Life Without Parole

Ross Kleinstuber is an Associate Professor of Justice Administration & Criminology at the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown. His research focuses on the intersection of law and society, capital punishment, life without parole, mass incarceration, racial inequality in the justice system, and human rights abuses. Jeremiah Coldsmith holds a PhD in sociology. His individual research focuses on the intersection of identity and stratification, and as a methodologist and statistician, he has an active research, in collaboration with Dr. Kleinstuber, that focuses on quantifying LWOP’s effects on violent crime rates. Margaret E. Leigey is a Professor and Chair of Criminology at The College of New Jersey. Her research explores the experiences of those serving life without parole, in particular aging individuals, those who were sentenced as juveniles, and women. Sandra Joy a Professor of Sociology at Rowan University, licensed clinical social worker, mental health clinician, and activist in the movement to abolish capital punishment and LWOP. Her research explores the grief and loss issues confronting the families of those on death row, life without parole, and coalition politics in the anti-death penalty movement.

Acknowledgements

List of Figures

List of Tables

Introduction: Meet the New Death Penalty: Life Without Parole

References

Part I: Examining the Abolitionist Case for LWOP

1. Is LWOP Inhumane? The View from Death Row

The Phenomenon of Death Row "Volunteers"

The Perspective of the Non-Volunteers

The Experience of Being Resentenced from Death to LWOP

Conclusion

References

2. Is LWOP Inhumane? The View from Those Serving LWOP

Execution and "Execution by Installment": Perceptions of Those Serving Informal and Formal Death Sentences

On "Being Dead While You're Still Alive": A Study of California’s Recent Propositions to Abolish the Death Penalty

The Pains of Permanent Imprisonment: Quantitative and Qualitative Findings

"An Inescapable Burden": Maturation and Change Under Permanent Punishment

"An Invisible Entity:" The Experiences of Women Perpetually Incarcerated

Conclusion: Life Without Parole "Picks You Apart"

References

3. LWOP and Human Rights: The View from Abroad

By the Numbers

LWOP and Human Rights Worldwide

Final Thoughts

References

4. Worse Than Death: Innocence and Access to the Courts

Super Due Process, Life, and Death

Super Due Process and Innocence

Methodological Appendix

References

Conclusion

5. The Price of Life: The Financial Burden of LWOP

Yes, Death Sentences Cost More Than Life Sentences

But Those Costs Save Lives

And There Are More Life Sentences

Summary

References

6. LWOP as Racial Control

The Death Penalty is Racial Control and LWOP is the Death Penalty

LWOP Targets the Disadvantaged

Juvenile LWOP

Conclusion: A War on Which Crimes?

References

Part II: Examining the "Tough-On-Crime" Case for LWOP

7. LWOP and the War on Crime

Enactment of LWOP Statutes and Violent Crime

The Effect of Using LWOP More Frequently on Violent Crime

Conclusion

Methodological Appendix

References

8. Is LWOP Just Retribution or Cruel & Unusual Punishment?

LWOP Violates the Core Principles of Retribution

Retribution Does Not Benefit Most Victims

Conclusion

References

9. The Power of Second Chances: Stories of Redemption

The Subjects

Early Days in Prison

Maturation, the Influence of their Elders, and the Road to Redemption

Finding Redemption and Giving Back

Conclusion

References

Conclusion & Recommendations

Policy Recommendations

References

Index