Tom Wolfe wrote of the procession of young black men being jolted through the criminal justice system in New York, and particularly the Bronx, as a depressing, and relentless, spectacle. 1980's New York was renowned for its crime, but today it is supposed to be cleaned up.

Alvin Hall asks how much really has changed since those dark days, visiting the courthouse in the Bronx, speaking to legal contemporaries of characters in the book and then asking the truth of what's changed from a younger member of the current generation of lawyers.

Produced by Lucy Lloyd. Show less