BEN'S PRISON BLOG - Lifer On The Loose

The first blog by a British prisoner. Variously described as being "obviously extremely intelligent" (Michael Gove), "the most interesting interview I have ever done" (Michael Portillo), and a "fully paid up member of the awkward squad" (Parole Board), I try to generate debate around the moral and political nexus that is imprisonment. Imprisoned between ages 14 to 47, released on Licence in August 2012

Showing posts with label restorative justice. Show all posts

Monday, October 24, 2011

Why Decency Matters

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There are those who will attack and denigrate prisoners at all costs and at every opportunity. Some such people occasionally leave comments...

5 comments:

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Scales of Justice

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A recent murder trial raised the issue of whether victims should be forced to have their evidence tested via cross-examination by the defenc...

9 comments:

Friday, December 17, 2010

"Whither Victims?"

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Here is the problem. The criminal justice system is designed to be largely impersonal, magisterial and impartial. Crimes are prosecuted as b...

3 comments:

Friday, August 6, 2010

Restorative Justice

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The Big Problem with the criminal justice system is that it is firmly wedded to the idea of causing mutual harm - you hurt me, so I hurt you...

5 comments:

Saturday, December 5, 2009

The Death Penalty

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It is a strange feeling, writing this whilst knowing that there are people out there who would like to see me killed. Nothing personal, I...

8 comments:

Thursday, September 10, 2009

Bloody Victims

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Victims of crime can be a right pain. Not a popular view amongst the masses, I appreciate, but then you need a dose of reality thrown in ...

4 comments:

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About Me

prisonerben: United Kingdom; Previously known as "one of Britain's best known prisoners...he constantly questions authority and exposes the futility of the system" The Times, Ben was finally released from prison after 32 years in August 2012. Pleading guilty to the murder of a friend when he was 14 years old, he renounced violence and fought for the recognition of the inherent dignity of all human beings. As a result of speaking truth to power, he served far longer than the recommended 10 years, leading Education Secretary Michael Gove to argue that he had "been punished excessively for a crime committed as a child". One of the more intellectual of prisoner-campaigners, Ben chose to educate himself from schoolboy level to having both undergraduate and post graduate degrees. He is currently one of very few prisoners in Britain ever to attempt a Doctorate. Ben's speciality is non-violent action and the Human Needs Theory. Now on Life Licence, He is forging a career as a CJ policy consultant, writer and - as ever - campaigner.

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