WEBVTT - 10-2-25 Bill Cunningham Show 0:00:06.880 --> 0:00:09.000 All right, Billy Cunningham, the Great America, and welcome this 0:00:09.080 --> 0:00:11.680 Thursday afternoon in the tri States. We've had three nights 0:00:11.680 --> 0:00:14.920 of the reds athletically across the nation. Monday night, of course, 0:00:14.960 --> 0:00:17.960 Monday Night football in Denver didn't turn out real well, 0:00:18.200 --> 0:00:20.799 and Tuesday and Wednesday in Los Angeles did not turn 0:00:20.800 --> 0:00:23.439 out real well. But we always have hope because the 0:00:23.480 --> 0:00:26.360 Bengals are playing Sunday against the Lions right here, then 0:00:26.400 --> 0:00:29.000 the Packers and the Steelers. If you're an optimist, three 0:00:29.040 --> 0:00:31.600 games from now, that Bengals will be in first place 0:00:31.640 --> 0:00:33.680 in the AFC North. If not, we'll have to pick 0:00:33.760 --> 0:00:36.879 up the pieces and worry about Xavier basketball. But until then, 0:00:37.200 --> 0:00:40.000 one of the themes happening in every urban area, but 0:00:40.400 --> 0:00:43.560 even here in Cincinnati, is that the criminal justice system 0:00:43.600 --> 0:00:46.600 does not provide criminal justice to the victims, many times 0:00:46.600 --> 0:00:50.320 only to the defendants. And so the Hamilton County Jail 0:00:50.360 --> 0:00:53.440 has a few floors that are emptied out completely because 0:00:53.520 --> 0:00:56.720 judges are not putting shall we say, criminal defendants in prison. 0:00:57.200 --> 0:00:59.760 We have a police force that is demoralized because they 0:01:00.000 --> 0:01:03.680 rest individuals and before the paperwork has completed, that person's 0:01:03.720 --> 0:01:06.720 out in the streets mocking the police. We don't enforce 0:01:06.800 --> 0:01:09.760 laws in Hamletin County. So joining you now is you, 0:01:09.800 --> 0:01:13.320 and I now is Judge Josh Berkowitz. He's the administrative 0:01:13.319 --> 0:01:16.840 and presiding judge currently of Hamilton County Municipal Court. Been 0:01:16.840 --> 0:01:19.479 there for about a decade. He knows everything about Hamilton 0:01:19.520 --> 0:01:23.080 County Municipal Court. And Judge Josh Burkle, which former prosecutor 0:01:23.319 --> 0:01:26.120 and former law director in the City of Norwood. Welcome 0:01:26.160 --> 0:01:28.319 to the Bill Cunningham Show. And first of all, judge 0:01:28.400 --> 0:01:32.720 can give us an overview about what is happening, good 0:01:32.840 --> 0:01:35.160 or bad about criminal justice in Hamilton County. 0:01:36.680 --> 0:01:39.000 Well, thanks, Bill, it's great talking to you. Thanks for 0:01:39.040 --> 0:01:42.319 having me on what we're seeing here in Hamilton County. 0:01:42.360 --> 0:01:45.720 And like you said, these are national issues that are 0:01:45.760 --> 0:01:49.960 affecting cities around the country, and we didn't get here overnight. 0:01:50.040 --> 0:01:54.560 This is kind of the product of really twenty years, 0:01:54.600 --> 0:01:59.280 ten to twenty years worth of bad progressive policies and 0:01:59.440 --> 0:02:05.920 idea is that kind of filtered through college sociology programs 0:02:06.160 --> 0:02:10.800 and law review articles, and you know now it's made 0:02:10.800 --> 0:02:14.480 its way to the bench and it's really kind of 0:02:14.560 --> 0:02:17.400 not just in the courthouse, but it's kind of dominated 0:02:17.840 --> 0:02:24.080 public discourse and captured justice systems in cities around the country, 0:02:24.160 --> 0:02:27.960 kind of that ideological capture. And here in Hamilton County, 0:02:28.480 --> 0:02:34.040 that progressive mentality has you know, that's the prosecutor's office now, 0:02:34.320 --> 0:02:38.120 that's the Sheriff's department, that's the Common Pleas Court, that's 0:02:38.160 --> 0:02:40.720 the first District Court of Appeals, that's the Clerk of 0:02:40.760 --> 0:02:43.040 Courts all you know in that city Hall of course, 0:02:43.080 --> 0:02:47.760 that is responsible for setting policy for Cincinnati Police. So 0:02:47.880 --> 0:02:51.640 the entire justice system is dominated right now by this 0:02:51.840 --> 0:02:58.160 progressive mentality, and the outcomes have been very predictable. I mean, 0:02:58.200 --> 0:03:01.880 it takes the form and in the movement away from 0:03:02.440 --> 0:03:06.600 to end cash bail for example, and more broadly to 0:03:07.919 --> 0:03:13.240 just reduce consequences, reduce penalties, whether in the form of 0:03:13.440 --> 0:03:18.000 sentencing or setting bond. There's this mentality. 