Overview

In recent years European prison law and policy have emerged as a force to be reckoned with. This book explores its development and analyses the penological and human rights foundations on which it is based. It examines the findings of the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture, the recommendations of the Council of Europe, and the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights. From these sources it makes the general principles that underlie European prison law and policy explicit, emphasising the principle of using imprisonment as a last resort and the recognition of prisoners' rights. The book then moves on to apply these principles to conditions of imprisonment, regimes in prison, contacts between prisoners and the outside world, and the maintenance of good order in prisons. The final chapter of the book considers how European prison law and policy could best be advanced in future. The authors argue that the European Court of Human Rights should adopt a more proactive approach to ensuring that imprisonment is used only as a last resort, and that a more radical interpretation of the existing provisions of the European Convention on Human Rights will allow it to do so. It concludes that the growing cooperation on prison matters within Europe bodes well for the increased recognition of prisoners' rights across Europe. In spite of some countervailing voices, Europe should increasingly be able to give an international lead in a human rights approach to prison law and policy in the same way it has done with the abolition of the death penalty.

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9780199693313

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Reviews

The word magisterial is no doubt an over-, not infrequently, mis-applied one. Yet I struggle to find another adjective that covers the calm authority and breadth of experience that Van Zyl Smit and Snacken bring to bear in this text. The experience in question here refers not only to the authors' lengthy records of distinguished scholarship but also to their direct and active roles in prison reform and policy projects. * Richard Sparks, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh Law Review * Dirk van Zyl Smit and Sonja Snacken provide a precious addition to the conceptual toolbox of comparative analysis. Their book offers a broad compendium and a detailed commentary of the growing body of European law and policy in the fields of imprisonment and human rights. So far, no comprehensive work on the European penal landscape (and much less European prison systems) had appeared in the literature on punishment and society, and in this respect this book represents an invaluable source of information for scholars working on prisons and penal policies across Europe...The authors' reconstruction of recent case law, recommendations, resolution, and policy initiatives provides both a clear image of the current state of human rights throughout European prisons, and some important insights about possible future developments. * Alessandro De Giorgi, Theoretical Criminology * The analysis of specific prison and prisoner issues is thorough and lucid * Rod Morgan, University of Bristol, British Journal of Criminology Advance Access * This is an impressive, meticulously-researched and thorough text. Alongside providing a comprehensive guide to relevant statutes and case law... the book is embedded in the penological research literature and thus avoids being a narrowly-legalistic guide to the law and, instead, engages the reader in both understanding the relevant law and also its socio-legal and penological context. The book manages to combine highly-detailed scholarship with clarity of written expression and a thoughtful and critical approach. The breadth of scholarship, depth of analysis and thoughtful critique of the current law make this book an outstanding addition to the existing published literature. Overall, this is a highly significant text which addresses a complex topic and which should be essential reading for anyone interested in human rights, law, prisons and prisoners' families. * Helen Codd, The Howard Journal of Criminal Justice Vol 49 No 2, May 2010 * Dirk van Zyl Smit and Sonja Snacken provide a precious addition to the conceptual toolbox of comparative analysis. Their book offers a broad compendium and a detailed commentary of the growing body of European law and policy in the fields of imprisonment and human rights. So far, no comprehensive work on the European penal landscape (and much less European prison systems) had appeared in the literature on punishment and society, and in this respect this book represents an invaluable source of information for scholars working on prisons and penal policies across Europe...The authors' reconstruction of recent case law, recommendations, resolution, and policy initiatives provides both a clear image of the current state of human rights throughout European prisons, and some important insights about possible future developments. * Alessandro De Giorgi, Theoretical Criminology * The analysis of specific prison and prisoner issues is thorough and lucid. * Rod Morgan, University of Bristol, British Journal of Criminology Advance Access * This is an impressive, meticulously-researched and thorough text. Alongside providing a comprehensive guide to relevant statutes and case law... the book is embedded in the penological research literature and thus avoids being a narrowly-legalistic guide to the law and, instead, engages the reader in both understanding the relevant law and also its socio-legal and penological context. The book manages to combine highly-detailed scholarship with clarity of written expression and a thoughtful and critical approach. The breadth of scholarship, depth of analysis and thoughtful critique of the current law make this book an outstanding addition to the existing published literature. Overall, this is a highly significant text which addresses a complex topic and which should be essential reading for anyone interested in human rights, law, prisons and prisoners' families. * Helen Codd, The Howard Journal of Criminal Justice Vol 49 No 2, May 2010 *

