Justice Radio

Host: AJ Stash, Kage Johnson, and Hawo MohamedGuests: Tyrique and MagsTyrique, Mags, and AJ discuss how Mental Health program changes and Peer Support can help Mainers.

Host: Rob Ruffner, Maine Indigent Defense CenterGuests: Ben RebelloRob talks with Ben about Ben's experiences with Maine's criminal justice system

Host: Hawo & KageGuests: Estaphie and UlricEstaphie and Ulric talk about community organizing and healing with Hawo and Kage.

Host: Linda SmallGuests: Danni Shifflett of Recoery Action ProjectLinda and Danni discuss recovery and re-entry.

Kage and AJ talk with show co-host Hawo Mohamed from Healing First.

Foster Bates talks with Linda about the NAACP's work in Maine State Prison.

Leslie Wilson and Abby Forcier from Maine Indigent Defense Center

Air date January 18, 2026

Don’t miss Catherine’s interview this Sunday, January 4 at 1:30pm with Preston Shipp. Chief Legal and Advocacy Officer for Fair and Just Prosecution, as they talk about the best practices for parole with LD 1941 scheduled for Public Hearing next Thursday, January 8 in the Judiciary Committee.

Emily's interview with Maine Indigent Defense Center Extern Sadie Colby about pre-trial release.

Host: Linda SmallGuests: F&C performers

Hosts: Swathi SivasubramanianGuest: Joe Montgomery, mentor at Precious Blood Ministry of Reconciliation 

Host: Catherine BestemanGuests: Cast from the Freedom & Captivity “It’s Hard to Talk About: Stories of Incarceration” Performance

Host: Emily GouletteGuest: Mica Gonzalez, second year student at Northeastern University School of Law

Host: Linda SmallGuest: Bay Love of the Groundwater Institute

Host: Catherine BestemanGuests: Katrina Hopper- Freedom & Captivity performer and audience members Nick and Donna Drake

Hosts: Liv EckertGuest: CJ

Host: Emily GoulletteGuest: Clara Mulvhill

Hosts: Linda Small and Mackenzie KelleyGuest: Valerie Cartonio- podcaster, producer, and host of The Prison POD Podcast

Host: Catherine BestemanGuest: Linda Small and Mackenzie Kelley

Don’t miss guest host Cuba Jackson’s interview this Sunday, August 31 at 1:30 PM with Lisa Parham Jones, visionary founder of Black Travel Maine. They’ll discuss the power of storytelling in travel, cultural preservation, and the economic impact of bringing Black joy into spaces where people of color have historically been excluded. Learn how Black Travel Maine is not only transforming narratives, but also directly inspiring Black families, entrepreneurs, and creatives to relocate to Maine—and why justice reform is essential in a state where the legal system continues to disproportionately impact communities of color.

Don’t miss Mackenzie’s interview this Sunday, August 17 at 1:30 PM with Niki Merrill, Program Coordinator for the Maine Department of Corrections through the Portland Recovery Community Center. They’ll discuss recovery inside and outside the carceral system, the importance of recovery coaching during incarceration, how individuals receive this training, and how they use it when reentering their communities.

Don’t miss Swathi and Liv’s interview with Youth Justice Network intern Ben this Sunday, August 10 at 1:30 PM. They’ll discuss the joy of travel, the freedom it brings, the people we meet along the way, and explore transportation and housing policy. We hope this lighthearted conversation brings you joy—and inspires reflection on those who lack the freedom to travel. Let’s think radically about how we can transform systems and create pathways for more people to roam the world freely.

Catherine’s interview with Kempis “Ghani” Songster the Transformative Healing & Restorative Justice Manager of The Campaign for the Fair Sentencing of Youth (CFSY), as they continue the discussion about death by incarceration sentences handed down to children, and his own personal story having been released from prison, as a result of the Miller v. Alabama decision, more than 30 years after his incarceration at the age of 15.

Rob’s interview with Logan Perkins, District Defender of the Maine Highlands Region Public Defender's office which represents people from Penobscot and Piscataquis counties, as they talk about their work, jail overcrowding, and concerns surrounding the Penobscot County Sheriff’s decision to end Maine Pre-Trial Services.

Don’t miss Linda and Mackenzie’s interview this Sunday, July 20 at 1:30p with Peter Bruun, artist, writer, cultural organizer, and curator of the Puddle Dock Festival in Alna Maine (running from July to August 3), as they talk about community justice and wellbeing.

Don’t miss part Liv and Swathi’s interview this Sunday, July 13 at 1:30p with Joseph Jackson, Executive Director of the Maine Prisoner Advocacy Coalition, and MPAC Youth Program Coordinator, Andre Hicks, as they talk about joy, defiance, and the carceral system in Maine.

Don’t miss part 2 of Catherine’s 3-part interview this Sunday, July 6 at 1:30p with Kempis “Ghani” Songster, Transformative Healing & Restorative Justice Manager for the Campaign for the Fair Sentencing of Youth (CFSY), as they continue the discussion about how to work with District Attorney’s to refer cases of very serious violence to an intensive accountability and healing focused restorative justice process rather than to courts and prison.

