The Joe Rogan Experience podcast has hosted thousands of guests over the years, but few stories have taken a dark turn like this one. Back in February 2024, Joe Rogan and civil rights attorney Josh Dubin sat down with Sheldon Johnson, a man who had just finished serving 25 years for armed robbery. What happened next is the kind of story that makes true crime podcasters lose sleep.
The news hit like a ton of bricks just over a month later. Johnson was arrested for allegedly killing and beheading his childhood friend. The comedy club crew who had shared laughs with Johnson that night were understandably freaked out.
“It’s so crazy because we went out with him [Johnson] that evening. We brought him to the comedy club, he was hanging out with us in the green room. And then the news broke [38 days later], and then the comics were all like, ‘Hey man what the f*ck. What the f*ck you doing bringing that guy around?’ [Laughs] We’ll we didn’t know.”
Dubin, who has spent his career helping wrongfully convicted people, believed Johnson was a success story. The meeting went so well that Rogan invited Johnson to hang out at his comedy club afterward. Everyone was in high spirits – after all, who doesn’t love a good redemption story? But as they say, life has a way of throwing some seriously wild curveballs.
The situation hit Dubin particularly hard. But, being the stand-up guy, Dubin returned to Rogan’s podcast to face the music. It’s not every day that the poster child for rehabilitation allegedly commits such a horrific crime.
Josh Dubin Talks About How His Endorsement Of Sheldon Johnson Backfired Hard On Him
On the JRE 2096, Dubin called Johnson a “miracle” on the show. He believed that he was the epitome of what rehabilitation after prison looks like. But, these words came back to haunt him when the news broke that Johnson had allegedly killed his friend.
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Joe Rogan tried to comfort his friend by showing his more thoughtful side. He pointed out the harsh reality of prison life – spending decades locked up with violent offenders isn’t exactly a recipe for mental health success. Dubin, on the other hand, recounted how it affected him.
“It’s really not funny. I mean, I’m only laughing out of, sort of, nervousness…I called him a miracle on this show. And the media shoved that straight up my *ss…I’ve had a lot of time to think about this. And you and I have discussed this privately, and I kind of went into a hole.”
The situation raises challenging questions about rehabilitation, second chances, and how well a person can know anyone. As Dubin noted, this incident has potentially damaged decades of work in criminal justice reform.
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