0:03:17.440 --> 0:03:19.240 That's evidenced, Like you said, I. 0:03:19.200 --> 0:03:23.919 Mean, our jail right now is four hundred inmates below capacity, 0:03:24.200 --> 0:03:28.679 four hundred inmates below where it was pre COVID. Does 0:03:28.760 --> 0:03:33.080 anybody believe that crime is down by a third or 0:03:33.600 --> 0:03:37.119 twenty thirty percent from where it was in twenty nineteen. 0:03:37.600 --> 0:03:41.400 It's absurd, And so what happening. Let me talk about 0:03:41.440 --> 0:03:44.560 my experience. I was very active in criminal justice, representing 0:03:44.600 --> 0:03:48.160 criminal defendants and also the AG's office on civil matters. 0:03:48.240 --> 0:03:52.080 And it was typical. The place where criminals and cops 0:03:52.120 --> 0:03:56.800 go every morning Monday through Saturday, nine am is Room 0:03:56.840 --> 0:03:58.960 May It used to be the Ons and Deputy Building. 0:03:58.960 --> 0:04:00.400 Now it's room, a kind of. 0:04:00.400 --> 0:04:03.200 Justice center, and it used to be two to three 0:04:03.280 --> 0:04:09.280 hundred were arrested the night before for traffic offenses, DUIs murder, burglary, 0:04:09.560 --> 0:04:12.560 drug sales, passing bat checks, whatever it was. And the 0:04:12.600 --> 0:04:15.680 police department in the city of Cincinnati was very active 0:04:15.680 --> 0:04:18.239 in making sure that if you had committed a crime, 0:04:18.279 --> 0:04:20.520 that you were held and you met a judge like 0:04:20.600 --> 0:04:24.359 you in the morning and based upon the bail bond score, 0:04:24.440 --> 0:04:28.599 based upon the criminal record, employment history, that bonds were set. 0:04:28.839 --> 0:04:33.040 It was regular to have numerous inmates have bond set 0:04:33.080 --> 0:04:36.560 like a five thousand dollars on a felony No. Ten percent, 0:04:36.640 --> 0:04:39.400 and that person would be locked up waiting trial. Now 0:04:39.480 --> 0:04:42.839 the law schools have said to judges, not you, but 0:04:42.960 --> 0:04:45.760 other judges now in their thirties and forties, that that 0:04:45.960 --> 0:04:49.080 system is wrong, that is not fair to lock up 0:04:49.160 --> 0:04:52.320 someone say a Tony Bender, for example, who by the way, 0:04:52.320 --> 0:04:54.200 has a good record in his life. But nonetheless Tony 0:04:54.200 --> 0:04:57.480 Bender shows up and he commits a felony, it's common 0:04:57.520 --> 0:05:00.839 then to be locked up. That doesn't happen anymore. Why 0:05:01.800 --> 0:05:05.040 isn't room A filled with two to three hundred And 0:05:05.080 --> 0:05:07.640 why do the judges other than you of course and 0:05:08.400 --> 0:05:11.160 Hambig missipal corpse not set a bond. They set a 0:05:11.240 --> 0:05:13.600 cash bond. What happened in the college is what happened 0:05:13.640 --> 0:05:14.360 in the law schools. 0:05:16.400 --> 0:05:20.240 It's really bizarre. I mean, you know, what we've experienced 0:05:20.279 --> 0:05:24.320 and what they've argued over the last twenty years is 0:05:24.400 --> 0:05:27.200 that our justice system in the United States throughout the 0:05:27.240 --> 0:05:31.520 country and you heard this repeatedly, a really concerted public 0:05:31.600 --> 0:05:34.760 relations campaign that looked at our justice system in the 0:05:34.839 --> 0:05:38.680 United States, which is the envy of the entire world, 0:05:39.440 --> 0:05:43.600 and just trashed it that it's all it's systemically unfair, 0:05:43.720 --> 0:05:47.480 it's bigoted, it's discriminatory. You know, they would have you 0:05:47.640 --> 0:05:52.240 believe that there's all these people crowded through our jails 0:05:52.320 --> 0:05:55.719 and prisons who did nothing other than you know, shoplift 0:05:55.760 --> 0:05:59.839 a candy bar or or smoke a joint of marijuana. 