In
this
episode
of
The
Jabot
Podcast,
I
sit
down
with
public
defender,
reform
advocate,
and
author
Emily
Galvin
Almanza
to
discuss
her
new
book
The
Price
of
Mercy:
Unfair
Trials,
a
Violent
System,
and
a
Public
Defender’s
Search
for
Justice
in
America.
Emily
shares
her
unexpected
path
into
law,
her
deep
commitment
to
criminal
defense,
and
the
emotional
realities
of
representing
clients
navigating
one
of
the
most
consequential
systems
in
American
society.
Drawing
from
years
in
public
defense
and
her
work
co-founding
Partners
for
Justice,
she
explains
why
the
criminal
legal
system
often
punishes
instability
rather
than
crime
—
and
how
policy
choices,
not
individual
morality,
frequently
determine
who
enters
the
system.
The
conversation
explores
burnout
among
defenders,
systemic
misconceptions
about
criminal
courts,
the
role
of
compassion
in
policy
reform,
and
the
economic
and
social
costs
of
incarceration.
Ultimately,
the
episode
reframes
justice
not
as
punishment,
but
as
a
question
of
public
safety,
community
stability,
and
human
dignity.