In Search of Hope in Criminal Justice: the case of elderly life-sentenced prisoners
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Manchester
Department Name: Social Sciences
Abstract
In 2013, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights delivered a judgment in the case of Vinter and others v the United Kingdom that introduced for the first time the notion of 'hope' to determine the acceptability of life sentences. Hope, in its legal form, can only be met by ensuring prisoners a real possibility of release.
Since Vinter, hope has become a topic of international political interest and propelled some academic attention in law and prison sociology. Yet the role of hope at national and local level remains elusive. As a result, a most urgent issue has been overlooked: the case of elderly life-sentenced prisoners who are the least likely to be released during their natural life. In brief, hope, when applied to the particular case of elderly life-sentenced prisoners, questions the very legitimacy of life imprisonment.
This project addresses a timely societal challenge: life sentences are dramatically increasing across the world and the global prison population is ageing at an unprecedented pace. The UK exemplifies both concerning upward trends. There are more people life sentences in England and Wales than in Germany, Russia, Italy, Poland, the Netherlands and Scandinavia combined, and nearly a third of the life-sentenced prison population are men who are aged 60 and above.
Based on research on older male prisoners sentenced to life held across three prison sites in England & Wales (phase 1), then Scotland (phase 2), the project addresses the three following research questions: (RQ1) What does hope mean in national legal discourse ? (RQ2) In the prison world, how do elderly life-sentenced men maintain or re-define hope as they progress through the prison system? (RQ3) How do prison staff give hope in practice to those most likely to be without hope?
This projects has two main goals: 1) to contribute new knowledge on the meaning and importance of hope in criminal justice as a metric for designing 'acceptable' punishment by charting the relationship between hope as law, as experiences, and as it is practised in prison; 2) to drive forward a criminological human rights agenda that reconciles abstract theory with concrete discussions of prison experiences and practices. These goals will be achieved through:
- The development a conceptual framework for hope drawing on gerontology, theology and philosophy that will inform the legal and empirical prison research (focus 1);
- The study of hope under legal discourse comprising in-depth legal documentary analysis of laws, legislative debates and court judgments (focus 2);
- An exploration of elderly life-sentenced prisoners lived experiences of hope and of prison practices aimed at giving hope through face-to-face interviews and empirical fieldwork in prison (focus 3).
The fieldwork will be conducted across three prison sites in England and Wales to best explore how experiences and practices of hope evolve at different stages of the sentence. Full support has been confirmed from senior prison management at Her Majesty's Prison Service (HMPS).
Overall, the project offers a number of ground-breaking dimensions:
- it will challenge assumptions about the legitimacy of life imprisonment with respect to the overlooked elderly life-sentenced prisoners' subgroup;
- it will bring humanitarian legal concepts into the sociology of imprisonment and insert lived realities of human rights to law studies;
- it will develop both a new conceptual frame of analysis and develop an innovative methodological roadmap for bridging law and prison sociology that will reshape and drive forward a human rights research agenda in criminology;
- it will provide a multi-level analysis of the trajectories of human rights in the criminal justice system from legal discourse to the prison world, evaluating the workings of hope in different places and phases of the sentence, and linking legal issues to the lived realities of the prison landings.
Since Vinter, hope has become a topic of international political interest and propelled some academic attention in law and prison sociology. Yet the role of hope at national and local level remains elusive. As a result, a most urgent issue has been overlooked: the case of elderly life-sentenced prisoners who are the least likely to be released during their natural life. In brief, hope, when applied to the particular case of elderly life-sentenced prisoners, questions the very legitimacy of life imprisonment.
This project addresses a timely societal challenge: life sentences are dramatically increasing across the world and the global prison population is ageing at an unprecedented pace. The UK exemplifies both concerning upward trends. There are more people life sentences in England and Wales than in Germany, Russia, Italy, Poland, the Netherlands and Scandinavia combined, and nearly a third of the life-sentenced prison population are men who are aged 60 and above.
Based on research on older male prisoners sentenced to life held across three prison sites in England & Wales (phase 1), then Scotland (phase 2), the project addresses the three following research questions: (RQ1) What does hope mean in national legal discourse ? (RQ2) In the prison world, how do elderly life-sentenced men maintain or re-define hope as they progress through the prison system? (RQ3) How do prison staff give hope in practice to those most likely to be without hope?