0:06:00.560 --> 0:06:04.720 I mean, it was never an accurate portrayal of the 0:06:05.000 --> 0:06:09.960 justice system. And you know, when I started ten years ago, 0:06:10.080 --> 0:06:12.600 the rule on setting bonds, which is one of our 0:06:13.240 --> 0:06:16.840 most important responsibilities in municipal court. We set bonds on 0:06:16.960 --> 0:06:20.880 anybody who gets arrested felony's misdemeanors. And the rule traditionally 0:06:21.200 --> 0:06:24.880 was very straightforward, very common sense. The purpose of bond 0:06:25.279 --> 0:06:28.360 is to secure the defendants appearance at court and to 0:06:28.480 --> 0:06:32.960 protect the public. And so naturally, the more serious the charge, 0:06:33.560 --> 0:06:36.080 the greater the flight risk, the greater the threat to 0:06:36.160 --> 0:06:38.720 the public, the higher the bond is going to go. 0:06:39.440 --> 0:06:41.880 And you know, when I started again ten years ago, 0:06:42.320 --> 0:06:46.360 there wasn't this dramatic disagreement. You know, there wasn't this 0:06:46.520 --> 0:06:51.240 divergence amongst political parties where you know, you had this 0:06:51.560 --> 0:06:56.160 this dramatic shift in ideology. And that's what's happened over 0:06:56.240 --> 0:06:58.800 the last six, seven, eight years, where you saw these 0:06:58.880 --> 0:07:04.040 wave elections and and you saw political leaders really push 0:07:04.120 --> 0:07:08.599 that agenda that you know, progressive criminal under the under 0:07:08.640 --> 0:07:13.520 the heading of progressive criminal justice reform really really strong 0:07:13.680 --> 0:07:19.880 armed judges and legislators to change the law to encourage 0:07:19.920 --> 0:07:20.200 and in. 0:07:20.280 --> 0:07:21.680 Fact require. 0:07:22.760 --> 0:07:26.520 Lower bonds o R bonds, which means somebody gets released 0:07:26.640 --> 0:07:31.040 with no money paid, and the outcome has been it's 0:07:31.080 --> 0:07:34.760 been the same across the country. It's dangerous criminals out 0:07:34.800 --> 0:07:39.120 on the street, dangerous convicted felons out on the street 0:07:39.240 --> 0:07:45.200 in the community, breed to re offend and victimize new people. 0:07:45.640 --> 0:07:48.400 Now and in the core of this, Judge Josh Burka, 0:07:48.440 --> 0:07:52.000 which is this that it's unfair that someone who doesn't 0:07:52.080 --> 0:07:56.119 have discernible assets needs to post anything no cash bond. 0:07:56.520 --> 0:07:59.520 According to the left wing the restorative justice crowd is 0:07:59.640 --> 0:08:03.400 unfair to somebody who commits crime and can have money 0:08:03.440 --> 0:08:05.760 to post a bond when someone with money. Not too 0:08:05.800 --> 0:08:08.360 many richer middle class people are committing crime. By the way, 0:08:08.880 --> 0:08:11.520 normally those who commit crime are at the bottom economic scale. 0:08:11.720 --> 0:08:14.720 So the theory is, no cash bond can be racist, 0:08:15.040 --> 0:08:18.400 no cash bond can be a class warfare. So why 0:08:18.520 --> 0:08:21.760 treat someone who burglarizes a home and beat somebody up 0:08:22.200 --> 0:08:25.040 who doesn't have any discernible money. Why treat him differently 0:08:25.320 --> 0:08:27.120 than someone that's got a four oh one k, you 0:08:27.200 --> 0:08:29.920 know what I'm saying. So it used to be if 0:08:29.920 --> 0:08:31.559 you committed a fellow in your ham in the county. 0:08:31.800 --> 0:08:34.480 You were locked up pending trial. Now, if you commit 0:08:34.520 --> 0:08:36.160 a fella in your hamle in the county, you're not 0:08:36.400 --> 0:08:38.719 locked up because it's not fair to make somebody with 0:08:38.880 --> 0:08:40.280 no money to post bail. 0:08:40.520 --> 0:08:41.360 Is that the core of it. 0:08:43.400 --> 0:08:46.240 There is certain that's absolutely right. There are certain people 0:08:46.280 --> 0:08:51.360 in our justice system, including unfortunately some judges, who seem 0:08:51.440 --> 0:08:55.319 to fundamentally believe that it's wrong that anybody should sit 0:08:55.400 --> 0:08:58.760 in jail because