Interview About Criminal Justice Reflection Discussion
Introduction
The Ted Talk video on Dinner with a Criminal Defense Lawyer includes a question-and-answer question where a criminal defense lawyer answers some of the main questions asked by people interested in understanding the mechanisms of criminal law and the work of criminal lawyers. Heath (2018) also shares some of her experiences as a criminal lawyer and the clients she has represented in court. She aims to clear the misconception that criminal lawyers are evil people and are not mindful of the interests of crime victims.
What I learned
Criminal law has always been an exciting area for me because I intend to practice it in the future and probably explore a wide range of careers in the area. One of the things that I learned from the Ted Talk interview is that being a criminal defense lawyer can be interpreted based on two perspectives. The first perspective is that it entails standing up for the oppressed and poor against the power of the state. The second perspective is that being a criminal lawyer entails using verbal tricks, technical loopholes, and fraudulent means to ensure that undeserving guilty criminals are free. The second thing that I learned is that in criminal law, the lawyer is obliged to defend their client even though they are guilty because the law provides that only the judge and jury can determine whether a person is guilty or not. Therefore, the criminal lawyer has first to determine whether the client was to plead guilty or not. The third thing that I learned is that the prosecution does not have a monopoly on victims. This implies that it considers the feelings and opinions of both the victims and the offenders. I also learned that criminal law is rarely about monsters and cunning criminals and an equation with good on the one hand and evil on the other but is about understanding the point at which the offender lost their humanity to the extent of committing crimes that have lasting impacts on victims.
What surprised me
What surprised me is that sometimes criminal lawyers defend clients who have pleaded guilty despite knowing that the client is innocent. I was also surprised that criminal lawyers experience a hard time convincing their clients to plead not guilty and go to trial even when there is evidence that could prove their innocence. This was quite surprising for me because the criminal lawyer explained that most people in jail were innocent but pleaded guilty and ended up in prison due to hopelessness. Such instances are common when the plaintiff is the government or a person with influence, thus intimidating the innocent defendant.
The impact of the interview on my views of criminal law; The views reinforced, and the impact on my perspectives.
The interview made me develop a new perspective of criminal lawyers as people whose main purpose is to give offenders a voice so that society can understand how they got to the point of committing the crime. Initially, I viewed criminal lawyers as people supporting evil and only interested in enriching themselves at the expense of other people’s safety and grief. The interview, however, depicted them as the representatives of an offender’s image based on how they portray the offender to society. The interview reinforced my views that justice is not always served, and in most cases, the innocent person ends up in jail, especially if they did not have a good defense. The lawyer’s clarification reinforced this view that a client may plead guilty even though the lawyer knows they are innocent.
References
Heath, K. (2018). Dinner with a Criminal Defence Lawyer [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8lwz_0OArX8
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Question 
Interview About Criminal Justice Reflection Discussion
This assignment provides you an opportunity to learn from someone directly involved in criminal law. Watch or read an interview with the goal of learning something new and correcting any of your misconceptions about criminal law.
You have an interview for a position as a paralegal with a local law firm. As part of your preparation, you want to learn about criminal law from the perspective of an active participant, so you are looking on the internet for a video or written interview to help you better understand this area of law. You are seeking as much help as possible to be prepared to answer questions posed in your job interview.
Locate and review a written or taped interview that was conducted with an active participant in criminal law (judge, attorney, etc.).
Write a 350- to 525-word summary of your reflections from the interview. Address the following questions:
• What did you learn? (For example, consider what you may have learned about criminal law, the concept of crime, and criminal liability.)
• What surprised you?
• What impact did the interview have on your views of criminal law? What views were reinforced? Were any of your perspectives changed?