This is an impressive, meticulously-researched and thorough text. Alongside providing a comprehensive guide to relevant statutes and case law... the book is embedded in the penological research literature and thus avoids being a narrowly-legalistic guide to the law and, instead, engages the reader in both understanding the relevant law and also its socio-legal and penological context. The book manages to combine highly-detailed scholarship with clarity of written expression and a thoughtful and critical approach. The breadth of scholarship, depth of analysis and thoughtful critique of the current law make this book an outstanding addition to the existing published literature. Overall, this is a highly significant text which addresses a complex topic and which should be essential reading for anyone interested in human rights, law, prisons and prisoners' families. Helen Codd, The Howard Journal of Criminal Justice Vol 49 No 2, May 2010 The analysis of specific prison and prisoner issues is thorough and lucid. Rod Morgan, University of Bristol, British Journal of Criminology Advance Access Dirk van Zyl Smit and Sonja Snacken provide a precious addition to the conceptual toolbox of comparative analysis. Their book offers a broad compendium and a detailed commentary of the growing body of European law and policy in the fields of imprisonment and human rights. So far, no comprehensive work on the European penal landscape (and much less European prison systems) had appeared in the literature on punishment and society, and in this respect this book represents an invaluable source of information for scholars working on prisons and penal policies across Europe...The authors' reconstruction of recent case law, recommendations, resolution, and policy initiatives provides both a clear image of the current state of human rights throughout European prisons, and some important insights about possible future developments. Alessandro De Giorgi, Theoretical Criminology This is an impressive, meticulously-researched and thorough text. Alongside providing a comprehensive guide to relevant statutes and case law... the book is embedded in the penological research literature and thus avoids being a narrowly-legalistic guide to the law and, instead, engages the reader in both understanding the relevant law and also its socio-legal and penological context. The book manages to combine highly-detailed scholarship with clarity of written expression and a thoughtful and critical approach. The breadth of scholarship, depth of analysis and thoughtful critique of the current law make this book an outstanding addition to the existing published literature. Overall, this is a highly significant text which addresses a complex topic and which should be essential reading for anyone interested in human rights, law, prisons and prisoners' families. Helen Codd, The Howard Journal of Criminal Justice Vol 49 No 2, May 2010 The analysis of specific prison and prisoner issues is thorough and lucid Rod Morgan, University of Bristol, British Journal of Criminology Advance Access Dirk van Zyl Smit and Sonja Snacken provide a precious addition to the conceptual toolbox of comparative analysis. Their book offers a broad compendium and a detailed commentary of the growing body of European law and policy in the fields of imprisonment and human rights. So far, no comprehensive work on the European penal landscape (and much less European prison systems) had appeared in the literature on punishment and society, and in this respect this book represents an invaluable source of information for scholars working on prisons and penal policies across Europe...The authors' reconstruction of recent case law, recommendations, resolution, and policy initiatives provides both a clear image of the current state of human rights throughout European prisons, and some important insights about possible future developments. Alessandro De Giorgi, Theoretical Criminology The word magisterial is no doubt an over-, not infrequently, mis-applied one. Yet I struggle to find another adjective that covers the calm authority and breadth of experience that Van Zyl Smit and Snacken bring to bear in this text. The experience in question here refers not only to the authors' lengthy records of distinguished scholarship but also to their direct and active roles in prison reform and policy projects. Richard Sparks, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh Law Review

Author Information

Dirk van Zyl Smit, Professor of Comparative and International Penal Law, University of Nottingham Sonja Snacken, Professor and Research Fellow, Vrije Universiteit Brussels

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