Sidebar: International intrigue, R. Kelly & the fight to #freebritney

We are coming at you in our eighth episode with three stories of power, corruption and accountability. 

To kick things off, we take a look with political science professor Cynthia McClintock at Peru's bid to extradite its former president, Alejandro Toledo Manrique, on charges of bribery and money laundering. Peru claims Toledo helped a Brazilian company win a lucrative contract for a major highway project in exchange for $35 million in bribes.

Then we break down R&B singer R. Kelly's trial and conviction for running a career-spanning sex ring that included the late singer Aaliyah among scores of underage girls.

And last, we take you outside the courtroom to the latest in pop star Britney Spears' effort to be free of the California conservatorship controlled by her father and bring you a conversation with the ACLU's Zoe Brennan-Krohn on how conservatorships work. #freebritney

Sidebar tackles the top stories you need to know from the legal world. Join reporters Bianca Bruno, Nicholas Iovino, Amanda Pampuro and Nina Pullano as they take you in and out of courtrooms in the U.S. and beyond and break down developments to help you understand how they affect your day-to-day life.

This episode was produced by Kirk McDaniel. Music by The Dead Pens, Kevin MacLeod and Agastya Bhardwaj. A transcript of this episode is available.

Editorial staff is Bill Dotinga, Sean Duffy and Jamie Ross. 

To read up on how we got to Toledo's extradition to Peru:

-- Judge OKs extradition of former Peruvian president to face bribery charges

-- Once lauded, former Peru president now fights extradition on bribery charges

-- Ex-Peruvian President to Remain Jailed Pending Extradition in Bribery Case

For a play-by-play of the case against R. Kelly:

-- Jury convicts R. Kelly on sex-trafficking charges

-- Friends of R. Kelly say they never saw sex ring, mounting singer’s defense

-- R. Kelly dancer describes seeing singer have sex with underage Aaliyah

And more on Britney's fight to remove her father from her conservatorship:

-- Judge ends dad’s oversight of Britney Spears conservatorship

-- Court to consider removing Britney Spears’ father from conservatorship

Follow Sidebar and Courthouse News on Twitter.

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