Boston Public Radio

In 2019, several states have passed laws restricting access to abortions, leaving some wondering if it means the end of Roe v. Wade.

Emily Bazelon is the author of "Charged: The New Movement to Transform American Prosecution and End Mass Incarceration," a new book that examines prosecutorial power, and how that has affected the justice system for decades.

Another hate crime rattled a synagogue this weekend, leaving one woman dead and others injured. Reverend Irene Monroe and Reverend Emmett Price say this shooting fits into a pattern of white nationalist violence.

The secretary of state touted his success in keeping the state safe in 2016, and is confident he'll be able to do it again in the next election.

In response to the release of the redacted Mueller report, Rep. Ayanna Pressley has renewed her call to impeach President Donald Trump.

Following the release of the redacted Mueller report Thursday, Rep. Jim McGovern told WGBH News he “doesn’t trust” U.S. Attorney General William Barr’s assessment that there was “no collusion” between Russia and the Trump campaign in the lead up to the 2016 election.

We kicked off the show by asking our listeners about the recent barrage of high-profile legal cases involving the rich and famous. Does the justice system only work for the wealthy and well-connected? If you’re just a regular Joe Lunchbox in East Overshoe, is the system inherently designed against you? Now that we know the Mueller report was at least 300 pages, what are we to make of William Barr's four-page memo? We discussed this with Michael Zeldin, a former colleague of Mueller, a legal analyst for CNN and a resident fellow at the Institute of Politics at the Harvard Kennedy School. Then we opened the lines so our listeners could ask him about Barr's interpretation of the Mueller report. Why did prosecutors dismiss charges against actor Jussie Smollett? Former Suffolk County Sheriff Andrea Cabral joins us for that and more on this week’s edition of Law and Order. Cabral is the former secretary of public safety and current chief executive officer of Ascend. The Pentagon is cannibalizing its military budget to fund Trump’s border wall — will this compromise security elsewhere? Ali Noorani, the executive director of the National Immigration Forum, joined us to discuss this and more. The Midwest is seeing historic floods. What does this mean, and whas is the cause? WGBH science correspondent Heather Goldstone joined us to discuss this and more. Goldstone is an expert in ocean science and host of Living Lab Radio. Then we got uncorked with Jonathan Alsop, the founder of the Boston Wine School and the new Boston Wine School Wine Club. And finally, Elizabeth McGovern is known for her role as Lady Grantham on Masterpiece’s "Downton Abbey." Now McGovern is taking on a new role: film producer. In her new film, "The Chaperone," McGovern stars both behind the camera and in front of it. She joined us to talk about the experience.

Homeland security expert Juliette Kayyem gave us her take on the Mueller report. We opened up the lines and asked you about Bob Kraft’s apology. Sports reporter Trenni Kusnierek called in from Seattle ahead of Opening Day. Medical ethicist Arthur Caplan looked at a new challenge from the Trump Administration to the Affordable Care Act. WGBH Executive Arts Editor Jared Bowen shared his picks for the best arts and cultural events around town this week. Are jumbo serving sizes a recipe for disaster when it comes to food waste? We opened up the lines and asked you about giant serving sizes at restaurants.

Food writer Corby Kummer says you should assume portion sizes at restaurant are twice as big as what you should be eating in one meal.

On today’s episode of Boston Public Radio: Is rent control due for a comeback? A group of lawmakers in the Massachusetts House are putting a proposal on the table. We opened up the lines and got your take. Shirley Leung, interim editorial page editor at the Boston Globe, discussed problem pets and equity in the marijuana industry. Congressman Stephen Lynch called in and told us how he thinks House Democrats should respond to the Mueller report. Forget the eyes — is the *handshake *really the window to a person’s soul? Harvard Business School professor Michael Norton looked at the social psychology around this common greeting. Food writer Corby Kummer analyzed flooding in the Midwest and how the agricultural industry will be impacted. We opened up the lines and asked you: How do you think Democrats should respond to the Mueller report?

The Mueller report has been submitted. We go over what we know with our political roundtable, featuring former Massachusetts treasurer Shannon O’Brien and political analyst Charlie Chieppo. Legal analyst and former Mueller colleague Michael Zeldin brought us his take on the report. Representative Katherine Clark shared how the report’s findings could impact Congressional investigations into the president. We opened up the lines and asked you about the Mueller report (and we later revisited this topic at the end of the program.) Reverend Irene Monroe and Reverend Emmett Price discussed a TD Bank ad in Boston that came under fire for its coded racial language. Charles Sennott, executive director of The GroundTruth Project, discussed Russian influence campaigns on both American elections and on Brexit.