Podcast Summary: The Prosecutors After Dark – Brett Almost Gets Arrested

Podcast: The Prosecutors
Host: PodcastOne
Episode: The Prosecutors After Dark: Brett Almost Gets Arrested
Date: December 6, 2025
Hosts: Alice (“C”) and Brett (“B”)

Overview

This After Dark episode of The Prosecutors features a lively, off-the-cuff conversation between Alice and Brett in which the two seasoned prosecutors candidly swap stories about court, travel, personal safety, and lawyering mishaps. The main highlight—and the namesake of the episode—is Brett’s uproarious and near-disastrous night at the Ritz Carlton Atlanta, where he narrowly avoided arrest. The episode blends humorous personal anecdotes with genuine legal insights, offering listeners both entertainment and an inside look at the quirks of legal and hotel life.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Reality of Oral Arguments and Court Life

• How Cases Make It to Oral Argument

  • Brett outlines the “dirty little secret” of Circuit Court oral arguments: not all are chosen for legal importance.
  • “Either, number one, they say, wow, this is a really interesting case… Second thing is, wow, this is a real injustice… The third thing... the judge is like, man, I ain’t got time to read this. Send it to oral argument.” (Brett, 02:11)
  • Judges often pass off less interesting or tedious cases to oral argument to avoid reading hundred-page briefs.

• Behind-the-Scenes of Being a Clerk

  • Alice and Brett reminisce about clerkships, emphasizing the tedium and absurdities that sometimes happen (“Was there a dinghy or a buoy?” – Alice, 03:58)

• Preparation (or Lack Thereof) for Major Court Dates

  • Brett jokes about only starting to prep for a major argument the day before, due to previous government shutdowns.

2. Hotel Safety, Gender, and Travel Habits

• Alice’s Security Sweep Routine

  • Alice describes her cautious approach to hotel rooms, checking every nook for would-be intruders (“I drop on my hands and knees and look under the bed...” – Alice, 04:34).
  • Motivated less by fear of murderers and more by hotel staff error (e.g., being given a key to an occupied room).

• Brett’s Nonchalance About Hotel Safety

  • Brett admits he rarely checks rooms, especially in upscale hotels: “I mean, if it was a super shady motel, maybe. I do this at the Ritz Carlton. I do not check the Ritz Carlton.” (Brett, 07:03)
  • Highlights the gendered experience of travel safety as Alice notes, “If you guys wanted to know what the difference is between being a man and a woman... I’m sweeping the room for murderers, and you are being escorted to your room with someone else’s purse.” (Alice, 16:43)

3. Brett’s (In)Famous Ritz Carlton Story – The Main Event

[07:31–16:25]

• Setting the Scene

  • On a work trip for high-stakes en banc arguments in Atlanta, Brett and his co-clerks indulge in complimentary drinks at the Ritz Carlton club level.

• The Chain of Events

  • Brett describes drinking heavily: Grand Marnier, wine at dinner, and “Irish Car Bombs” at a nearby pub.
  • Last vivid memory: chugging an Irish Car Bomb.
  • Brett wakes up at 4 AM, “sitting on the edge of my bed” (Brett, 10:23), facing an unfamiliar woman’s purse.

• The Purse Mystery Unravels

  • Texts his then-girlfriend (now wife) in confusion, then returns to sleep (!).
  • At breakfast, discovers the purse belongs to his co-clerk, who’d lost it after a bathroom break at the bar.
  • She had spent the early morning mistakenly calling a stranger, thinking it was her fiancé, trying to retrieve her purse.

• Piecing Together the Night

  • The couple befriends strangers at the bar.
  • Brett gets caught smoking indoors; laughs off the diminutive bouncer’s attempts to eject him.
  • Bar staff threaten to call the police as the purse goes missing and tensions escalate.
  • The bartender brings the lost purse to the Ritz, where Brett, still drunk, is chatting with a photography-enthusiast desk clerk.
  • Brett realizes, “the Irish bar across from the Ritz Carlton, Atlanta. I’m banned from that bar. I can’t go to it.” (Brett, 14:49)

• Morning After

  • Brett somehow attends the en banc argument, feeling awful; his co-clerk misses it due to illness.
  • Their judge finds the entire incident hilarious.

Notable Quotes

• “I drank everybody’s like, Grand Marnier. We went to dinner with the judge.... Then we get back to the Ritz Carlton, and across the street from the Ritz Carlton was an Irish pub, right? So... let’s go to the Irish pub.” (Brett, 08:49)
• “I look up and there’s like a table in front of me. And on the table is a woman’s purse.” (Brett, 10:28)
• “They totally could have called the police several times.” (Brett, 16:05)
• “I’m sweeping the room for murderers, and you are being escorted to your room with someone else’s purse.” (Alice, 16:43)

4. Supreme Court Connection: Listener Success Story

[17:03–20:46]

• Podcast Impact Realized
  • Brett recounts meeting a young woman at a legal event who got a Supreme Court clerkship, in part, by referencing a case discussed on their podcast in her interview (“I want you to know that your podcast got me a clerkship on the Supreme Court of the United States.” – Brett, 18:26)
  • She credits listening to their “Glossip” episode with helping her ace the difficult interview question about current cases.
  • “Maybe we helped write the dissent.” (Alice, 20:14)
  • Both joke they should offer their podcast as a paid SCOTUS-placement service.

5. Reflections, Banter, and Listener Community

• The hosts riff on their podcasting “skills” and the accidental benefits (“We’re really funny. More people should listen. What are you talking about?” – Brett, 21:16).
• Playful shoutouts to their spouses, who (sometimes) listen to the show.
• Hint at the possibility of more “After Dark” content in the future.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “If you guys wanted to know what the difference is between being a man and a woman... I’m sweeping the room for murderers, and you are being escorted to your room with someone else’s purse.”
  — Alice, 16:43

• “I have no idea how I get back to my room to this day.... literally passed out sitting up, right? And then woke up later.”
  — Brett, 14:59–15:01

• “She goes to the interview with the clerks, and... they’re like... Tell us about a case we’re considering right now. And she goes, ‘Well, there’s this Glossip case...’”
  — Brett, 19:49

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Court oral arguments “dirty secret”: 02:11
• Alice’s hotel safety routine: 04:34
• Brett admits not checking hotel rooms: 07:03
• Ritz Carlton “almost arrested” story starts: 07:31
• Wakes up with a strange purse: 10:23
• Bar returns purse, Brett is banned: 14:49
• Recap—gender and hotel safety: 16:43
• Supreme Court clerkship story: 17:03
• Podcast helps place SCOTUS clerk: 18:26
• Playful podcast banter/end: 21:16–22:16

Tone & Language

The episode is casual, witty, and candidly self-deprecating, with both hosts comfortable poking fun at themselves and the legal profession. They shift seamlessly between sharp legal insight and storytelling, with warmth and humor throughout.

In Summary:
This “After Dark” installment brings listeners an entertaining blend of legal culture, travel paranoia, and one of the most memorable lost-purse stories ever told on a true crime podcast. Brett’s night of too many Irish Car Bombs and Alice’s meticulous tips for hotel safety showcase both the differences and camaraderie between the hosts. Serious legal moments are balanced with levity, culminating in a feel-good reflection about the podcast’s real-life power: helping listeners, even on their way to the Supreme Court.