Uploaded March 2013 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
The robbery of a convenience store goes horribly wrong, and the suspect, an 18-year-old cocaine addict, is now on trial for attempted murder. The case is fiction but the scenario is all too real. In a 2-hour documentary, produced by Chedd-Angier for PBS, Alan Alda explores how neuroscience could change our criminal justice system for the better. He speaks with countless legal experts and scientists begging the question, can brain scans reveal:
• If a witness is lying?
• If racial bias can be detected in a person's brain?
• Why teenagers are so impulsive?
• Why drugs distort decision-making?
• If any of us really has free will?
For more videos and other content, go to: brainsontrial.com
The robbery of a convenience store goes horribly wrong, and the suspect, an 18-year-old cocaine addict, is now on trial for attempted murder. The case is fiction but the scenario is all too real. In a 2-hour documentary, produced by Chedd-Angier for PBS, Alan Alda explores how neuroscience could change our criminal justice system for the better. He speaks with countless legal experts and scientists begging the question, can brain scans reveal:
• If a witness is lying?
• If racial bias can be detected in a person's brain?
• Why teenagers are so impulsive?
• Why drugs distort decision-making?
• If any of us really has free will?
For more videos and other content, go to: brainsontrial.com
