USA v. García Luna

Peniley Ramírez has one obsession: Genaro García Luna, Mexico’s top security official from 2006 to 2012. For years, Peniley broke news of his alleged corruption in Mexico and the U.S.. Yet, García Luna seemed untouchable. That is, until his name was brought up by a former cartel leader during Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán’s U.S. trial. Now, he faces his own trial. In this episode, Peniley dives into the latest with her new friend Maria Hinojosa. Over a bottle of tequila, they raise questions about what García Luna's upcoming trial says about the role of the U.S. in the “war on drugs.”

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From CSI to Donna Summer, García Luna was fascinated by anything American. Several U.S. officials said that García Luna was the person they trusted the most in the Mexican government. They called him "The Mexican Hoover," after John Edgar Hoover, the FBI’s first director. But soon, García Luna was facing accusations of corruption. In this episode, Peniley and Maria tell us exactly how far back those suspicions go as well as his obsessions, his childhood dreams, and how it all led to him heading the Mexican equivalents of the DEA, FBI, NSA and prison systems put together.

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We're sharing an episode from Futuro Media's political podcast In The Thick. Co-hosts Maria and Julio are joined by Peniley Ramírez, executive producer of Futuro Unidad Hinojosa and Futuro’s Special Projects and Investigative Units, for a behind-the-scenes look into “USA v. García Luna.” Maria and Peniley talk about how this five-episode series reimagines investigative journalism. They get into their experience reporting on the rise and fall of Genaro García Luna, a former high-ranking Mexican official facing trial in New York City next month for allegedly working with drug cartels to bring drugs into the United States.

Photo Credit: AP Photo/Elizabeth Williams, File

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We’re dropping in your feed today to let you know about a gripping new series from Lemonada Media, BLIND PLEA. In 2017, Deven Grey, a young mother, shot and killed her abusive partner in a remote trailer in rural Shelby County, Alabama. She claimed self-defense and filed a Stand Your Ground claim. Instead of freedom, she was handed a “blind plea” – an option to take an unknown sentence in exchange for pleading guilty. As a Black woman who shot and killed a white man in Alabama, she did the only thing she could: She took the plea. Hosted by Emmy Award-winning journalist Liz Flock, BLIND PLEA asks: Who do we believe, and why? And in America, who has the right to self defense and a fair trial?

In this episode, you’ll be introduced to Deven’s story. When John Henry Vance brought his girlfriend, Deven Grey, to his family property in Calera, Alabama, Deven became the latest in a decades-long line of women to be beaten and broken down on that same land. In December 2017, after a violent evening and years of abuse, Deven shot and killed John. Then, she called 911 to turn herself in.

The second episode of BLIND PLEA is available right now. To listen, head to https://link.chtbl.com/BlindPleaPodcast

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September 19, 2017 changed Peniley’s life. That morning, she found a picture that connected García Luna and two Mexican businessmen that Peniley had already been investigating. They had multimillion dollar contracts with the Mexican government. She emailed García Luna for a comment. Two minutes later, Mexico was hit with one of the worst earthquakes in its history. In this episode, we break down the scheme García Luna and his co-conspirators allegedly used to make themselves rich, and we explore the trauma journalists often experience while investigating a story for so long.

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