UBalt Law faculty shape national conversations on critical issues in criminal justice.
Assistant Professor of Law Katie Kronick, Director of the Criminal Defense & Advocacy Clinic, was a guest on the Scholars Strategy Network’s No Jargon podcast, where she discussed her research on how intellectual disabilities are recognized—and too often overlooked—in the criminal legal system.
In the episode, “Recognizing Defendants’ Disabilities,” Professor Kronick explains why intellectual disability often goes undetected in court, how that oversight skews outcomes, and what practitioners should do. Using concrete examples — including a high-profile death penalty case now before the U.S. Supreme Court — she shows how a system built for efficiency and rigid rules misunderstands and mishandles people with intellectual disabilities and offers practical ideas to make criminal justice more responsive to their needs.
Professor Kronick’s scholarship focuses on forensic science, post-conviction litigation, sentencing, and intellectual disability. As the founding director of UBalt Law’s Criminal Defense & Advocacy Clinic, she leads students in representing indigent clients in Baltimore City Circuit Court and collaborates with community organizations on post-conviction matters. Her work, grounded in scholarship, years of public-defense litigation, and clinical experience, explores how theoretical understandings of intellectual disability can meaningfully inform everyday decision-making in criminal cases.
To learn more about Kronick’s work on this issue:
The episode is available on Apple Podcasts: “Recognizing Defendants’ Disabilities.”