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Copyright of Hungarian Law Enforcement / Magyar Rendészet is the property of National University of Public Service and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Drawing on Snyder's 'hope theory' as a conceptual framework, this article examines the hope narratives of men and women at the 'late stage' of a life sentence. The article aims to bridge the existing gap between jurisprudence and sociological accounts on hope and life imprisonment by extending this debate to men and women serving reducible life sentences in England and Wales, for whom release is not guaranteed but assumed to be attainable. Through focusing on the individual ways in which the spectre and procedural elements of release shape narratives of hope and hopelessness, this article agrees with Vannier that recent human rights debates have fallen short in terms of subjectively understanding the complex relationship between 'hope' and 'release' for life-sentenced prisoners. It concludes by highlighting the necessity of procedural legitimacy in reducing uncertainty and promoting and maintaining hope among this group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the experiences and impact of long-term imprisonment on the lives of women sentenced to lengthy periods of incarceration (serving at least one sentence of 10 years or more) in the mid- to late-19th century in England and Wales. While most female offenders who were thought to warrant imprisonment in the Victorian period resulted then and today, in short prison sentences, this article focuses upon a smaller group of 41 women, who were subject to longer terms of penal servitude for serious or recidivist offending. This group was a combination of repeat property offenders, whose sentences got longer as they were multiply reconvicted, and those women committed under a long sentence for one serious act, usually of violence. Using ‘whole life’ history methodology, this article explores the offending and impact of imprisonment on these women’s lives, their experiences inside prison, and where possible their lives after release. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores how men serving mandatory life sentences in England and Wales anticipate life after release and the imposition of a life licence. It reports the various ways that lifers feared licencing as being exceedingly 'tight' and restrictive, sometimes resulting in them retreating from release altogether. At the same time, some participants reported a motivation to embrace the 'tightness' of their impending licence conditions, and use penal power as a means of structuring life on release. Whether they resisted or embraced penal intervention, all participants altered their aspirations to what seemed achievable upon release when subject to numerous conditions. Specifically, the article argues that the anticipation of a particular mode of penal power has a material effect on lifers' approach to release. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Annual of the Faculty of Law / Godišnjak Fakulteta Pravnih Nauka is the property of Pan-European University Apeiron and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Knowledge: International Journal is the property of Institute for Knowledge Management and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In the paper, the authors investigated and presented a comparative analysis of criminal legislation reform, in relation to the sentence of imprisonment in Croatia and Serbia. Although both Croatia and Serbia are obliged to harmonize their criminal legislation with EU legislation and international documents, we see that the solution of their legislators considerably different. With the new amendments to the Criminal Code of the Republic of Serbia in 2019, the so-called Tiana's law, effective from December 1 last year, imposed a sentence of life imprisonment, which has met with fierce controversy in scientific and professional circles. Life imprisonment included until then the maximum prison sentence of 30 to 40 years in prison. On the other hand, the Croatian Criminal Code in its provisions prescribe long-term imprisonment which may not be shorter than twenty-one or longer than forty years, since it was introduced life imprisonment novels of the Criminal Code of 2003 did not survive. We also find a distinction between the sentence of prison between legal provisions of the Criminal Code of Serbia and the Criminal Code of Croatia. The minimum sentence of imprisonment that can be imposed on a convicted person according to the Criminal Code of Serbia is thirty days and the maximum sentence of imprisonment is twenty years in prison. In relation to Croatian Criminal Code, the distinction is reflected in the special minimum of the legal provision for sentence of imprisonment, which, according to the criminal legislation of the Republic of Croatia, cannot be less than three months, which means that the special minimum for the sentence of imprisonment is three times higher in Croatia than in Serbia. In addition to an analysis of the legal provisions of the criminal legislation of Croatia and Serbia relating to the imposition of imprisonment, the possible proposals that should be taken into account are outlined. The paper also examines convictions that have imposed prison sentences in Croatia and Serbia, and provides a comparative analysis and presentation of the sentences imposed is given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Annual of the Faculty of Law / Godišnjak Fakulteta Pravnih Nauka is the property of Pan-European University Apeiron and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The central purpose of the article is to explore the psychic components of the early pains of imprisonment described by male and female prisoners serving very long mandatory life sentences for murder. While there is a strong tradition of documenting prisoners’ adaptations to ‘life inside’, little work in prisons sociology explores how life-sentenced prisoners, specifically those convicted of murder, reactively respond and adjust to the early years of these sentences. Having outlined prisoners’ descriptions of entry shock, temporal vertigo and intrusive recollections, we draw upon a Freudian terminology of ‘defence mechanisms of the ego’ to argue that suppression, denial and sublimation represent key ways of ‘defending against’ (rather than ‘adapting to’) these experiences. We suggest that the particular offence–time nexus of our sample—the specific offence of murder combined with a very long sentence—helps to explain these defensive patterns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given the increasing number of prisoners serving life sentences in England and Wales, and the increasing average length of these sentences, it is surprising that so little attention has been paid to the experiences and effects of such sanctions. This article describes how prisoners serving very long sentences from an early age adapt over time to their circumstances. In particular, it focuses on the transition between the early and subsequent stages of such sentences, specifically, the ways that these prisoners adapt to the sentence, manage time, come to terms with their offense, shift their conception of control, make their sentence constructive, and find wider meaning in and from their predicament. Our argument is that most prisoners demonstrate a shift from a form of agency that is reactive to one that is productive, as