Inequality and punishment: A global paradox?

2021 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-20
Author(s):  
Susanne Karstedt
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Criminal Punishment ◽  
National Scale ◽  
Racial And Ethnic Minorities ◽  
Criminal Justice Systems ◽  
Marginalised Groups ◽  
The World ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Cross National

Across the world, the most marginalised groups of society are overrepresented in prisons and institutions of the criminal justice system. Besides racial and ethnic minorities, prisons worldwide disproportionately house individuals who count among the least educated, most unemployed and poorest groups of society. However, it is one of the paradoxes of penality that whilst it is obvious that criminal justice systems across the world target disadvantaged populations, the link between imprisonment and socio-economic inequality has been mostly elusive on a global and cross-national scale. This contribution addresses this paradox and aims at unravelling it. It will focus on those processes and mechanisms through which social inequality is transmitted into unequal criminal punishment, and how criminal punishment reproduces inequality. I will first present the evidence from a macro- and comparative perspective, and then explore the relationship between punishment and inequality within societies. Imprisonment growth and concentration of imprisonment are identified as routes towards exacerbating and entrenching inequality, thus being a cause rather than a consequence of inequality.

scholarly journals The Role of International Criminal Justice in Fulfillment of the Tasks of the World Community - UN

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 87-96
Author(s):  
N I Kostenko
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Criminal Justice System ◽  
Justice System ◽  
International Criminal ◽  
Holistic Approach ◽  
International Criminal Justice ◽  
World Community ◽  
Criminal Justice Systems ◽  
The World

The article examines the role of international criminal justice in fulfilling the important tasks set by the world community in the 21st century to stabilize the criminal justice system, which should become a fundamental element of the rule of law structure; on the recognition of the central role of the criminal justice system in the development of international criminal justice. The work focuses on the need for a holistic approach to reforming the criminal justice system in order to improve the effectiveness of international criminal justice systems in the fight against crime.

The Victimization and Disparate Treatment of Racial and Ethnic Minorities

2021 ◽  
pp. 353-382
Author(s):  
Rhiannon Oakes ◽  
Annie K. Oakeley ◽  
Rola Goke-Pariola
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Criminal Justice System ◽  
Ethnic Minorities ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Implicit Bias ◽  
Hate Crimes ◽  
Racial And Ethnic Minorities ◽  
The World ◽  
Disparate Treatment ◽  
The Media

This chapter focuses on the victimization of racial and ethnic minorities and the disparate treatment they face within the criminal justice system. Factors that contribute to these issues, such as hate crimes, intersectionality, implicit bias, and the school-to-prison pipeline, will be discussed. The ways in which the media and society at large respond to these matters will be identified. An exploration of how victimization of racial and ethnic minorities differs around the world concludes the chapter.

scholarly journals Moral Cognition in Criminal Punishment

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 143-179
Author(s):  
Jason R. Steffen
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Criminal Justice System ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Moral Cognition ◽  
Criminal Punishment ◽  
Theory Of Justice ◽  
Criminal Justice Systems ◽  
Metaphysics Of Morals ◽  
Anglo American ◽  
Policy Proposals

AbstractScholars often appeal to Kant in defending a retributivist view of criminal punishment. In this paper, I join other scholars in rejecting this interpretation as insufficiently attentive to Kant's wider theory of justice, particularly as found in the Rechtslehre, a section of the Metaphysics of Morals. I then turn to the Tugendlehre, where I examine analogies between Kant's treatments of morality and justice. In particular, I argue that Kant's own views about conscience and moral cognition should cause us to rethink the importance of lex talionis (an integral retributive principle) in the criminal justice system, and to adopt a more merciful attitude toward punishable criminals than we might otherwise be inclined to do. I end with a few policy proposals aimed at encouraging such moral cognition in contemporary Anglo-American criminal justice systems

Justice and the Vulnerable: Developments from the Eighth Forum on Minority Issues Regarding Criminal Justice Systems

2017 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-89
Author(s):  
András L. Pap ◽  
Jacob Verhagen
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Criminal Justice System ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Global Scale ◽  
Criminal Justice Systems ◽  
Areas Of Concern ◽  
Justice Systems ◽  
Historical Issues ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Opening Statements

The Eighth forum on minority protection chose to focus on the treatment of minorities within the criminal justice system. During this forum, many issues were discussed, and solutions proposed. These included both long-standing historical issues, as well as contemporary areas of concern on a global scale. First, this paper will examine the background to the forum, its intents and purposes. Secondly, it will draw on the context according to which the topic of the eighth forum was chosen. Thirdly, the paper will take a look at notable contributions in the opening statements and each working group. At the end of the paper, we will examine recurring themes and proposed solutions throughout the forum. The intention of the paper is not to be analytical, but rather to highlight the main focuses of the forum and points of interest. As the event was a global forum, the contributions were on a global scale. Since the issues discussed are often universal and are often found at varying levels across national justice systems, it has import for European legal scholars and offers practical lessons for better understanding the relationship between minorities and the criminal justice system.