Don't miss Linda and Mackenzie's interview this Sunday, June 15 at 1:30 PM with Isaac Shainblum, host of Voices from the Other Side and Certified Drug and Alcohol Counselor, and Michael Paddleford, Community Educator at Aroostook County Action Program and host of Recovery Loud, as they discuss their work supporting Mainers with substance use disorders and raising awareness of the carceral system's impact on individuals, families, and communities.

Don’t miss part 2 of Liv and Swathi’s interview with Will Burdick, social worker and substance use counselor at Westbrook High School, as they continue the conversation and talk about the impact of teams, movement, and mindfulness.

Don’t miss part 1 of Catherine’s 3-part interview this Sunday, June 1 at 1:30p with Kempis “Ghani” Songster, Transformative Healing & Restorative Justice Manager for the Campaign for the Fair Sentencing of Youth (CFSY), as they talk about how to work with District Attorney’s to refer cases of very serious violence to an intensive accountability and healing focused restorative justice process rather than to courts and prison.

Don’t miss part II of Rob’s interview this Sunday, May 25 at 1:30p with Frayla Tarpinian from the Capital Region Public Defenders Office as they continue the discussion about the indigent defense crisis in Maine, more specifically the benefits of indigent defense and its future promise as they build out the system.

Don’t miss part II of Linda and Mackenzie’s interview with Meghan Reedy, Program Coordinator for the Maine Humanities Council, and Jon Courtney, former Film Screenings Programmer for the Portland Museum of Art, as they continue the conversation and talk about the importance of access to books while incarcerated.

Don’t miss part I of Liv and Swathi’s interview with Will Burdick, social worker and substance use counselor at Westbrook High School, as they talk about the power of authentic relationships to promote connection and healing for young people and how schools can create space for these kinds of relationships.

Host: Catherine BestemanGuest: Tina NadeauBlurb: Don’t miss Catherine’s interview with Tina Nadeau, Executive Director of the Maine Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (MACDL), this Sunday, May 4 at 1:30p, as they talk about dissent in a country where democracy, the rule of law, free speech and the right to protest are all under direct attack from the federal government.

Host: Rob RuffnerGuest: Frayla TarpinianDon’t miss part 1 of Rob’s interview with District Defender Frayla Tarpinian about the misinformation surrounding Maine’s indigent defense crisis.

Hosts: Linda Small and Mackenzie KelleyGuests: Meghan Reedy and Jon CourtneyDon’t miss Linda’s interview with Meghan Reedy, Program Coordinator for the Maine Humanities Council, and Jon Courtney, Film Screenings Programmer for the Portland Museum of Art, as they talk about how they improve and support the lives of incarcerated people through film, art, poetry, and books.

Don’t miss guest host Mara Sanchez’s interview with Linda Small, Justice Radio show host and Executive Director of Reentry Sisters. Tune-in this Sunday, March 30 at 1:30p as they talk about Women, Incarceration, and Education.

Don’t miss Emily’s interview with Colby College students who are doing their winter term at the Maine Indigent Defense Center, as they talk about their focus projects.

Don’t miss Linda and Mackenzie’s interview with Rae Sage, Policy Coordinator for the Permanent Commission on the Status of Racial, Indigenous, and Tribal Populations, as they talk about the work of the Commission, it’s mission to address Maine’s legacy of disparity, and its vision for Justice.

Don’t miss part II of Liv & Swathi’s interview with Brandon Brown, Executive Director of Youth-LED Justice, as they talk about revisioning conflict narratives.

Catherine interviews Brandon Brown, Executive Director of Youth-Led Justice, and Former Legislator and advocate Jeff Evangelos, to talk about the topic of clemency in Maine.

Don’t miss part I of Liv & Swathi’s interview with Brandon Brown, Executive Director of Youth-Led Justice, as they talk about revisioning conflict narratives.

Don’t miss Rob’s interview with Maine Immigration Attorney Barbara Taylor, as they talk about the challenges of navigating the complicated immigration legal process in Maine.

Don’t miss Linda’s interview with Jan Collins, Assistant Director of the Maine Prisoner Advocacy Coalition, as they talk about advocating for humane prisons through legislation and public education.

Don’t miss Catherine Besteman’s interview with Co-Directors Erin Bonner and Shayna Lonoaea of the Justice Arts Coalition, an organization formed to unite artists impacted by the criminal legal system and creatives everywhere to harness art’s transformative power and reimagine justice.

Don’t miss Rob and Emily’s interview with Attorney and Executive Director of the Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Tina Nadeau, as they talk about the inequities in our criminal legal system in Maine.

on’t miss Linda’s interview with Dr. Mara Sanchez, Programs Director at the Alliance for Higher Education in Prison, as they talk about why we should support education in prison and how it ensures more positive outcomes and reduces recidivism.

Host: Catherine BestemanGuest: Nicole LundTopic: Don’t miss Catherine’s interview this Sunday with Nicole Lund, visual artist, writer, prison abolition advocate, graduate student at the University Maine of Farmington, and former volunteer at the Maine State Prison, as they talk about her new book co-authored with Buddy Bieler and Esder Chong titled “Stuffed behind Bars: Secret Recipes from inside Maine State Prison” which speaks to the importance of community, connection, and food.