they can't post a bond. And it's 0:08:58.920 --> 0:09:02.920 entirely contrary to the text of the rule, its contrary 0:09:02.960 --> 0:09:06.599 to the tradition in Ohio and around the country. And 0:09:06.720 --> 0:09:11.040 this really culminated with this decision in twenty twenty one. 0:09:11.160 --> 0:09:12.319 It was called Dubo's. 0:09:13.080 --> 0:09:17.000 It was a very divided, very different Ohio Supreme Court 0:09:17.480 --> 0:09:22.559 that said that judges could not consider public safety when 0:09:22.600 --> 0:09:26.000 setting a bond amount, that the only consideration was the 0:09:26.240 --> 0:09:29.360 defendant's ability to pay, and the only way to determine 0:09:29.360 --> 0:09:31.360 that was to ask them. You had to take the 0:09:31.440 --> 0:09:34.959 defendant's word for it, and you couldn't consider public safety. 0:09:35.320 --> 0:09:39.720 And in response, the voters of Ohio spoke up really loud, 0:09:40.080 --> 0:09:44.120 very clearly. Thanks to your friend Joe Dieters and now 0:09:44.400 --> 0:09:47.760 Justice Megan Shanahan took it to this took it on 0:09:47.880 --> 0:09:50.760 the road around the state of Ohio. Something like eighty 0:09:50.880 --> 0:09:54.719 percent of the voters in Ohio passed State Issue one 0:09:55.240 --> 0:09:59.880 in twenty twenty two that requires judges like myself specifically, 0:10:00.280 --> 0:10:04.800 specifically requires us to consider public safety when setting bond, 0:10:05.520 --> 0:10:11.120 specifically overruled that that activist Dubo's decision, and so you 0:10:11.200 --> 0:10:13.440 know that I think, in a lot of people's minds 0:10:13.640 --> 0:10:17.319 should have put that to rest, but it hasn't. It's 0:10:17.440 --> 0:10:20.959 still very much an issue because like I tell you, 0:10:21.240 --> 0:10:24.280 we didn't get here overnight. It's not going to be 0:10:24.400 --> 0:10:27.160 resolved overnight. It's not going to be resolved even with 0:10:27.280 --> 0:10:33.080 one ballot initiative. You know, it requires people paying attention 0:10:33.679 --> 0:10:36.040 to the judges and how they're setting bonds and what 0:10:36.200 --> 0:10:38.720 they're doing. And people have a right to be concerned 0:10:39.559 --> 0:10:42.520 because you know, at the heart of all these ideas, 0:10:42.640 --> 0:10:46.839 these progressive ideas, it was sold on people as this 0:10:47.080 --> 0:10:49.920 is not only more fair, it's not only more equitable, 0:10:50.360 --> 0:10:54.160 it's going to make our community safer. And no, you know, 0:10:54.280 --> 0:10:58.400 like like I said, Bill, does anybody believe that crime 0:10:58.559 --> 0:11:01.360 is down from twenty ninet team to the point that 0:11:01.480 --> 0:11:06.360 our jail has four hundred is four hundred below capacity. 0:11:06.800 --> 0:11:10.520 Nobody buys that. Nobody's believing that. And yet our media 0:11:10.960 --> 0:11:12.960 and a lot of the mainstream media and a lot 0:11:13.040 --> 0:11:17.440 of our public officials are basically gaslighting people. Don't believe 0:11:17.480 --> 0:11:20.640 your lion eyes. Look at these look at these stats 0:11:20.720 --> 0:11:25.120 that that we've presented. See arrests are down, and don't know, 0:11:25.280 --> 0:11:27.840 we don't have a crime problem. I mean, that's really 0:11:27.960 --> 0:11:30.440 the message, and it's outrageous. 0:11:30.280 --> 0:11:33.800 Judge Berkowitz. It begins with a simple arrest. And when 0:11:33.840 --> 0:11:36.040 I have on Ken Kober and the cops, they tell 0:11:36.160 --> 0:11:39.480 me that the mayor's office is Scottie Johnson and the 0:11:39.559 --> 0:11:42.719 Lemon Currenty tell them don't pull somebody over for a 0:11:42.800 --> 0:11:46.920 minor traffic violation. If you pull somebody over, that opens 0:11:47.000 --> 0:11:50.320 up at Pandora's box of give me your license, your registration, 0:11:50.480 --> 0:11:51.280 proof of insurance. 0:11:51.360 --> 0:11:52.240 Well I don't have that. 0:11:52.559 --> 0:11:54.199 And then you find out they have warns out for 0:11:54.280 --> 0:11:56.360 their arrest. Then you had to get the tow truck 0:11:56.440 --> 0:11:58.439 to get them there. Then they're locked up. And so 0:11:58.760 --> 0:12:02.160 it begins with the fact that police believe in Cincinnati 0:12:02.720 --> 0:12:06.560 that you don't pull somebody over for a traffic violation. 