they learn to “swim with”, rather than against, the tide of their situation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing on an amended version of a survey employed in three previous studies, this article reports the problems experienced by 294 male prisoners serving very long life sentences received when aged 25 or under. The broad findings are consistent with previous work, including few differences being found between the problems experienced as most and least severe by prisoners at different sentence stages. By grouping the problems into conceptual dimensions, and by drawing on interviews conducted with 126 male prisoners, we seek to provide a more nuanced analysis of this pattern. We argue that, while earlier scholars concluded that the effects of long-term confinement were not 'cumulative' and 'deleterious', adaptation to long-term imprisonment has a deep and profound impact on the prisoner, so that the process of coping leads to fundamental changes in the self, which go far beyond the attitudinal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to explore supposed inevitable personal decline for long-term prisoners, particularly those serving a sentence of life without parole. Design/methodology/approach - Using the prison records of a life without parole sentenced prisoner. Findings - Findings suggest that prisoner deterioration is not inevitable in a whole life prison sentence. Research limitations/implications - Findings are based on one account, of a female prisoner. Practical implications - Distinct services and support are required for those with a natural life prison sentence. Originality/value - To date, there is limited research of prisoners serving life without parole, particularly the mental health implications of denying a prisoner future parole. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous research has found commonality in the pains of imprisonment reported by English and American long-term inmates. Using a triangulated research methodology, this study examined the hardships associated with permanent incarceration as reported by 18 older male inmates serving a sentence of life without the possibility of parole. Strong agreement existed between the present sample and previous samples as to the most and least difficult aspects of imprisonment. Consistent with the previous studies, outside problems were perceived as being more severe than inside problems. Overall, this study found agreement in the pains of long-term imprisonment, regardless of the exact length or type of sentence. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The impact of long term imprisonment has been well documented. However, much of this research has taken place in jurisdictions other than the Republic of Ireland and focused on the psychological changes that occur during long term incarceration. This study focuses on coping amongst a small number of prisoners serving life sentences in a prison in the Republic of Ireland. In the Republic of Ireland, there are no specific programmes designed to meet the needs of life sentence prisoners in custody. Once sentenced, prisoners must simply adapt and come to terms with the indeterminate sentence. In recent years, there has been a sharp rise in the number of people being sentenced to life imprisonment. It is therefore timely that attention is paid to the issue of coping amongst this group of prisoners. The study identifies the factors that support coping among life sentence prisoners currently serving sentences in Ireland. The study also highlights a number of flaws inherent within the current system for managing life sentence prisoners in Ireland. It argues that the importance of providing support services to life sentence prisoners should not be underestimated given the gravity of the offending behaviour, the impact on victims and the consequences for society in general. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Forensische Psychiatrie, Psychologie, Kriminologie is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Monatsschrift fuer Kriminologie und Strafrechtsreform is the property of De Gruyter and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The average long-term prisoner's risk of reoffending diminishes with age, in part because some prisoners experience significant maturation and undergo substantial and relevant personality change. This process can be supported by prison staff through the sponsorship of activities and programming designed to promote personal development. Prisoner-release decisions that emphasize offense-related information can take greater account of prisoners' efforts and achievements in confinement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Canadian Journal of Law & Society/Revue Canadienne Droit et Societe (University of Toronto Press) is the property of University of Toronto Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Qualitative data offer rich insights into the social world, whether alone or in tandem with statistical analysis. However, qualitative data are costly to collect and analyse. Moreover, it is a commonplace that only a portion of the data so labouriously collected is the subject of final analysis and publication. Secondary analysis is a well-established method in quantitative research and is raising its profile in application to qualitative data. It has a particular part to play when research is on sensitive topics and/or hard-to-reach populations, as in the example considered here. This article contributes to discussion of the potential and constraints of secondary analysis of qualitative data by reporting the outcome of the secondary analysis of a key study in the sociology of prison life, Cohen and Taylor's research on the long-term imprisonment of men in maximum security. The article re-visits Cohen and Taylor's original analysis and demonstrates support for an alternative, if complementary, conceptualisation, using archived data from the original study. Among the methodological issues discussed are the recovery of the context of the original fieldwork and the role of secondary analysis in an incremental approach to knowledge production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Qualitative data offer rich insights into the social world, whether alone or in tandem with statistical analysis. However, qualitative data are costly to collect and analyse. Moreover, it is a commonplace that only a portion of the data so labouriously collected is the subject of final analysis and publication. Secondary analysis is a well-established method in quantitative research and is raising its profile in application to qualitative data. It has a particular part to play when research is on sensitive topics and/or hard-to-reach populations, as in the example considered here. This article contributes to discussion of the potential and constraints of secondary analysis of qualitative data by reporting the outcome of the secondary analysis of a key study in the sociology of prison life, Cohen and Taylor's research on the long-term imprisonment of men in maximum security. The article re-visits Cohen and Taylor's original analysis and demonstrates support for an alternative, if complementary, conceptualisation, using archived data from the original study. Among the methodological issues discussed are the recovery of the context of the original fieldwork and the role of secondary analysis in an incremental approach to knowledge production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]