Boom! Lawyered

While you were paying attention to the midterm election results, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in cases challenging the constitutionality of the Indian Child Welfare Act, which was enacted 44 years ago this week to keep Native children and their families intact. In this rapid reaction episode, Jess and Imani lay out what's at stake in Brackeen v. Haaland and other consolidated cases for t...

It's our first live! In this rapid reaction episode, Jess and Imani break down all the shenanigans that were afoot at the Supreme Court today as the justices heard oral arguments in what could end race-based affirmative action as we know it in higher ed admissions. You can also watch the video playback of the live episode here . Rewire News Group is a nonprofit media organization, which means that...

Imani and Jess are being upfront—and admitting they got something wrong. It’s about the 2020 Supreme Court decision in Bostock v. Clayton County, in which the justices held that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act protects trans and gay employees at the workplace. Upon reflection, it turns out that the Bostock opinion is one giant goose egg—and Justice Neil Gorsuch is to blame. As Jess says in the e...

Jess and Imani are all over National Pork Producers Council v. Ross, the Supreme Court case about pork production and regulation in California—but  really, it's low-key a case about abortion rights. Yes, pork rights are abortion rights. To understand the interconnectedness, you'll need to know about the commerce clause and the dormant commerce clause. This is a one meaty episode you won't want to...

In a new episode of Boom! Lawyered, it's Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson's first official week on the Supreme Court. And it was a big one! Jess and Imani get into the important voting rights case the justices heard and how Jackson is already making her mark on the bench. Rewire News Group is a nonprofit media organization, which means that Boom! Lawyered is only made possible by the support of liste...

Your favorite legal journalists Jessica Mason Pieklo and Imani Gandy bring you everything you need to know about the new Supreme Court term and how the cases on the docket will represent the biggest step forward for the white evangelical movement in modern history. As Imani says in the episode, by the end of summer 2023, we could be looking at a world where business owners can discriminate against...

Host Imani Gandy is flying solo and is joined by friend-of-the-pod Elie Mystal, justice correspondent for The Nation. They have a super-sized conversation about the dystopian, post- Roe world the Supreme Court justices have created. They dissect why some people are afraid to say the word abortion (we're looking at you, President Biden) as if it's a shameful thing, and how that connects to the fail...

President Joe Biden took some baby steps—finally—to protect abortion in the country. But it's just not enough to get folks abortion care today . In a new episode of Boom! Lawyered, co-hosts Jessica Mason Pieklo and Imani Gandy dig into Biden's broad-strokes executive order, which is delivers big on aspirations and little on actual direction and action points. As Jess says in the episode: “Waiting...

In a new episode of Boom! Lawyered, co-hosts Jessica Mason Pieklo and Imani Gandy dive into the Court’s decision in Kennedy v. Bremerton School District , which sided with the public high school football coach whose prayer circle turned into a community event. Everything about it takes us back to our worst colonial and imperialist days. Mentioned in this episode: Where Were You the Day 'Roe' Died?...

For the first time in this country's history, an unelected majority of Supreme Court justices have taken away a fundamental constitutional right. In this rapid reaction episode of Boom! Lawyered, co-hosts Jessica Mason Pieklo and Imani Gandy try to process the Court's decision to overturn the right to abortion set by Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey. For full coverage of the end of Roe...

Do you live in Sacramento? Houston? Literally the entire state of Florida? What about Maine? If so, the Supreme Court recently gave the green light for border patrol agents to enter your home without a warrant—and there’s nothing you can do about it. In a new episode of Boom! Lawyered, co-hosts Jessica Mason Pieklo and Imani Gandy break down the stunning decision in Egbert v. Boule and what it mea...

Supreme Court clerks are being pressed to turn over their phones. Whispers of criminal statutes being invoked abound. Basically, whomever leaked the draft of Justice Samuel Alito's decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization  might be in a whole lot of trouble. But did they actually commit a crime? In this episode of Boom! Lawyered, co-hosts Jessica Mason Pieklo and Imani Gandy discus...

In this episode of Boom! Lawyered, co-hosts Jessica Mason Pieklo and Imani Gandy discuss the surveillance state that conservative lawmakers are creating. It's real. It's not just the bounty hunter laws where neighbors are rewarded for snitching on each other. They're also getting nurses to snitch on patients. It's using the criminal justice system to police pregnancy—and it's going to get worse. M...