0:12:07.000 --> 0:12:09.760 And if someone's open air smoking pot, let them alone. 0:12:10.120 --> 0:12:13.560 Homelessness is pursuing to a corridorder illegal, leave them alone, 0:12:14.080 --> 0:12:17.120 intervene as drug use is permissible, and camping out in 0:12:17.200 --> 0:12:21.160 front of Saint Francis, Sarah is okay, et cetera. Doesn't 0:12:21.160 --> 0:12:24.400 it begin at the front end when cops are told, 0:12:24.480 --> 0:12:28.560 don't do your job. I don't think there's any question 0:12:29.440 --> 0:12:34.199 right now that the leadership at city Hall has actively 0:12:34.440 --> 0:12:40.839 discouraged proactive law enforcement. They do not want officers proactively 0:12:41.000 --> 0:12:45.880 enforcing the law. Whether you're talking about traffic infractions, or 0:12:45.920 --> 0:12:49.200 you're talking about you know, going after gun illegal guns, 0:12:49.520 --> 0:12:52.559 or you're going after drugs, or you're going after violent offenders. 0:12:52.640 --> 0:12:56.920 They do not want officers proactively going out and look 0:12:57.000 --> 0:13:02.679 into to interdict and interrupt those criminal behaviors. 0:13:03.040 --> 0:13:08.079 They want officers reacting and responding to calls for assistance. 0:13:08.120 --> 0:13:11.880 And Cincinnati police officers, in my experience, are outstanding at 0:13:11.960 --> 0:13:13.640 responding to calls for assistance. 0:13:14.120 --> 0:13:16.680 But we know every look. 0:13:16.760 --> 0:13:21.160 Everybody knows if you want to actually get at crime 0:13:21.240 --> 0:13:24.079 and reduce crime and get at the violent offenders, you 0:13:24.280 --> 0:13:27.800 need officers, not just numbers, but you need officers who 0:13:27.880 --> 0:13:31.680 are empowered to proactively go out and enforce the law. 0:13:32.360 --> 0:13:34.360 And like I said, I don't think there's any debate 0:13:34.480 --> 0:13:38.440 on this point. It's a matter of ideology. They don't, 0:13:38.640 --> 0:13:41.439 like you said, they don't believe that officers should be 0:13:41.520 --> 0:13:45.959 going out there proactively enforcing minor traffic infractions, you know, 0:13:46.120 --> 0:13:50.480 minor misdemeanor offenses of any kind. They don't want them 0:13:50.520 --> 0:13:52.960 going out there and enforcing the law. 0:13:53.200 --> 0:13:56.000 Judge Burkowitz's evidence of that about it three weeks ago. 0:13:57.120 --> 0:13:59.800 You're in the Ivory Tower of judging. But I'm in 0:13:59.840 --> 0:14:03.800 the practical business of politics. We had the governor, the 0:14:03.960 --> 0:14:07.520 FBI was here, big news conference in and around City Hall. 0:14:07.840 --> 0:14:11.120 Mike DeWine was there, FBI was there, the ATF was there, 0:14:11.480 --> 0:14:14.880 US Marshal Service was there. Only one council member was there. 0:14:15.840 --> 0:14:18.880 And they supposedly had this memory and of understanding that 0:14:19.040 --> 0:14:22.160 two days a month that the Highway Patrol would assist 0:14:22.240 --> 0:14:26.920 Cincinnati Police and all kinds of criminal protection activities. And 0:14:27.040 --> 0:14:29.200 it came out about two weeks after the incident that 0:14:30.920 --> 0:14:34.080 instead of being here physically, Highway Patrol would be here 0:14:34.120 --> 0:14:37.600 two shifts a month, and as of now they're unseen 0:14:37.680 --> 0:14:40.280 on city streets because the Vice mayor and others and 0:14:40.360 --> 0:14:43.200 the mayor and share along the city manager have not 0:14:43.400 --> 0:14:46.320 requested them to come in pursuing to the understanding they 0:14:46.440 --> 0:14:50.840 don't want law enforcement in Cincinnati other than city politics 0:14:50.920 --> 0:14:53.640 law enforcement. So we had this big, big punch and 0:14:53.720 --> 0:14:56.520 judy show of everyone showing up saying, Okay, we're cracking 0:14:56.600 --> 0:14:57.520 down on crime. 