Rethinking Sentencing: A Contribution to the Debate - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0715143395 ISBN 13: 9780715143391

Publisher: Church House Publishing, 2012

Synopsis

Church of England's Mission and Public Affairs Council. At a time when the Government is engaged in major reform of the courts, what should be our response, as Christians, to crime? This topical exploration aims to step back from the debate on prisons and crime rates and ask why people are punished, for what purpose and how the experience of being subject to trial affects their citizenship and ability to be part of a community. Written by those who are both Christians and national experts in their field, this collection of essays particularly considers: ■ the reform of sentencing and the future of the criminal courts; ■ the principles of restorative justice and responsible sentencing; ■ Christian involvement in the criminal justice process, whether individually or as a community. This timely contribution to the debate calls for a fundamental reassessment of the sentencing process and argues that the Christian faith provides a new vision for the future of criminal justice: through redemption and reconciliation rather than retribution and punishment.

About this title

Review

'Rethinking Sentencing is a thoughtful, insightful and refreshing contribution to penal thinking. The authors demonstrate convincingly that Christian principles require a radically different approach to sentencing, one based on restoring the damage caused by crime and respecting the hunanity of all those affected by it.' (Paul Cavadino, Chief Executive, Nacro)

'This thoughtful collection of essays not only brings a Christian perspective to bear on the highly charged subject of sentencing, but raises a wide range of profound questions about how society deals with offenders. It will be of great interest to all those who work in, study, or worry about criminal justice.' (Rob Allen, Director, Rethinking Crime and Punishment)

About the Author

Peter Sedgwick was the Policy Officer for the Home Affairs department in the Church of England from 1996 to 2004. He is one of the Church's leading experts on the criminal justice system. He is now principal of St Michaels College, Llandaff, Wales. All the other contributors also have backgrounds in criminal justice.

Edition details

• Publisher: Church House Publishing
• Publication date: 2012
• ISBN 10: 0715143395
• ISBN 13: 9780715143391
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 96
• Editor: Sedgwick Peter