Discretionary Justiceis an engrossing book. All academic libraries in New York should have a copy of this book, and academic libraries in other states with patrons interested in the history of criminal justice should consider having a copy as well.
Law Library Journal
Exploiting a wide range of new sources, this original and innovative book illuminates the importance of the criminal law to race, gender, and social and political power in America from an entirely new perspective. It puts the spotlight on prison reform and capital punishment at the state level in the most important jurisdiction in the country. An invaluable contribution to understanding the complex history of criminal law andpunishment over 150 years.
Douglas C. Hay,Professor Emeritus, York University For good reason, issues of criminal law and criminal justice in the United States recently have become a subject of both popular and academic interest. While scholars of law and history have done much to explore the problems and perspectives in the past that have helped give rise to the workings of criminal justice in the present, much more needs to be done, particularly in the less familiar areas of criminal law, like pardon and parole. This book offers a welcome exploration of how and why New York state handled those less visible aspects of criminal law up through the first decades of the twentieth century. In the process of unpacking New Yorks pardon and parole systems, it helps us understand the nature of discretionary justice and the ways in which law and politics could and did intersect.
Elizabeth Dale,Professor, Department of History & Levin College of Law, University of Florida This book offers a wonderful history of pardon and parole and, at the same time, a sophisticated analysis of discretionary justice. I know of no other book like it. Focusing on the state of New York, it is a pleasure to read. Scholars interested in understanding the complexities of pardon and parole and the rise of the administrative state will find this book to be an invaluable resource.
Austin Sarat,Amherst College