Life Without Parole: Living in Prison Today - Softcover

Hassine, Victor

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0195341139 ISBN 13: 9780195341133

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 2008

Synopsis

In 1981 law school graduate Victor Hassine was convicted of a capital offense and sentenced to prison for life without parole. Based on his pivotal experiences as an inmate, Life Without Parole, Fourth Edition, offers an insightful and extraordinary firsthand look at the conditions of confinement and prison life in America today. In powerful and poignant prose, Hassine takes the reader on a "guided tour" of the prison experience, discussing the changes in prison life that have come about as a result of the war on drugs, prison overcrowding, and demographic changes in inmate populations. Topics covered include rape, prison gangs, prison violence, AIDS, homosexuality, and prison politics.

This gripping text graphically documents the violence and fear that are part of everyday life in a men's maximum-security prison. Each chapter features an introduction written by eminent criminologist Robert Johnson, and the book is divided into three sections: Prison Life, which introduces readers to the day-to-day aspects of Hassine's life in prison; Interviews, which presents a series of candid interviews with Hassine's fellow inmates; and Op Ed, in which Hassine addresses some of the most significant problems within the current prison system.

Revised and updated throughout, the fourth edition also integrates three new chapters that explore the following topics:

* The harmful effects of crowding on both criminals and correctional administrators
* A vivid analysis of the many prisons Hassine has inhabited, compared and contrasted as both living environments and as institutions of punishment
* Hassine's reflections on his long period of incarceration, along with his predictions for how tomorrow's prisons might evolve

An invaluable resource for criminal justice students and those interested in the prison system, Life Without Parole, Fourth Edition, presents a riveting account of life behind bars.

About this title

About the Author:

Robert Johnson is with the American University, and Ania Dobrzanska is with The Moss Group, Inc.

Review:

"Hassine's stories target issues that have real relevance in the sociological/criminological literature and in justice policy, and he effectively balances subjective experience with objective observation. His writing style is exceptional. It is sophisticated, yet highly comprehensible. This book will definitely generate and sustain student interest."--Karol Lucken, University of Central Florida

"Hassine's writing style is excellent and very consistent. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I would recommend that it be a required or recommended book for all corrections classes."--Richard T. Martin, J.D., Washburn University

"This book should be required reading in all undergraduate criminal justice programs."--John Shore, Northern Kentucky University

About this edition

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 2008
• ISBN 10: 0195341139
• ISBN 13: 9780195341133
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 4
• Number of pages: 320
• Editor: Johnson Robert, Dobrzanska Ania