Peter StoneVisit the Podcast Website: Broken Law PodcastEmail the Show: [email protected] ACS on Social Media: Facebook | Instagram | Bluesky | LinkedIn | YouTube-----------------Broken Law: About the law, who it serves, and who it doesn’t.-----------------Production House: Flint Stone MediaCopyright of American Constitution Society 2026.

Nine years after Hurricane Maria and ten years after a fiscal control board was imposed on Puerto Rico, the second Trump Administration is now using the island for its own aims while neglecting the needs of the island's citizens. In this episode, Dr. Marisol LeBrón joins Valerie Nannery to dig into Puerto Rico’s colonial status, how it effects the everyday lives of Puerto Ricans, and how it enables the Trump Administration’s reinvigorated Monroe Doctrine.Join the Progressive Legal Movement Today: ACSLaw.orgHost: Valerie Nannery, Senior Director of Policy and ProgramGuest: Dr. Marisol LeBrón, Associate Professor of Critical Race and Ethnic Studies, University of California, Santa CruzLink: Policed: A Latinx History of State Violence, by Marisol LeBrónLink: Puerto Rico SyllabusLink: Making Never-Never Land: Race and Law in the Creation of Puerto Rico, by Mónica A. JiménezLink: The U.S. Constitution Meets Democratic Theory:  The Puzzling Cases of Puerto Rico and D.C., by Luis Fuentes-Rohwer & Guy-Uriel CharlesVisit the Podcast Website: Broken Law PodcastEmail the Show: [email protected] ACS on Social Media: Facebook | Instagram | Bluesky | LinkedIn | YouTube-----------------Broken Law: About the law, who it serves, and who it doesn’t.-----------------Production House: Flint Stone MediaCopyright of American Constitution Society 2026.

In the wake of recent SCOTUS decisions like Dobbs and Skrmetti, the bodies and actions of queer people, mothers, and pregnant people have been increasingly criminalized.  Lindsay Langholz is joined by Valena Beety to discuss her new book, Pink Crime: Fighting Against the Criminalization of Motherhood, Pregnancy, and Queer Identity, and how women and queer people are being punished for crimes that never occurred at all. Join the Progressive Legal Movement Today: ACSLaw.orgHost: Lindsay Langholz, Vice President of Policy and ProgramGuest: Valena Beety, Robert H. McKinney Professor of Law, Indiana University Maurer School of LawLink: Pink Crime: Fighting Against the Criminalization of Motherhood, Pregnancy, and Queer Identity, by Valena Beety (30% off code: TNP30)Link: Tip that saw Pete Buttigieg separated from his children was not vetted and informant may have been ‘mentally unstable’, by Jasmine FernándezLink: Post-Dobbs Pregnancy Criminal Cases, Pregnancy JusticeVisit the Podcast Website: Broken Law PodcastEmail the Show: [email protected] ACS on Social Media: Facebook | Instagram | Bluesky | LinkedIn | YouTube-----------------Broken Law: About the law, who it serves, and who it doesn’t.-----------------Production House: Flint Stone MediaCopyright of American Constitution Society 2026.

In backsliding democracies around the world, civil society organizations have consistently been targeted by government actors in order to stifle dissent and pluralism.  ACS Director of Policy and Program Diane Furstenau joins Lindsay Langholz to discuss this pattern and what lessons we can learn from other countries' experiences as we face similar threats at home.Join the Progressive Legal Movement Today: ACSLaw.orgHost: Lindsay Langholz, Vice President of Policy and ProgramGuest: Diane Furstenau, Director of Policy and Program, ACSLink: Monitor: Tracking Civic Space, CIVICUSLink: Resource Collections, International Center for Not-for-Profit LawLink: The Impacts of the Recent Executive Orders on Nonprofits, National Council of NonprofitsLink: Civil Society Rights & Resiliency Resources, Charity & Security NetworkVisit the Podcast Website: Broken Law PodcastEmail the Show: [email protected] ACS on Social Media: Facebook | Instagram | Bluesky | LinkedIn | YouTube-----------------Broken Law: About the law, who it serves, and who it doesn’t.-----------------Production House: Flint Stone MediaCopyright of American Constitution Society 2026.

Checks on executive power have become fully unbalanced, with boundaries and guardrails overrun daily. Congressional leadership unwilling to challenge a president of their own party and an enabling Court have thus far proven largely uninterested in reining in a president who openly defies constitutional and legal constraints on his power. A recent panel at ACS's 2026 National Convention tackles the question of what can be done now to curb executive power and rebalance our branches of federal government?Join the Progressive Legal Movement Today: ACSLaw.orgHost: Lindsay Langholz, Vice President of Policy and ProgramGuest: Vanita Gupta, Director of the Center for Law and Public Trust, NYU LawGuest: Harold Hongju Koh, Sterling Professor of International Law, Yale Law SchoolGuest: Barbara McQuade, Professor from Practice, University of Michigan Law SchoolGuest: Hon. Jamie Raskin, Member, U.S. House of Representatives for the 8th District of MarylandGuest: Donald Sherman, President and Chief Executive Officer, CREWLink:  Videos of all 2026 National Convention Panel Conversations Coming SoonVisit the Podcast Website: Broken Law PodcastEmail the Show: [email protected] ACS on Social Media: Facebook | Instagram | Bluesky | LinkedIn | YouTube-----------------Broken Law: About the law, who it serves, and who it doesn’t.-----------------Production House: Flint Stone MediaCopyright of American Constitution Society 2026.