The machinery of criminal justice

Abstract

Author Biography Acknowledgements Introduction: The Divergence of Theory, Reality, and Morality Overview of the Book Themes of the Book Chapter I: The Long Drift from Morality Play to Assembly Line A. Criminal Justice in the Early American Colonies 1. Small-Town Morality 2. Lay Justice 3. Room for Mercy 4. Reintegrative Punishment B. Criminal Justice Since the American Revolution 1. The Changing Aims of Criminal Justice 2. Professionalization 3. The Birth of Plea Bargaining 4. The Hiding of Punishment Behind Prison Walls 5. The Decline of Mercy Chapter II: Opaque, Unresponsive Criminal Justice A. The Players 1. Dominant Insiders, Savvy and Self-Interested 2. Excluded Outsiders, Yearning for Justice B. The Play of the Game 1. Round One: Insiders' Procedural Discretion Shapes the Rules in Action 2. Round Two: Outsiders Try to Check Insiders 3. Round Three: Insiders' Procedural Discretion Undercuts Reforms 4. Round Four: Outsiders, Egged on by Politicians, Take Matters into Their Own Hands 5. Round Five: Insiders Circumvent Even Reforms C. Costs of the Game 1. Clouding the Criminal Law's Substantive Message and Effectiveness 2. Undermining Legitimacy and Trust 3. Hindering Public Monitoring and Preferences D. Defense Lawyers and Defendants' Distrust 1. Insider Defense Counsel's Interests and Pressures 2. Defendants' Overoptimism and Risk-Taking 3. Miscommunication, Mistrust, and Timing Chapter III: Denial, Remorse, Apology, and Forgiveness A. Denial and Equivocation 1. The Use of Pleas by Defendants in Denial 2. The Danger of Convicting the Innocent 3. The Costs of False Denial and the Value of Confession 4. The Value of Trials as Morality Plays B. Remorse, Apology, and Forgiveness 1. The Irrelevance of Remorse and Apology in Contemporary Criminal Justice 2. Crime as a Relational Concept 3. Lessons from Noncriminal Contexts: Civil Mediation Chapter IV: Whose Voices Belong in Criminal Justice? A. The State's Monopoly on Criminal Justice B. Incomplete Alternatives to the State's Assembly Line 1. Victims' Rights 2. Restorative Justice 3. Therapeutic Jurisprudence and Problem-Solving Courts Chapter V: Popular Moral Discourse Versus Assembly-Line Efficiency A. Efficiency Instead of Moral Judgment B. Why Not Address Substantive Moral Goals? Chapter VI: Returning Power to the Public in a Lawyer-Driven System A. Macro-Level Reforms 1. From Idle Imprisonment to Work, Accountability, and Reform 2. Collateral Consequences and Reentry B. Mid-Level Reforms to Include the Public 1. Greater Transparency 2. Increasing Public Participation C. Micro-Level Solutions 1. Victim Information and Consultation 2. Defendants' Information and Participation 3. Restorative Sentencing Juries