0:14:57.600 --> 0:15:01.080 But there was no follow through because politics, it wasn't wanted. 0:15:01.800 --> 0:15:03.560 And at this point, the next time you're in room 0:15:03.640 --> 0:15:06.240 may setting bonds that there are not going to be 0:15:06.360 --> 0:15:09.120 criminal defendants in front of you to set bonds on 0:15:09.360 --> 0:15:12.040 because they're not getting arrested. And we live in a 0:15:12.280 --> 0:15:16.920 crime ridden society in which shots are fired twenty thousand shots, 0:15:16.960 --> 0:15:18.880 we're going to four hundred people wound it. We have 0:15:19.160 --> 0:15:23.080 massive break ins. Since Uce just had a big symposium 0:15:23.120 --> 0:15:26.160 about female students that are being assaulted, their cars being 0:15:26.200 --> 0:15:29.360 broken into. They don't bother calling the police anymore because 0:15:29.640 --> 0:15:32.640 nothing happens. And so when law enforcement is told to 0:15:32.720 --> 0:15:35.480 stand down, when half or more of the judges believe 0:15:35.520 --> 0:15:38.880 in the restorative justice and no cash bonds and the 0:15:39.000 --> 0:15:43.160 jail is unoccupied by inmates. Some four hundred beds are available. 0:15:43.360 --> 0:15:45.680 When about ten years ago, Sileas came on with me 0:15:46.040 --> 0:15:48.880 when he was the sheriff, maybe twelve years ago, wanting 0:15:48.920 --> 0:15:51.800 to build another jail because the jail was packed fifteen 0:15:51.880 --> 0:15:54.640 years ago with criminals. Now they're roaming around the streets 0:15:54.680 --> 0:15:59.040 committing crime, and so it's all a and voters can 0:15:59.160 --> 0:16:01.720 change this. Talk about well, we voters who live in 0:16:01.800 --> 0:16:05.040 Hamlet Accounty can change this by the vote. But many 0:16:05.360 --> 0:16:08.000 voters don't know what's happening downtown. That's why you're coming 0:16:08.040 --> 0:16:09.680 on today. Educate the public. 0:16:09.760 --> 0:16:12.040 Correct one hundred percent. 0:16:12.560 --> 0:16:14.560 So I mean, I think we have a great system 0:16:14.640 --> 0:16:17.760 in Ohio where the voters get to select who their 0:16:17.880 --> 0:16:21.480 judges are. You know, the voters. That's the accountability. That's 0:16:21.520 --> 0:16:25.800 the accountability that followed State Issue one in twenty twenty two. 0:16:26.640 --> 0:16:29.640 You know what's an appropriate bond, Well, the voters get 0:16:29.680 --> 0:16:33.040 to say what kind of justice system. Every judge in 0:16:33.120 --> 0:16:35.960 Ohio has to stand for election. You know this fall, 0:16:36.040 --> 0:16:39.720 I'm standing for re election, and you know, I'm proud 0:16:39.760 --> 0:16:42.520 of my record as a judge over ten years and 0:16:42.880 --> 0:16:47.080 prior to that as a prosecutor under Joe Dieters, and 0:16:47.640 --> 0:16:49.880 you know, I've been consistent on these issues. 0:16:50.360 --> 0:16:52.240 It's not the victim's fault. 0:16:52.560 --> 0:16:56.120 It's not the system's fault when somebody gets locked up 0:16:56.200 --> 0:17:00.200 for committing a violent crime. And for too long, that 0:17:00.320 --> 0:17:04.560 attitude has you know, percolated throughout the justice system and 0:17:06.119 --> 0:17:09.119 led to these absurd outcomes. And that's just you know, 0:17:09.240 --> 0:17:12.200 you mentioned that press conference in the highway patrol here 0:17:12.320 --> 0:17:14.440 for two days a month. 0:17:14.720 --> 0:17:15.440 What a joke. 0:17:15.960 --> 0:17:20.360 You know, that is the epitome of what Sarah Haringer 0:17:20.480 --> 0:17:24.879 referred to as optics over outcome, a big, grand press conference. 0:17:25.200 --> 0:17:29.200 Does anybody believe that two days a month of having 0:17:29.280 --> 0:17:32.480 some highway patrol officers in Cincinnati is going to make 0:17:32.640 --> 0:17:37.040 any meaningful impact, no terminal ju justice. Nobody believes that. 0:17:37.280 --> 0:17:39.320 In fact, Judge, the two days didn't happen. 