Review by Booklist Review
While battles against the death penalty and for freeing the wrongfully accused from death row garner broad press coverage, the effort to abolish life sentences has largely been overlooked. Mauer and Nellis, who work to promote criminal justice reform, have crafted an impressive blend of statistical analysis and personal experiences to reveal the story of life sentencing in the U.S. While the figures are troubling and should set off alarms, it is the stories that invoke emotional responses. The highlighted cases of people who are sentenced to life for nonviolent crimes, suspect prosecutions, and generally eye-popping reasons will galvanize readers. It will likely not be surprising to see the manner in which race, class, and gender play roles in sentencing, with the harshly incarcerated female victims of domestic violence marking yet another realm of which the #MeToo movement must take notice. Finally, the degree of detail in this well-titled book makes it an excellent resource and of great value to those seeking a way to effect positive social change.--Colleen Mondor Copyright 2018 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Mauer (Race to Incarcerate) and Nellis expose the problematic consequences of life sentencing in this well-argued collaboration. Drawing on personal stories (including six profiles of prisoners serving life sentences written by former "lifer" Kerry Myers), research, and years of experience at the Sentencing Project, where they work, they argue that life imprisonment, to which more than 200,000 people are subject in the U.S., is ineffective and costly; violates legal and human rights norms; disproportionately affects marginalized people; and does not meaningfully increase public safety (for example, someone who murdered an abuser and a mafia hit man may receive the same sentence, despite posing very different levels of danger to the public). They note that the U.S. imposes more severe sentences on more people than other developed nations and propose a blueprint for policy change: imposing a 20-year sentencing maximum and establishing more helpful services to ensure convicts are "equipped to reenter society in a meaningful, self-sustaining way." The authors make a strong case for abolishing life sentencing in this trenchant and urgent book. Photos. (Dec.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Kirkus Book Review
A study on the counterproductive impact of life sentences.Using startling statistical data, the Sentencing Project executive director Mauer (Race to Incarcerate, 1999, etc.) and Nellis (A Return to Justice: Rethinking our Approach to Juveniles in the System, 2015, etc.), senior research analyst, vehemently defend their crusade against life imprisonment, which is the sentence for a shocking number of inmates in American prisons. This number has been steadily rising over the last half-century despite a substantial decline in violent crime. The authors also argue that prison sentences longer than 20 years have "diminishing returns," with few moral or practical justifications. Bolstering the authors' arguments are six stirring portraits involving life-sentenced convicts, curated by former lifer Kerry Myers, who served nearly 30 years of his life sentence and remains adamant about his innocence. Mauer and Nellis sprinkle the profiles throughout chapters examining detrimental prison policy choices, racial biases, declining clemency rates, and the negative trends of sentence severity. The authors discuss lifetime terms for juveniles, such as a former Los Angeles gang member convicted of murder in his youth whose productive post-prison life reflects the authors' core argument. Another instructive story is that of a former convict who credits a disciplined work schedule and daily service-animal training as keys to her rehabilitation during incarceration. As with Mauer's Race to Incarcerate, this book is convincingly and meticulously researched while also balanced in its acknowledgement that the issue remains complex and highly controversial. Mauer and Nellis not only build a compelling argument for ending life imprisonment; they also provide strategic public-policy groundwork for enacting a maximum 20-year sentence. They outline recommendations for a "full recalibration of the American sentencing structure" and a prison system-wide overhaul that they believe will increase overall public safety. Readers on both sides of the argument will surely find this book fodder for inspired debate and proactive discussion.A riveting, passionate case against lifetime incarceration and a plea for criminal justice reform. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
