Brains on Trial With Alan Alda
Alan Alda speaks with legal experts and scientists to determine if developments in neuroscience could assist the criminal justice system. By visiting and participating in a dozen experiments, Alda gains insights into how, and what, the jurors, judges, witnesses and attorneys are thinking -- insights that may one day influence how the criminal justice system operates, and in some cases are already doing so.
Episodes2
Determining Guilt
Part 1 of 2. The ways in which advances in neuroscience may change the criminal-justice system are explored via the fictional trial of a teenager who's accused of attempted murder. Host Alan Alda also visits with neuroscientists.
Deciding Punishment
Part 2 of 2. The fictional trial reaches the penalty phase, with the judge hearing from the court-appointed psychiatrist, victim's husband and defendant. Alan Alda, meanwhile, learns how neuroscience is already influencing the sentencing of defendants.