0:17:39.400 --> 0:17:41.879 Anyway, there are no two days and not been here 0:17:42.000 --> 0:17:44.120 yet with Judge Josh Burkoh, it's we got to run. 0:17:44.440 --> 0:17:46.920 You're sounding the alarm. It's up to the electorate to 0:17:46.960 --> 0:17:50.119 do what's responsible. Judge burko Witch, once again, thanks for 0:17:50.200 --> 0:17:52.359 coming on the Bill Cunningham Show and let's keep the 0:17:52.440 --> 0:17:55.359 lines of communication open. Thank you, Thank you very much Judge, thank. 0:17:55.240 --> 0:17:57.719 You, Hey, hey, Bill, thank you for having me. If 0:17:57.760 --> 0:18:00.000 I could real quick, if people want to get involved, 0:18:00.160 --> 0:18:02.080 I mean, that's what it takes. They can go to 0:18:02.200 --> 0:18:06.400 keep Judge Berkowitz dot com. You know these are your 0:18:06.520 --> 0:18:09.960 opportunity to voice what you want out of your justice 0:18:10.040 --> 0:18:12.240 system and you can make a difference. We're going to 0:18:12.280 --> 0:18:15.320 send a message this fall that public that people across 0:18:15.480 --> 0:18:19.800 Hamilton County want safe communities and safe neighborhoods. They're not 0:18:19.960 --> 0:18:22.800 satisfied with this business as it's been at the courthouse 0:18:23.040 --> 0:18:24.639 for the last ten years. 0:18:24.920 --> 0:18:26.880 Judge, thank you very much. We'll do it again. God 0:18:26.960 --> 0:18:29.720 bless you and thank you very much. Thanks Bill, continue 0:18:29.760 --> 0:18:32.440 with more. There's a guy that knows what he's talking about. 0:18:32.480 --> 0:18:34.240 It's up to you as a voter to change. 0:18:34.640 --> 0:18:39.080 Bill Cunningham, News Radio seven hundred Wildom All right, Billy Cunningham, 0:18:39.119 --> 0:18:41.480 the great American. This great Thursday afternoon in the tri 0:18:41.600 --> 0:18:44.080 State of This is global warming. I love it, and 0:18:44.240 --> 0:18:46.800 we have more of it, and the weather's perfect. You 0:18:46.880 --> 0:18:48.920 might have a little ran on Tuesday Wednesday, see what 0:18:48.960 --> 0:18:51.840 happens down the road. Coming up after two o'clock today 0:18:51.920 --> 0:18:55.000 will be Brandon Sajo. He spent time here as one 0:18:55.080 --> 0:18:58.920 of my producers briefly and got into local television sports. 0:18:58.960 --> 0:19:01.359 And Brandon sajo spent quite a bit of time at 0:19:01.680 --> 0:19:05.800 Channel five with Shari Paololo and George Vogel at the time, 0:19:05.920 --> 0:19:10.560 and he became shall we say, depressed, He became an alcoholic, 0:19:11.200 --> 0:19:16.119 he became very suicidal. He related on an LA interview 0:19:16.160 --> 0:19:18.960 about a month ago that he spent time at Channel 0:19:19.040 --> 0:19:21.200 five and then he would walk across the river to 0:19:21.320 --> 0:19:24.359 his apartment in northern Kentucky and many times he'd stop 0:19:24.640 --> 0:19:27.800 in the middle of the suspension bridge and think about jumping, 0:19:28.520 --> 0:19:30.960 and thank god he made a telephone called at George 0:19:31.040 --> 0:19:35.719 Vogel Channel five. Is great to retired sportscaster who met 0:19:35.800 --> 0:19:38.040 him at his home at about two am and talked 0:19:38.119 --> 0:19:42.120 him literally off the bridge. And Brandon Sajos now turn 0:19:42.200 --> 0:19:46.000 his life around and now he's speaking on college campuses 0:19:46.040 --> 0:19:51.600 about the difficulties of depression, mental illness, things of that character. 0:19:51.760 --> 0:19:54.760 So that's at two o'clock today. Don't want to miss that. 0:19:55.840 --> 0:19:59.000 Also later on after one o'clock with Erica Sanzi will 0:19:59.040 --> 0:19:59.280 be here. 0:20:00.280 --> 0:20:01.400 In the meantime. 