Every year millions of families are affected by the imprisonment of a family member. Children of imprisoned parents alone can be counted in millions in the USA and in Europe. It is a bewildering fact that while we have had prisons for centuries, and the deprivation of liberty has been a central pillar in the Western mode of punishment since the early nineteenth century, we have only relatively recently embarked upon a serious discussion of the severe effects of imprisonment for the families and relatives of offenders and the implications this has for society. This book draws together some of the excellent research that addresses the impact of criminal justice and incarceration in particular upon the families of offenders. It assembles examples of recent and ongoing studies from eight different countries in order to not only learn about the secondary effects and 'collateral consequences' of imprisonment but also to understand what the experiences and lived realities of prisoners' families means for the sociology of punishment and our broader understanding of criminal justice systems. While punishment and society scholarship has gained significant ground in recent years it has often remained silent on the ways in which the families of prisoners are affected by our practices of punishment. This book provides evidence of the importance of including families within this scholarship and explores themes of legitimacy, citizenship, human rights, marginalization, exclusion, and inequality.

Specialists in criminal justice are the authors and will be the audience for this group of essays on the tougher questions raised by the present American corrections system. The topics discussed include jailed fathers, prison and jail boot camps, the effect of street gangs on juvenile correctional facilities, a participant observer's insights on adult prison violence, INS detention centers and allegations of human rights abuses, and community response to new jail construction. Gido teaches criminal justice at Indiana U. of Pennsylvania; Alleman, deceased, taught at The Pennsylvania State U. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR.

A spatial view of punishment -- The urban model -- Small cities and mass incarceration -- Social services beyond the city : isolation and regional inequity -- Race and communities of pervasive incarceration -- Punishing places -- Beyond punishing places : a research and reform agenda -- Appendix : data and methodology.

Resource added for the Criminal Justice – Law Enforcement 105046 and Professional Studies 105045 programs.

-The book's final chapter examines possible future imporvements in correctional policies and practices. --Book Jacket.