In this episode of Hard Time, Jon is joined by Allie Siebert from Allie in the Archives to examine 19th-century crime and punishment through her tour of Jackson State Prison.

Michigan rejected the death penalty, but prison life was still defined by overcrowding, forced labor, corruption, and failed reform. Drawing on archival research and firsthand experience, this episode explores how early justice ideals often collapsed in practice—and how those failures continue to influence modern incarceration.

Want to go to the Archives? Bloodstained: Exploring Michigan's Darkest Murders Forgotten By Time
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JON RETURNS to talk about the death of Robert Brooks-- it sparked widespread outrage when the story first broke — headlines, social media fury, and demands for accountability. But when the sentencing of the prison guards responsible finally arrived, it barely registered. In this episode, we examine how the Brooks case became a flash-in-the-pan moment of public attention, and what the muted response to these sentences says about how little most people think about what happens inside prisons once the cameras move on.

While lives have been permanently altered — Brooks’ family, the convicted guards, and the correctional system itself — the broader public has already shifted its focus to the next controversy. We break down the sentencing, the legal outcomes, and why accountability behind prison walls rarely sustains public interest. This episode challenges the idea that outrage equals engagement, and explores how incarceration exists largely outside public concern until a shocking death forces it briefly into view.

A hard look at justice, punishment, and how quickly society moves on when suffering happens out of sight.

A bonus episode where Jake tests out some new equipment and covers the latest Trump and Diddy News.