archive

Crime, prison and the death penalty IV

Paul H. Robinson (Penn): "Life Without Parole" Under Modern Theories of Punishment. Thomas H. Koenig (Northeastern) and Michael L. Rustad (Suffolk): Deciding Whether the Death Penalty Should Be Abolished. From The Washington Monthly, California is not just deciding whether pot should be legal — it’s determining the shape of a major new American industry. Could economics solve the prison crisis in Great Britain? An excerpt from Trophy Kill: The Shall We Dance Murder by Dan Zupansky. Prison Break: How Michigan managed to empty its penitentiaries while lowering its crime rate. The first chapter from Who Are the Criminals? The Politics of Crime Policy from the Age of Roosevelt to the Age of Reagan by John Hagan. A review of Prisons of Poverty by Loic Wacquant (and more). Family members' DNA may lead investigators to the answers, but using it as a forensic technique brings up some troubling questions. Randolph Roth on his book American Homicide. Whether volunteers are welcomed or rebuffed can tell you a lot about whether inmates at your local correctional facility are being treated like human beings or live in fear. Celebrities Behind Bars! A comprehensive study of bad behavior and forgiveness. From The Texas Observer, a cover story on how DNA tests undermine the evidence in a Texas execution: New results show Claude Jones was put to death on flawed evidence. A review of Reading Is My Window: Books and the Art of Reading in Women’s Prisons by Megan Sweeney. At Death’s Door: Sister Helen Prejean ruminates on America’s obsession with retribution and prays for an end to state-sanctioned murder. A review of Interrupted Life: Experiences of Incarcerated Women in the United States. The introduction to The Hoods: Crime and Punishment in Belfast by Heather Hamill.