Racializing Mercy: Capital Punishment and Race in Twentieth-Century England and Wales

2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (4) ◽  
pp. 883-910
Author(s):  
Lizzie Seal ◽  
Alexa Neale
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Capital Punishment ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Racial Difference ◽  
Institutional Racism ◽  
Access To Justice ◽  
England And Wales ◽  
Men Of Color ◽  
Unequal Access ◽  
To Receive

Fifty-seven men of color were sentenced to death by the courts of England and Wales in the twentieth century and were less likely to receive mercy than white contemporaries. Though shocking, the data is perhaps unsurprising considering institutional racism and unequal access to justice widely highlighted by criminologists since the 1970s. We find discourses of racial difference were frequently mobilized tactically in nineteenth- and twentieth-century England and Wales: to support arguments for mercy and attempt to save prisoners from the gallows. Scholars have identified historically and culturally contingent narratives traditionally deployed to speak to notions of lesser culpability. These mercy narratives reveal contemporary ideals and attitudes to gender or class. This article is original in identifying strategic mercy narratives told in twentieth-century England and Wales that called on contemporary tropes about defendants' race. The narratives and cases we explore suggest contemporary racism in the criminal justice system of England and Wales has a longer history than previously acknowledged.

scholarly journals Older victims of crime: Vulnerability, resilience and access to procedural justice

2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 201-221 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin J Brown ◽  
Faith Gordon
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Procedural Justice ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Access To Justice ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Comprehensive Examination ◽  
Justice Process ◽  
Victims Of Crime ◽  
Unequal Access

This article provides the first comprehensive examination of the phenomenon of unequal access to procedural justice for older victims of crime. It analyses quantitative and qualitative data exploring the interactions of older people with the criminal justice system of Northern Ireland. It identifies that older victims of crime are less likely to have a successful crime outcome (known as ‘detection’ or ‘clear-up’ in other jurisdictions) to their case when compared to other adults. The results provide evidence of a system failing to adequately take into account additional vulnerabilities that disproportionately impact on older victims’ ability to engage with the justice process. There is an analysis of the relationships between vulnerability, resilience and access to justice. The current conceptual understanding of vulnerability as applied to older people within the justice system is challenged. The findings are relevant for researchers and policy-makers in the United Kingdom, Ireland and further afield concerned with the treatment of older and vulnerable victims by the justice system.

scholarly journals Resisting effective approaches for BAME offenders in England and Wales: the triumph of inertia

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick Williams ◽  
Pauline Durrance
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Criminal Justice System ◽  
Ethnic Groups ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Institutional Racism ◽  
Home Office ◽  
England And Wales ◽  
Minority Ethnic Groups ◽  
Marginalised Groups ◽  
Minority Ethnic

Following the theme set by the previous chapters in this section; this chapter identifies practices that are useful for working with other typically marginalised groups on probation, particularly Black and Minority Ethnic Groups (BAME). The chapter is set in the context of the cancellation of Home Office programmes and interventions with BAME offenders in England and Wales, and the authors describe this as the ‘triumph of inertia, and explore why this has occurred. They contextualise the chapter with statistics about BAME communities’ experiences of the Criminal Justice System and the wider society, including institutional racism, and looks at specific Home Office strategies that have disproportionately impacted on BAME communities. Finally, the chapter includes recommendations to improve practice for people working with these groups.

Settlements Under Unequal Access to Justice

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Madina Kurmangaliyeva ◽  
Anastasia Antsygina
Keyword(s):  
Access To Justice ◽  
Unequal Access

Access to Justice for Ethno-Racial Psychiatric Consumer/Survivors in Ontario

2011 ◽  
Vol 29 ◽  
pp. 127 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ruby Dhand
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Institutional Racism ◽  
Access To Justice ◽  
Complex Needs ◽  
Troubles Mentaux ◽  
Inappropriate Care ◽  
Race Ethnicity ◽  
Complex Forms ◽  
Face Complex ◽  
Legal Barriers

Ethno-racial psychiatric consumer/survivors face complex forms of discrimination as a result of the culture specific stigmatization of mental health disabilities, institutional racism and culturally inappropriate care. In an effort to achieve better access to justice for ethno-racial communities, we must strive to understand their complex needs, perspectives and conceptions of mental health. Thus, I identify and critique the legal barriers, which are perceived to differentially affect ethno-racial psychiatric consumer/survivors in Ontario, through an analysis of the Consent and Capacity Board [CCB]. I propose the hypothesis that factors such as race, ethnicity, culture, poverty and social exclusion are not fully addressed by the CCB. I use data collected from interviews with stakeholders to reveal the procedural, structural/systemic and discretionary barriers faced by ethno-racial psychiatric consumer/survivors within the CCB’s pre-hearing, hearing and post-hearing processes, along with recommendations to address these barriers.Les consommateurs/survivants de la psychiatrie ethnoraciale doivent surmonter des formes complexes de discrimination en raison de la stigmatisation culturelle des troubles mentaux, du racisme institutionnel et des soins culturellement inappropriés. Pour améliorer l’accès à la justice des collectivités ethnoraciales, nous devons nous efforcer de comprendre leurs besoins complexes, leurs perspectives et leurs conceptions de la santé mentale. Dans le présent travail, je relève et critique les obstacles juridiques, qui sont perçus comme touchant différemment les consommateurs/survivants de la psychiatrie ethnoraciale en Ontario, en effectuant une analyse des travaux de la Commission du consentement et de la capacité (la « CCC »). J’émets l’hypothèse que la CCC ne prend pas pleinement en compte des facteurs comme la race, l’ethnicité, la culture, la pauvreté et l’exclusion sociale. J’utilise des données provenant d’entrevues avec des parties prenantes pour illustrer les obstacles procéduraux, structurels/systémiques et discrétionnaires auxquels font face les consommateurs/survivants de la psychiatrie ethnoraciale lors des audiences préparatoires et des audiences de la CCC et dans le cadre des processus suivis par la CCC après les audiences, et je formule des recommandations visant à surmonter ces obstacles.

