The Prison Journal

A trauma framework is applied to the experiences of execution team members. A directed content analysis of three seminal publications is used to investigate how execution team members respond to observing and participating in executions, a potentially traumatic stressor. Through these texts, supplemented by other research, the study finds that the execution process, meant to facilitate executions and insulate execution team officers from stress, only partially achieves these goals. The findings suggest that many of the concepts central to understanding executioners at work—how they understand and cope with their roles—are dynamic rather than static and vary in degree across persons and situations. Execution team officers report varying degrees of difficulty fully rationalizing and diffusing responsibility for their actions, ultimately leading to internal conflict and stress about the death penalty and participation in executions.

Adults in custody (AICs) in a prison labor program experience conflicting messages and feelings of shame and dignity. Despite the program’s mission to help ease reentry, experiences of shame and shaming from correctional officers (COs) and the community may be setting AICs up for an increased likelihood of reoffending upon release. Using the concepts of shame and dignity, 21 program interviewee narratives were explored for their insights. Program improvements and recommendations for interventions with correctional officers, AICs, and the community are offered.

The majority of reentry studies focus on identifying different dimensions of reentry needs among released prisoners. Less explored is the mechanism by which unfulfilled reentry needs cause reentry failure. Applying the general strain theoretical perspective, this study aims to use an emotional and psychological prism to explain why released prisoners are likely to experience reentry failure when their reentry needs are not met. Findings demonstrate that the strains from financial difficulty and family neglect are positively associated with post-release criminal propensity, and depression noticeably mediated the effects of strains. Implications for correctional policymaking and future research are discussed.

Prior criminal record is routinely cited as one of the primary determinants of sentencing, and the common view is that prior record was a leading factor in non-guidelines jurisdictions going back decades. Yet, recent findings from a non-guidelines state failed to conform to this account. This study uses interviews with judges from a non-guidelines state to understand the role of prior record in sentencing in an unstructured sentencing state. This study also reexamines some of the early sentencing guidelines formation literature and finds some indications that pre-guidelines, prior record was not universally an instrumental predictor of sentence length.

The purpose of the study was to identify the factors that delay the granting of early release to prisoners who are eligible for early release according to the Israeli law. The study is based on participatory observations of parole board hearings, interviews with parole board members, and content analysis of protocols of parole boards and legal rulings. The main factors identified in delaying release are related to the numerous postponements of hearings and delays in receiving documents from relevant parties. These factors are discussed in detail, offering recommendation for improvement and thus increasing the number of early releases.

Over 600,000 individuals return to United States communities from prison each year. Transportation has been identified as a major barrier to successful reentry. Applying qualitative interpretive meta-synthesis to achieve a deep understanding of reentry transportation obstacles, 11 articles with 362 male and female participants were identified. Two themes emerged from our analysis: (1) “Transportation connects complex obligations,” highlighting the critical role that transportation plays in the successful navigation of post-release conditions; and (2) “Transportation deficiencies exacerbate vulnerability,” revealing how transportation factors intertwine with structural issues to increase precarity.