Fear of a School-to-Deportation Pipeline: How Teachers, Administrators, and Immigrant Students Respond to the Threat of Standardized Tests and Deportation

2021 ◽  
pp. 004208592110264
Author(s):  
Patricia Maloney ◽  
Duke W. Austin ◽  
SaunJuhi Verma
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Standardized Tests ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Immigrant Students ◽  
Zero Tolerance ◽  
School Authority ◽  
Funding Sources ◽  
Criminal Justice Systems ◽  
Authority Figures

Existing studies evaluate zero tolerance policies and the school-to-prison pipeline. Additional research identifies the role of criminal justice systems in deporting immigrants. Our work bridges these two literatures by discussing how immigrant students navigate the criminal justice system within schools. Using interviews with immigrant students, teachers, and administrators, we address the question: How is the school-to-deportation pipeline maneuvered by stakeholders? Our study identifies how school authority figures react to and even use the fear of the pipeline to (1) either protect students from becoming criminalized or (2) exclude students from standardized exam participation so as to maintain funding sources.

Found Out and Opting Out

2016 ◽  
Vol 665 (1) ◽  
pp. 127-141 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Esther Lageson
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Family Relationships ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Criminal History ◽  
Criminal Records ◽  
Opting Out ◽  
Private Lives ◽  
Criminal Histories ◽  
The Relationship

Online criminal histories document and publicize even minor brushes with the law and represent people who may not even be guilty of any crime. This has dramatically changed the relationship that millions of Americans have with the criminal justice system and may affect their social and private lives. Drawing on interviews and fieldwork with people attempting to expunge and legally seal their criminal records, I explore how online versions of these records impact family relationships. Many who appear on mug shot and criminal history websites are arrestees who are never formally charged or convicted of a crime. The indiscriminate posting of all types of justice contact on websites may impact those who, for the most part, desist from crime and are core contributors to their family and community. I find that many of those who are affected by the stigma of online records did not know that records existed until they “popped up” unexpectedly, and that this experience leads them to self-select out of family duties that contribute to child well-being.

Kidney Disease among People Who Are Incarcerated

2021 ◽  
pp. CJN.01910221
Author(s):  
Matthew Murphy ◽  
Ann Ding ◽  
Justin Berk ◽  
Josiah Rich ◽  
George Bayliss
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Kidney Disease ◽  
Criminal Justice System ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Standard Of Care ◽  
Health Impact ◽  
Legal Obligation ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Racial And Ethnic Minorities ◽  
Community Standard

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) affects 15% of US adults and is associated with increased morbidity and mortality. CKD disproportionately impacts certain populations, including racial and ethnic minorities and individuals from disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds. These groups are also disproportionately impacted by incarceration and barriers to accessing health services. Incarceration represents an opportunity to link marginalized individuals to CKD care. Despite a legal obligation to provide a community standard of care including the screening and treatment of individuals with CKD, there is little evidence to suggest systematic efforts are in place to address this prevalent, costly, and ultimately fatal condition. This review highlights unrealized opportunities to connect individuals with CKD to care within the criminal justice system and as they transition to the community, while underscoring the need for more evidence-based strategies to address the health impact of CKD on over-represented communities in the criminal justice system.

Some Random Thoughts about Victimological Movement in the World with Special Reference to India

2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-41
Author(s):  
K. Chockalingam
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Task Force ◽  
Basic Principles ◽  
Abuse Of Power ◽  
The World ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Complete Neglect ◽  
Victims Of Crime ◽  
Principles Of Justice

Historically, priority of the criminal justice system was always to establish the guilt of the accused and provide a punishment to the offender. Even after the advent of scientific criminology, focus was on all aspects of the offender, to the complete neglect of the victim. Victim was always treated as a witness, and victim justice has been a struggle throughout the world. Many scholars and criminal justice administrators recommended urgent measures to improve the conditions of victims, particularly after the historic Report of President’s Task Force in 1982 in the USA. Since then a victimological movement emerged which culminated in the creation of UN Declaration of Basic Principles of Justice for Victims of Crime and Abuse of Power, 1985. In this article, the emergence of victimological movement, its impact and the subsequent developments in India are discussed.

Inequality and Punishment: The Idiosyncrasies of the Political Economy of Punishment

2021 ◽  
pp. 22-40
Author(s):  
Susanne Karstedt
Keyword(s):  
Political Economy ◽  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Social Inequality ◽  
Economic Inequality ◽  
The Political ◽  
Criminal Punishment ◽  
Marginalised Groups ◽  
Political Economies

Prisons across the globe are manifestations of inequality. In any society, its most marginalised groups are overrepresented in prisons and all institutions of criminal justice. Notwithstanding this universal condition of contemporary criminal justice, the link between social inequality and inequality of punishment has been found to be tenuous and elusive. This contribution addresses the question how socio-economic inequality shapes the manifestations of punishment for a global sample of countries. As socio-economic inequality and criminal punishment are both multi-faceted concepts, several indicators are used for each. The findings confirm the highly contextual nature of the link between inequality and criminal punishment; they suggest a variegated impact of political economies, and a multiplicity of mechanisms that link inequality and criminal punishment across the globe.

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