Just Revenge: Costs and Consequences of the Death Penalty - Softcover

Costanzo, Mark

3.87

23 ratings by Goodreads

9780312179458: Just Revenge: Costs and Consequences of the Death Penalty

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0312179456 ISBN 13: 9780312179458

Publisher: Worth Publishers, 1997

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Just Revenge: Costs and Consequences of the Death Penalty by Mark Costanzo offers an examination of the death penalty in America with an uncompromising look at how the system works. Weighing the social costs and benefits to American society and debunking the easy myths, Costanzo builds an important new model for understanding the politics behind the practice of capital punishment. The text offers a thought-provoking, historically grounded study supported by decades of research on the death penalty in America.

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About the Author:

Mark Costanzo is Chair of the Department of Social Psychology at Claremont McKenna College and a member of the faculty at the Center for Organizational and Behavioral Sciences at Claremont Graduate University. He has written many scholarly articles about the death penalty and capital murder trials. Professor Costanzo serves on the editorial board of Law and Human Behavior and has co-edited and contributed to three books: Violence and the Law, Gender Issues in Contemporary Society, and Diversity in Organizations (all published by Sage). He has appeared on national radio and television programs to discuss the issue of capital punishment, and has served as an expert witness on issues related to the death penalty.

Review:

A breathtaking tour of all facets of this controversial policy frontier. From the abstract debate over over deterrence to the concrete cost of an execution, Costanzo deftly presents and evaluates competing perspectives. Just Revenge is a riveting work that will make readers enourmously more informed about how and why America punishes capital felons, and what--if anything--this lethal policy accomplishes. -- Dane Archer, Professor of Sociology, University of California at Santa Cruz; Author of Violence and Crime in Cross-National Perspective

A concise overview of the death penalty in the 1990s--must reading for anyone who is ambivalent about the death penalty or curious about what fuels the comtemporary thirst for blood. -- Michael Radelet, Professor and Chair of Sociology, University of Florida

Dr. Costanzo has written a clear, comprehensive book that could be the basis for a course on the death penalty. Chapter by chapter, he clarifies the process and examines every aspect of the death penalty including its effect on the victim's families.....JUST REVENGE provides all the facts needed to make an informed decision about the effectiveness of the death penalty--and does so in an interesting and clear style. A valuable addition to any library, it is required reading for those seeking to understand the complex issues that surround our response to violence in America. -- THE VOICE, Murder Victims' Families for Reconciliation Newsletter

Establishes a new measure for the understanding of the death penalty in the 90s...An engaging and extensive examination of one of the most crucial moral, legal, and political issues facing society. It will be of interest and use to students of criminology as well as to the general reader. -- Richard Moran, Professor of Sociology at Mount Holyoke College, and Commentator for National Public Radio

JUST REVENGE forces us to examine the real substance of capital punishment as an issue in America today. This is must reading for all who are concerned with how our justice system decides who lives and who dies. -- Donald Cabana, Author, Death at Midnight: Confessions of an Executioner

JUST REVENGE gathers and summarizes vast amounts of research in a well-written and near encyclopedic fashion....Despite its point of view, the book should appeal to capital punishment proponents as well as opponents--opponents will appreciate the fair-minded and analytical style. Both sides will have in one place the arguments and difficult questions regarding capital punishment that are raised as the debate over capital punishment rages on. -- NEW YORK LAW JOURNAL

Mark Costanzo has written an exceedingly engaging and ultimately compelling book on this most controversial topic. Just Revenge is a clear, cogent presentation of what we know about capital punishment as it is presently practiced in the United States. If you want an insightful, empirically grounded weighing of the pros and cons of the death penalty, this book is the best place I know to find it. -- William Bowers, Professor of Criminal Justice Northeastern University

Professor Costanzo has done a great service by compiling some of the best information about the death penalty and presenting it in a highly readable and thoughtful form. Students, scholars, politicians, and citizens everywhere would profit from using this book to shed light on a topic that has been for too long buried in rhetoric and misinformation. -- Richard Dieter, Executive Director, Death Penalty Information Center

This is a cogent, well-researched book. Costanzo has done his homework and handles his material evenly and fair-handedly. Plus, he must have had a grandpa or somebody to teach him storytelling because he hooks you into reading "social scientific evidence" as if you're reading a novel. He's a great summarizer of reams of information, and he doesn't get stuck in details. Just what the intellectually curious reader is looking for. -- Sister Helen Prejean, csj. Author of Dead Man Walking

This voice in the wilderness needs to be heard. Before we can become a civilized nation we must stop the killing--ours first. Mark Costanzo, in this compassionate and intelligent book leads the way. -- Gerry Spence, Author of How to Argue and Win Every Time

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