The OCI: Insight into Canada’s prisons
Jails and prisons are out of the public eye; what goes on there tends to get very little scrutiny unless something very dramatic occurs. However there is much evidence (for example the famous Stanford Prison Experiments) that in places where...
Read MoreLifetime Effects of a Criminal Record
A criminal conviction is much more than the sentence It’s commonly believed that the consequence of being convicted of a crime lies in the sentence imposed by a judge. “Do the crime, do your time”, one often hears. But as...
Read MoreMajor Changes to Ontario Jails Recommended
Major changes in Ontario corrections recommended On January 1, 2017, following a series of media stories involving prisoners held in segregation or solitary confinement for long periods, the Ontario government commissioned Howard Sapers, former federal Correctional Investigator, to do a...
Read MoreBryan Stevenson: A Leading Civil Rights Voice
Reflecting on Bryan Stevenson: How a Criminal Lawyer Became the Leading Civil Rights Voice of Our Time by Lisa Kerr The field of criminal justice is often in need of moral leadership. While Bryan Stevenson is focused on the U.S....
Read MoreCarceral expansion and organizations that serve the criminalized
There is “no neutral ground”: Carceral expansion and organizations that serve the criminalized in Canada Justin Piché There was considerable expansion of jail, prison and penitentiary capacity during the near-decade that Stephen Harper was the Prime Minister of Canada, both...
Read MoreForgiveness: The Margot Van Sluytman story
Victims and Forgiveness Crime often causes suffering, which is one of the factors leading to demands for harsh punishments. Yet some of the most remarkable crime stories come from victims who have been able to take a different approach, leading...
Read MoreOveruse of Prison Around the World
International studies. From time to time we will post material about criminal justice in other countries. Canadians hear most about the United States, and it is likely that American trends and practices have had a strong effect on what happens...
Read MoreWhat This Blog is About
Purposes, what to expect, how to participate, copyright and reproduction Why this blog? Crime and criminal justice are topics of great interest to people. They are frequently reported in the news, a common subject of public conversation, and therefore of...
Read MoreCanada’s Prison Agency Argues Segregation Doesn’t Affect Inmates’ Health
Article from The Globe and Mail. By Patrick White. Photo by Morry Gash/AP. Canada’s prison agency denies that it uses solitary confinement and contends that its method for isolating inmates causes none of the health problems generally associated with prison...
Read MoreInside Canada’s Corrections System
Article from TVO Air Date: Nov 16, 2016 The Ontario government recently appointed Howard Sapers, the federal correctional investigator, to look into the use of segregation – generally known as solitary confinement – and ways to improve the province’s prison...
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