Missing the Punitive Turn? Canadian Criminal Justice, 'Balance' and Penal Modernism
THE NEW PUNITIVENESS: TRENDS, THEORIES, PERSPECTIVES, pp. 201-207, J. Pratt and D. Brown, et al., eds., Willan Publishing, 2005
30 Pages Posted: 22 Sep 2009 Last revised: 25 Jan 2010
Date Written: September 17, 2009
Abstract
While it is now conventional criminology to accept the argument that there has been a global shift toward increasing punitiveness in criminal justice sentencing, Canada does not conform with this trend. There has been very little change in such a direction in the past 20 years, even though there has been a succession of liberal and conservative governments at the federal level. In part, this is attributable to the general preservation of a welfare state and its associated ideologies. It is also significant that a theme of 'balance' has been prominent in criminal justice since the 1970s. In addition, the particular political position of Canada vis-a-vis the United States leads to many adverse comparisons with American justice theory and practice.
Keywords: punishment, criminology, punitiveness, Canada, criminal justice, control
JEL Classification: K10, K14, K30
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation