MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Middle Tennessee State University will host political science alumnus and nationally recognized civil rights attorney Wesley Clark, whose work is featured in the 2023 award-winning investigative podcast, “The Kids of Rutherford County.”

Sponsored by the Department of Political and Global Affairs in partnership with the university’s Legal Studies Society and Mock Trial Association, the Nashville-based attorney’s free public talk will be held at 11:30 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 23, in Room 106 of the Paul W. Martin Sr. Honors Building, 1737 Blue Raider Drive.

Clark’s advocacy in landmark class actions such as Geerts v. Rutherford County and Doe v. Hommrich secured injunctions that ended unlawful solitary confinement and detention of juveniles in Rutherford County.

The work is chronicled in “The Kids of Rutherford County,” a four-episode podcast series hosted by Meribah Knight and produced by Serial Productions in collaboration with ProPublica and Nashville Public Radio that won a George Polk Award for investigative excellence in 2024.

“He is an accomplished civil rights attorney who has used his legal knowledge not just to help his clients, but to bring about necessary changes in our justice system,” explained Jessie Dicker, vice president of the Legal Studies Society who organized the speaking engagement alongside president Nicholas Perrone and Political and Global Affairs staff member Kayla McCrary.

Clark began his career in 2013 representing juveniles and adults in criminal cases, earning a place on the Board of Directors of the Tennessee Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and being named a “Rising Star” in 2016. He often witnessed repeated violations of clients’ constitutional rights, which led him to refocus his practice on federal civil rights litigation and eventually to involvement in the Rutherford County case.

“After listening to ‘The Kids of Rutherford County’ podcast,” Dicker shared, “I wanted to invite him to share his story with current MTSU students interested in pursuing law. As pre-law students at MTSU, Mr. Clark’s story can move us not just to participate in our local legal systems, but to actively pursue reform within them.”

Following Clark’s talk, there will be a Q&A with the audience. Light refreshments will be served after the program, which is free and open to the public.

Off-campus visitors must obtain a temporary permit from the Parking and Transportation Services office at 205 City View Drive or pay by plate by visiting https://bit.ly/mtvisitorparking. A searchable campus parking map is available at https://bit.ly/ParkingMapMTSU2025.

— Nancy DeGennaro (Nancy.DeGennaro@mtsu.edu