1st Edition
Prisoner Resettlement in Europe
Questions regarding how to improve the transitional phase from prison to life in society after release have gained major importance in the last decade in criminal policy. All over the world release preparation and resettlement practice are discussed with the aim to reduce negative effects of imprisonment and re-offending rates. Small and large reforms aiming at the improvement of release processes and reintegration strategies have taken place in many European states.
This book describes the current European landscape of prisoner resettlement and brings together the results and ideas of leading European academic experts with the ambition of furthering national, European and international reform debates. This book presents national reports about resettlement processes and structures in 20 European countries: written by national scholars, these reports reveal important actors in resettlement processes as well as political decisions about the role of the communities in "taking the prisoners back", or the use of early release as a strategy to motivate the released prisoner to enter into a future without crime. Thematic chapters then concentrate on several aspects of prisoner resettlement that are of importance across borders: ethical, legal and practical challenges are discussed with a view on European developments, and theoretical frameworks of prisoner resettlement are used to develop comprehensive perspectives for future reform debates.
The book serves as a fundamental source for researchers, politicians and practitioners in the field of prison and probation reform and practice. It is also useful in the field of social work, in so far that the analyses confirm that prisoner resettlement is not just a problem of criminal, but also of social justice. Sustainable reforms need the will of and good cooperation between all responsible actors and organizations from the justice, social, health and welfare sectors, as well as from society as a whole in the consent for taking released prisoners back.
Part I: Introduction
Introduction (Frieder Dünkel, Ineke Pruin, Anette Stoorgard and Jonas Weber)
Part II: Country Reports
2.1 Prisoner resettlement in Austria – A supportive approach (Karin Bruckmüller)
2.2 Prisoner resettlement in Belgium: Also a responsibility of the civil society (Veerle Scheirs and Kristel Beyens)
2.3 Prisoner resettlement in the Czech Republic (Jana Hulmáková)
2.4 Resettlement of prisoners in a Danish context (Anette Storgaard)
2.5 Prisoner resettlement in England and Wales (Nicola Padfield)
2.6 Prisoner resettlement in Finland (Tapio Lappi-Seppälä)
2.7 Managerialism, ‘get off your butts’ and de facto not-for-profit privatisation in prisoner resettlement in France (Martine Herzog-Evans)
2.8 Prisoner resettlement in Germany: Regional disparities of the constitutional aim of social reintegration (Ineke Pruin)
2.9 Resettlement theory and practice in Greece: Advancements and stasis (Maria Anagnostaki)
2.10 Prisoner resettlement in Hungary (Anita Nagy and Dávid Vig)
2.11 Framework legislation on prisoners' resettlement in Italy (Luisa Ravagnani and Nicoletta Policek)
2.12 Prisoner resettlement in Lithuania – Between Soviet tradition and challenges of modern society (Gintautas Sakalauskas)
2.13 Prisoner resettlement in the Netherlands: Great initiatives for too little people (Miranda Boone and Jolande uit Beijerse)
2.14 Offender resettlement in Norway: Positive principles – challenging practices (Berit Johnsen and Inger Marie Fridhov)
2.15 Brutal release: Resettlement in Romania – a case study (Ioan Durnescu)
2.16 Prisoner resettlement in Scotland (Gill McIvor, Hannah Graham and Fergus McNeill)
2.17 Prisoner resettlement in Slovenia (Danijela Mrhar Prelic)
2.18 Prisoner resettlement in Spain – Good practices for early-released prisoners and prisoners lost in transition that fully serve their sentence (José Cid and Aina Ibàñez)
2.19 Prisoner resettlement in Sweden (Anders Persson and Kerstin Svensson)
2.20 Prisoner resettlement in Switzerland: Diverse approaches of a common aim (Jonas Weber)
Part III: Comparative Analyses
3.1 Resettlement, reintegration and desistance in Europe (Fergus McNeill and Hannah Graham)
3.2 The legal framework for prisoner resettlement and the preparation for release in prison (Frieder Dünkel and Jonas Weber)
3.3 Early Release, probation and collateral consequences directives after release – legal conditions and practice (Frieder Dünkel and Jonas Weber)
3.4 Prisons, probation and aftercare services: actors, responsibilities, and cooperation in resettlement processes (Ineke Pruin)
3.5 Women and resettlement in Europe (Gill McIvor)
Part IV: Conclusion
Comparable aims and different approaches: Prisoner resettlement in Europe – Concluding remarks (Frieder Dünkel, Ineke Pruin, Anette Stoorgard and Jonas Weber)
Index
Biography
Frieder Dünkel is Professor Emeritus at the Department of Criminology at the University of Greifswald, Germany.
Ineke Pruin is Assistant Professor at the Department for Criminal Law and Criminology at the University of Bern, Switzerland.
Anette Storgaard is Professor of Criminology and Penology at the Law Department at the University of Aarhus, Denmark.
Jonas Weber is Assistant Professor at the Department for Criminal Law and Criminology at the University of Bern, Switzerland.
