“Rethinking Jails + Justice” Press Release

WGTE PUBLIC MEDIA TO HOST FREE COMMUNITY TOWN HALL EVENT TO DISCUSS CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM

The “Rethinking Jails + Justice” project is in collaboration with The Board of Lucas County Commissioners and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Safety + Justice Challenge

TOLEDO, OHIO – January 8, 2024 – Beginning in January 2024, WGTE Public Media, in collaboration with The Board of Lucas County Commissioners and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Safety + Justice Challenge, will present “Rethinking Jails + Justice,” a 10-episode podcast and two community town halls that examine and challenge conventional thinking about over-incarceration that adversely and disproportionately affects racial and ethnic minorities. 

This project will kick off on Wednesday, January 10, 2024 at 5:30 p.m. at the downtown Main Branch Library McMaster Center, as WGTE invites the community to attend and discuss the state of Lucas County’s criminal justice system. A livestream of the event will be available at wgte.org/rjj and viewer questions may be submitted during the discussion in the comments section.

Jerry Anderson will emcee the town hall event, guiding the following panels through the conversation:

System Change vs. Community Change? 
Sean McNulty, Chief Public Defender: Toledo Legal Aid Society
Scott Sylak, Executive Director:  Mental Health and Recovery Services Board
Holly Matthews, Executive Director: Toledo-Lucas County Criminal Justice Coordinating Council
Carol Contrada, Former Lucas County Commissioner
Malcolm Cunningham, Director: Mayor's Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement
Commissioner Pete Gerken, Lucas County Board of County Commissioners

Reform vs. Safety 
Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz, City of Toledo
Chief Michael Troendle, Toledo Police Department
Judge Gene Zmuda, Sixth District Court of Appeals and Former Lucas County Common Pleas Judge
Judge Tim Kuhlman, Toledo Municipal Court
Commissioner Lisa Sobecki, Lucas County Board of County Commissioners
Bud Hite, Executive Director: Lucas County Correctional Treatment Facility
 

Questions, concerns and comments may be asked and stated at the event or submitted ahead of time to townhall@wgte.org. 

Visit www.wgte.org/rjj for more information on WGTE’s “Rethinking Jails + Justice.”

For more information on the Lucas County Safety + Justice Challenge, visit lucascountycjcc.org/SJC

Project and event video promo: youtu.be/mGF38JkOWYw

About WGTE:

WGTE Public Media, licensed and operated by The Public Broadcasting Foundation of Northwest Ohio, is a non-profit, noncommercial, educational TV and radio broadcaster and center of learning for northwest Ohio and Southeast Michigan. WGTE is proud to be a PBS and NPR member station. It was founded as a low-power educational television broadcaster in 1953. Education remains at the heart of what we do every day. From our entertaining, informative and educational programs that air on WGTE TV, FM 91 and www.knowledgestream.org to our professional development opportunities for K-12 teachers and preschool daycare providers and community engagement activities, WGTE makes northwest Ohio and southeast Michigan a better place to live. For more information, visit www.wgte.org.
If you would like more information about this topic, please call Matt Reny at 419-380-4646, or email matt_reny@wgte.org.