Out of the Picture: Latinx and White Male Youths’ Facial Features Predict Their Juvenile Justice System Processing Outcomes

2021 ◽  
pp. 001112872199934
Author(s):  
Jacqueline M. Chen ◽  
Adam D. Fine ◽  
Jasmine B. Norman ◽  
Paul J. Frick ◽  
Elizabeth Cauffman
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Juvenile Justice ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Juvenile Justice System ◽  
White Male ◽  
Facial Features ◽  
Legal Decisions ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
First Time ◽  
To Receive

Adults’ facial characteristics predict whether and how severely they are sentenced in the adult criminal justice system. We investigate whether characteristics of White and Latinx male youths’ faces predict the severity of their processing in the juvenile justice system. Among a sample of first-time offenders, despite no differences in the severity of their offenses, youth who were perceived by naïve observers as more dominant, less trustworthy, less healthy, and having darker skin were more likely to receive harsher sanctions. Thus, extralegal factors like appearance may bias legal decisions that place some youth at increased risk for more restrictive sanctioning. Our findings highlight the need for structured approaches to juvenile processing decisions that take youths’ appearance out of the picture.

Mandatory Compensation Orders for Crime Victims and the Rhetoric of Restorative Justice

2003 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 60-76 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kate Warner ◽  
Jenny Gawlik
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Criminal Justice System ◽  
Restorative Justice ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Public Support ◽  
Crime Victims ◽  
Property Damage ◽  
Victims Of Crime ◽  
To Receive ◽  
Legislative Measures

Increased recognition of the need for victims of crime to be integrated into the criminal justice system and to receive adequate reparation has led, in a number of jurisdictions, to legislative measures to encourage the greater use of compensation orders. The Sentencing Act 1997 (Tas) (which came into force on 1 August 1998) went further and made compensation orders compulsory for property damage or loss resulting from certain crimes. This article shows that this measure has failed victims and argues that they have been used in the service of other ends. Mandatory compensation orders are a token gesture repackaged as restorative justice to gain public support for the administration of the criminal justice system.Ways in which compensation orders could be made more effective and the possibilities of accommodating restorative compensation into a conventional criminal justice system are explored.

Collective Access to Justice

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Molavi
Keyword(s):  
Access To Justice ◽  
Transformative Change ◽  
England And Wales ◽  
Class Actions ◽  
Collective Redress

At a time when the collective redress landscape is undergoing a period of transformative change, this important and timely research focuses on class actions in England and Wales. Aiming to promote access to justice, this pioneering work separates fact from fiction in an easily digestible way, offering progressive solutions for reform.

Negotiating without the victim state: the exclusiveness of anticorruption settlements

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nadja Capus ◽  
Kei Hannah Brodersen
Keyword(s):  
Case Studies ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Criminal Proceedings ◽  
International Guidelines ◽  
England And Wales ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Past ◽  
Settlement Agreements ◽  
To Receive ◽  
Obligation To Inform

Purpose Corporate foreign bribery can have devastating consequences on communities and states. Over the past decade, there have been several promising developments, both national and international, that might increase the chances of victim states to receive remediation for the harm they suffered from foreign bribery. In particular, awareness has risen that victim states must be considered and new innovative items have been added to the toolbox of prosecutors in the fight against corruption that is assumed to also improve victim states’ standing in these procedures. This study aims to assess whether indeed victim states receive compensation through these novel procedures. Design/methodology/approach This study uses the three case studies of Switzerland, France and England and Wales for a comprehensive empirical and normative analysis of settlement agreements between defendants and prosecution authorities and of court jurisprudence. Findings This study shows that although de jure, it seems warranted to order the payment of remedies to victim states within domestic criminal proceedings, in practice, this rarely happens. A number of legal and practical obstacles account for this situation. This study, therefore, calls for the formulation of international guidelines containing the obligation to inform victim states of ongoing criminal proceedings on corporate foreign bribery, and guidance on how to identify the victim of this crime, as well as the damage caused. Originality/value This is the first contribution to verify whether claims that settlement agreements, recently introduced in England and Wales and France (and similar procedures are available in Switzerland), are beneficial for victim states in their quest to receive compensation. As this study shows that this is – not yet – the case in practice, this study proposes solutions that could lead the way for remediation of the harm caused by corporate corruption – and thereby, ultimately, to a more just outcome.

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