This projects has two main goals: 1) to contribute new knowledge on the meaning and importance of hope in criminal justice as a metric for designing 'acceptable' punishment by charting the relationship between hope as law, as experiences, and as it is practised in prison; 2) to drive forward a criminological human rights agenda that reconciles abstract theory with concrete discussions of prison experiences and practices. These goals will be achieved through:
- The development a conceptual framework for hope drawing on gerontology, theology and philosophy that will inform the legal and empirical prison research (focus 1);
- The study of hope under legal discourse comprising in-depth legal documentary analysis of laws, legislative debates and court judgments (focus 2);
- An exploration of elderly life-sentenced prisoners lived experiences of hope and of prison practices aimed at giving hope through face-to-face interviews and empirical fieldwork in prison (focus 3).
The fieldwork will be conducted across three prison sites in England and Wales to best explore how experiences and practices of hope evolve at different stages of the sentence. Full support has been confirmed from senior prison management at Her Majesty's Prison Service (HMPS).
Overall, the project offers a number of ground-breaking dimensions:
- it will challenge assumptions about the legitimacy of life imprisonment with respect to the overlooked elderly life-sentenced prisoners' subgroup;
- it will bring humanitarian legal concepts into the sociology of imprisonment and insert lived realities of human rights to law studies;
- it will develop both a new conceptual frame of analysis and develop an innovative methodological roadmap for bridging law and prison sociology that will reshape and drive forward a human rights research agenda in criminology;
- it will provide a multi-level analysis of the trajectories of human rights in the criminal justice system from legal discourse to the prison world, evaluating the workings of hope in different places and phases of the sentence, and linking legal issues to the lived realities of the prison landings.
Publications
Dagan N
(2024)
Managing the Risk of Living: Life Imprisonment, the Medical Gaze and the Construction of the Paroled Body
in The British Journal of Criminology
Vannier M
(2024)
The construction of intolerable punishments: On the value of documenting the pains of old prisoners
in Theoretical Criminology
Vannier M
(2023)
'Time's relentless melt': The severity of life imprisonment through the prism of old age
in Punishment & Society
Vannier M
(2024)
Terminal Liminality, Life Imprisonment and the Paroled Body
in The British Journal of Criminology
| Description | Significant new knowledge generated on importance of hope, sources of hope and meaning of hope. New or improved research methods or skills developed on prisoner diaries. Important new research resources identified on official data regarding older prisoners serving life sentences. Important new research questions opened up on meaningful activities in prison, on meaning of release for older prisoner and societal implications. Particularly noteworthy new research networks/collaborations/partnerships, or combinations of these developed with French research lab (CERDAP2) and Israeli researcher, Netanel Dagan Increased research capability generated from training delivered in specialist skills through multiple leadership courses in particular |
| Exploitation Route | Too early to say but can envisage already many outcomes. |
| Sectors | Communities and Social Services/Policy Government Democracy and Justice |
| Description | Have been invited to publish initial findings in the German February Journal, which is is an independent interdisciplinary journal at intersections of academic, art, and activist practices for a contribution to their special issue on 'Hope' (https://thefebruaryjournal.org/en/announcements/call-for-submissions/26) Prompted interest from MoJ.,HMPPS and prison charities on older prisoners' needs in particular |
| First Year Of Impact | 2024 |
| Sector | Government, Democracy and Justice |
| Impact Types | Societal |
| Description | Cited in prison charity report |
| Geographic Reach | Multiple continents/international |
| Policy Influence Type | Citation in other policy documents |
| Impact | Was cited in largely disseminated renowned prison charity report (referenced in National press; House of Parliament, MoJ, international charities such as Amnesty and Human Rights Watch) |
| URL | https://prisonreformtrust.org.uk/publication/growing-old-and-dying-inside/ |
| Description | Invited to collaborate with MoJ research team on older prisoners' needs |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Policy Influence Type | Participation in a guidance/advisory committee |
| Description | Invited to explain methodology before French researchers |
| Geographic Reach | Europe |
| Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
| Impact | Was introduced in large European (ERC) grant application, used in a research article presented in French national conference, invited to engage in comparative research/publications using this methodology |
| Description | Invited to the Prison Governors Association Annual committee |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Policy Influence Type | Participation in a guidance/advisory committee |
| Description | joined the Correctional Services Advice and Accreditation Panel Core Panel |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Policy Influence Type | Participation in a guidance/advisory committee |
| URL | https://apply-for-public-appointment.service.gov.uk/archive/announcements/840 |
| Title | How much hope |
