Prisoners’ stories – I.M Grenada returns
Post #159 This post is about 1800 words and can be read in about 7 minutes. The grating debate by I. M. Grenada (pen name of a lifer prisoner in Canada). Previous work by this author published in 2017 and...
Read MoreLack of education and training in Canadian prisons
Post #158 775 words; 3 minutes to read One of the clearest findings about imprisoned people in Canada is that the vast majority have serious deficits in their education that make it harder for them to find work and support...
Read MoreAction on Solitary Confinement
Post # 157 For the last two weeks, John Howard Canada has partnered with several other organizations to promote awareness of the problem of solitary confinement in Canada’s prisons. Notwithstanding several court decisions and new legislation last year, the problems...
Read MoreSaving Lives but Facing Charges: The Good Samaritan Drug Overdose Act
Post #156. This post is 640 words, 3 minutes to read. It is followed by a graphic commentary on the issue produced by the HIV Legal Network. By Victoria Carmichael, JD Candidate at Queen’s Law. Opioid-related overdoses are on the rise....
Read MoreThe desire to punish
Post #155 660 words; 3 minutes to read One of the biggest debates in criminal justice is about the role of punishment. But an important question is where does the desire to punish come from, a desire that seems to...
Read MoreRethinking violent crime
Post #154 950 words; 4 minutes to read Many discussions of crime treat so-called ‘violent crimes’ as a special subset that deserves a different, and harsher, response. But there are compelling reasons to be dubious about this distinction. Many of...
Read MoreHarms of remand – evidence from Denmark
Post #153 650 words; 3 minutes to read The majority (about 60%) of people held in provincial jails in Canada have not been found guilty of anything and this pattern has been getting worse in recent years. They are being...
Read MorePrison experience part 6 – Social structure, culture and language
Post #152 About 1200 words; 5 minutes to read. This is the fifth in an ongoing series of posts sent to us by a former prisoner who wishes to remain anonymous. Previous posts in this series are here (#1), here...
Read MorePrisoners on Prisons
Post # 151 710 words; 3 minutes to read Most Canadians have very little sense of what it is like to be in prison. Perhaps most people don’t care, on the theory that ‘if you are in prison it’s for...
Read MoreCould expungement of criminal records hurt more people than it helps?
Post # 150 About 100 words; 5 minutes to read. This post is adapted with permission from a longer article by the same authors posted by The Niskanen Centre, a US policy organization. This is an issue in which the...
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