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When the policy becomes the problem

Criminal justice in the new millennium

Rachel Bandy

University of Colorado, Boulder, USA

In this article, we document a shift in public conversations about punishment in the United States that has occurred as a result of a collision between the principles of punishment that have dominated public policy for the past three decades and the fiscal realities of the 21st century. Over the past three decades, legislators have created a conversation in which the inclusion of principles other than retribution and revenge is virtually impossible. This absence of practical considerations has led to policies that are, in many cases, outrageously expensive. During the past five years, many state governments have seen their expenses grossly outpace their revenues, leaving legislators now to face a reality in which the ‘Get Tough’ policies of the 1980s and 1990s are no longer economically sustainable. We argue that the changing fiscal situation provides a context in which the rhetoric of punishment is finally open to change, and we document some of the rhetorical shifts that occur.

Key Words: criminal justice • public policy

Punishment & Society, Vol. 9, No. 1, 5-26 (2007)
DOI: 10.1177/1462474507070548


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