Jess is joined by Robin Marty, operations director at Alabama West Women's Center, for a deeper look into the landscape of abortion in the South and how the clinic is preparing for a post- Roe world. Resources mentioned in the episode: If You Want to Protect Pregnant People From Arrest, Fund Red-State Clinics The New Handbook for a Post-Roe America Pregnant Workers Fairness Act Rewire News Group i...

Co-hosts Jessica Mason Pieklo and Imani Gandy break down what’s happened since Politico published the leaked SCOTUS opinion, including which lawmakers have risen to the occasion, and which didn’t. They also chat about how the White House’s response measures up to the gravity of the moment. And they’ll hit on what comes next: which states are poised to defend access moving forward and what the deci...

There's no sugarcoating it, folks: We're in the bad place. In this emergency episode of Boom! Lawyered, co-hosts Jessica Mason Pieklo and Imani Gandy bring you everything you need to know after Politico published a draft majority opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization that fully reverses Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey. After the recording of this episode, Chief Justic...

Boom! Lawyered is approaching 1 million downloads, and Jess and Imani have something special planned for loyal subscribers and listeners like you! Keep tuning in this month and be sure you're following us on Twitter . Connecticut just passed the most progressive and pro-abortion law on the books right now—and it's a shining example of what states can do if they care about abortion access. In this...

The case has the potential to completely change the landscape of abortion access as we know it. And only one thing might be certain, as Jess puts it: There's no chance for a win here. Rewire News Group is a nonprofit media organization, which means that Boom! Lawyered is only made possible by the support of listeners like you! If you can, please join our team by donating here . And sign up for The...

That's what happened in Texas after the indictment and arrest of Lizelle Herrera for a “self-induced” abortion. While Herrera’s charges were dropped, the case is a grim insight into the criminalization of pregnancy and pregnancy outcomes—one that seems to be getting worse. In a new episode of Boom! Lawyered, co-hosts Jessica Mason Pieklo and Imani Gandy break down a few key points about what happe...

The Senate voted 53-47 this afternoon to confirm Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court! "Aye" votes came from Republican Sens. Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, and Mitt Romney to confirm Jackson, who's the first Black woman, and first public defender, to join the nation's highest court. In this rapid reaction episode of Boom! Lawyered, co-hosts Jessica Mason Pieklo and Imani Gandy celebrate thi...

In a new episode of Boom! Lawyered, co-hosts Jessica Mason Pieklo and Imani Gandy ask the all-important question: Did we just move on from the fact that Ginni Thomas maybe probably definitely discussed the Big Lie with her husband— a sitting Supreme Court justice —while urging Trump administration officials to not accept the 2020 election results?! And will the Democrats do anything about it? Rewi...

Join co-hosts Jessica Mason Pieklo and Imani Gandy in a special reaction episode of Boom! Lawyered as they discuss the main takeaways from the day three of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson's confirmation hearing: Republicans are willing to pander to the lowest of the lows, and they're coming for all of our rights.  It's pretty dark. But Jess and Imani are following the lead of  Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ)...

In this rapid reaction episode of Boom! Lawyered, co-hosts Jessica Mason Pieklo and Imani Gandy break down all the good (Mazie Hirono, Cory Booker), the bad (Lindsey Graham), and the ugly (John Cornyn, Josh Hawley) from a marathon day of questioning Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson on day two of her confirmation hearing. Be sure to follow Rewire News Group on Twitter and Instagram as we continue to bri...

It's day one of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson's confirmation hearing, yet conservatives aren't over the Brett Kavanaugh hearings— which occurred in 2018. We also got peek into all the bad-faith nonsense that they'll bring over the next two days of questioning (we're looking at you, Sens. Josh Hawley and Marsha Blackburn). Rewire News Group is a nonprofit media organization, which means that Boom! La...

Conservative lawmakers in Idaho and Missouri are trying to advance bills that would make it a felony to help another person leave the state to get an abortion or gender affirming care. It’s a dangerous escalation in the attacks on reproductive health care, and Jess and Imani are here to walk you through it. Rewire News Group is a nonprofit media organization, which means that Boom! Lawyered—especi...