0:20:02.680 --> 0:20:05.080 The nation, I get many texts from my friends around 0:20:05.119 --> 0:20:08.160 the country had a dose of the Bengals, the Reds, 0:20:08.200 --> 0:20:12.920 and the Reds Monday Night Football Bengals, Tuesday Wednesday Reds 0:20:12.960 --> 0:20:16.720 in LA and shall we say the nation doesn't want 0:20:16.720 --> 0:20:19.080 to see much more of the Bengals and Reds because 0:20:19.119 --> 0:20:22.480 the games are non competitive. I know my friend and 0:20:22.560 --> 0:20:27.160 yours at the inquire Williams has a column up about 0:20:28.040 --> 0:20:30.960 what the Castellinies have to do and must do in 0:20:31.119 --> 0:20:35.520 order to be more competitive. Number one I related on 0:20:35.760 --> 0:20:39.439 X that I thought the Reds were great overachievers. I mean, 0:20:39.480 --> 0:20:42.400 how many teams make the playoffs that don't have one 0:20:42.560 --> 0:20:47.240 regular player hitting two seventy and no regular player has 0:20:47.320 --> 0:20:53.560 more than twenty two home runs, no pitcher has a 0:20:53.680 --> 0:20:57.760 one hundred and seventy strikeouts doesn't happen. And basically, this 0:20:58.000 --> 0:21:02.320 was a team of middling players who performed above expectations 0:21:02.400 --> 0:21:06.600 for one reason or another. And none of the starting 0:21:06.640 --> 0:21:10.199 pitchers had fifteen wins, so, in other words, they couldn't hit, 0:21:10.359 --> 0:21:14.000 couldn't hit regularly, couldn't hit for power. The pitching starting 0:21:14.080 --> 0:21:17.760 pitching didn't have many strikeouts and didn't have a win. 0:21:18.240 --> 0:21:22.200 The number one pitcher, I think Singer had fourteen victories 0:21:22.720 --> 0:21:24.960 So as a consequence, when you have a playoff team 0:21:25.840 --> 0:21:29.600 with those deficiencies, especially playing in a ballpark like the 0:21:29.640 --> 0:21:33.159 Great American, you got to go get some players that 0:21:33.200 --> 0:21:35.760 can knock the ball out of the Ballpoller Ballpark, like 0:21:35.840 --> 0:21:39.600 the Panda Bear or others whoever it might be, to 0:21:39.880 --> 0:21:42.200 come and help the ball club. Now, whether that happens 0:21:42.280 --> 0:21:45.000 or not, I don't know. They drew two million strong. 0:21:45.080 --> 0:21:46.840 And by the way, the owners are getting ready after 0:21:46.920 --> 0:21:51.520 next year for the strike slash lockout. They firmly believe. 0:21:51.600 --> 0:21:54.480 The owners firmly believe they have to have a salary cap, 0:21:55.119 --> 0:21:57.199 which they have one more or less in baseball now, 0:21:57.280 --> 0:21:59.080 and all you do is pay a fine and then 0:21:59.119 --> 0:22:02.119 you don't have a salary cap. So, for example, the 0:22:02.280 --> 0:22:05.280 Dodgers have a payroll about three hundred and sixty million. 0:22:05.640 --> 0:22:07.480 The Reds are about one hundred and fifteen million. They 0:22:07.520 --> 0:22:10.200 have three times the payroll, and they pay. They pay 0:22:10.320 --> 0:22:14.560 a tax of about one hundred and twenty five million dollars. 0:22:15.760 --> 0:22:18.119 So the cost of the Dodgers of the team is 0:22:18.200 --> 0:22:20.760 three sixty to the players about one hundred and forty 0:22:20.880 --> 0:22:23.600 thousand in the luxury tax. So the Dodgers have an 0:22:23.640 --> 0:22:26.919 extra five hundred million dollars to pay the players directly 0:22:26.920 --> 0:22:29.359 and indirectly. And the Red Legs have a team of 0:22:29.400 --> 0:22:32.480 one hundred and fifteen million. And this is going to 0:22:32.520 --> 0:22:35.560 be more and more a big league town, a big 0:22:35.680 --> 0:22:39.439 league effort. Big cities and small markets are in trouble. 0:22:40.000 --> 0:22:43.560 But then I talked to Moeger who tells me about Milwaukee. 0:22:43.960 --> 0:22:47.000 All right, Milwaukee is a payroll similar to Cincinnati. Let's 0:22:47.040 --> 0:22:49.680 see how they do. So we'll see what happens. But 0:22:49.760 --> 0:22:52.879 there's fear intrepidation in the land that after next season 0:22:53.640 --> 0:22:55.680 the sport's going to go on hiatus for a while 0:22:56.520 --> 0:23:01.320 because of the difficulties of small market teams competing, which 0:23:01.359 --> 0:23:04.639 it appears at least one small market team is competing 0:23:04.720 --> 0:23:05.120 quite well. 0:23:05.200 --> 0:23:05.440 Thank you. 0:23:05.760 --> 0:23:08.720 He got Chicago, Philadelphia in LA. But you also have 0:23:09.119 --> 0:23:12.440 the Cubs, a large market team, and also Milwaukee's still 0:23:12.480 --> 0:23:15.159 out it. We'll see what happens down the road. Judge 0:23:15.359 --> 0:23:19.200 Berkowitz had a profile encourage to come out and speak. 0:23:19.800 --> 0:23:20.560