| Description | developed data set to quantify hope, frequency and intensity amongst older prisoners serving life sentences. will serve as basis for publication. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2025 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | Will highlight the levels of hope across the prison estate, controlling for prison security levels, offense type and prisoners' age. Will measure frequency and intensity of hope |
| Description | Book contract for edited collection in partnership with The Prison Reform Trust |
| Organisation | Prison Reform Trust |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | With Paula Harriott from the PRT we have secured a book contract with Palgrave studies- our edited collection will be discussion Prisoner leadership and offers a new approach to collaborative writing between prison academic experts and people with lived experiences of prison |
| Collaborator Contribution | Paula Harriott is the head of the Prisoner Policy Network and has put me in touch with a range of people with prison experience to interview. |
| Impact | Book contract signed Collaboration is multidisplinary and sits at the cross roads of prison sociology, law and race theory |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Dangerous Letters Symposium - |
| Organisation | University of Manchester |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | I have set up a symposium committee to organise an event around dangerous letters, including high profile criminal Myra Hindley. The members of this group come from different departments at the University of Manchester I have set up meetings, organised viewing of archived letters, discussed keynote speakers, proposed event structure and content. |
| Collaborator Contribution | They attend each meeting, have contributed ideas around the event's structure, focus, on the place to give to the Myra Hindley Letters and keynote speakers. |
| Impact | - consulted on the purchase of high profile letters of Myra Hindley by the Department of Criminology - organised viewing of these high profile letters in special collections archives - organised multidisciplinary meetings with other symposium committee members |
| Start Year | 2023 |
| Description | Manchester Urban Ageing Research Group (MUARG) |
| Organisation | University of Manchester |
| Department | Manchester Urban Institute |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | I have joined the MUARG research center and attend their seminar series on aging. This has allowed me to get in touch with Prof. Chris Phillispon who is an expert on aging and has recommended readings, studies and made e-introductions with other experts in gerontology. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The MUARG center has showcased my projet on aging in prison and dissiminated my recent publication on aging and the severity of life imprisonment on their webpage |
| Impact | It is a multidisciplinary collaboration, bringing together gerontology and criminology. |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Ministry of Justice |
| Organisation | Ministry of Justice |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Public |
| PI Contribution | Meeting, discussion, sharing findings. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Meeting, discussion,asked we share findings and publications and meet up regularly to discuss potentially setting up a framework for older prisoners |
| Impact | Started discussing importance of setting up a older prisoner framework- |
| Start Year | 2024 |
| Description | Presentation of early findings |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | Presented early findings to the House of Commons, Justice Committee - sparked questions and discussion about hope and the issue of aging in prison. Committee members invited both PI and RA to share any published findings and to keep House of Commons Committee informed as project dissemination developed. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Presentation of early findings |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | Presented early findings to the Evidence team at HMPPs - sparked questions and discussion about hope and the issue of aging in prison. HMPPS member invited both PI and RA to join expert panel to advise HMPPS |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Presentation of early findings and recommendations |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | Presented early findings, in particular on meaningful activities for older prisoners to the MoJ research team. Sparked questions on how to develop best practice and invitation to further collaborate on nation-wide policy. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Presentation of innovative methodology used in fieldwork |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Presented prisoner diaries as a new methodology to conduct prison research before school of social sciences researchers. Sparked questions on how to generalise and transfer method. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Presentation of research on older prisoners in England and Wales |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | Invited to present findings and research at event organised at the School of Law and Sciences Politiques in Grenoble (France) - I? invited by Director of Penitenticiary Jean Charles Froment, policy actors and research groups 'Groupe de recherche et d'information sur la peine, federation des associations reflexion-actions prison et justice. (January 2025) |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2025 |
| Description | Presented early findings, methodology and approach |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Presented research project, early findings and explained prisoner diaries as a new methodology to conduct prison research at University of Grenoble (France) and Political Institute (Grenoble) international event. Sparked questions and invitations to develop further cross-cultural partnerships (France, Belgium and Japan) |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |