Revisiting Justice - The Moral Meaning of Parole

Expanding the boundaries of the 'moral turn' in criminology to the realm of punishment administration, this Element proposes reconceptualizing parole through a moral lens. Drawing from a mixed-method study of parole hearings for homicide cases in Israel, the author argues that during parole hearings, parole actors (Attorney General representatives, secondary victims, parole applicants, and parole board members) conduct complex forms of moral labor, specifically retributive-oriented. This moral labor goes beyond rehabilitation and risk assessment to 'do late justice.' In doing such moral labor, parole actors negotiate the moral meaning of crime, character, and deserved punishment with the passage of time. In conclusion, as demonstrated by the current study, Criminologists should engage to a greater extent with the moral meaning of punishment administration, and retributive theorists should aim to better understand the lived experiences of punishment.

List of contents

1. Introduction; 2. Re-theorizing parole; 3. Context, data, and analysis; 4. The moral landscape of parole: quantitative findings; 5. The moral theatre of parole: qualitative findings; 6. Revisiting justice: discussing the moral meaning of parole; 7. Conclusion; References.

Product details

• Authors: Netanel Dagan, Netanel (The Hebrew University of Jerusalem Dagan
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press ELT
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Release: 31.01.2026
• EAN: 9781009587723
• ISBN: 978-1-0-0958772-3
• No. of pages: 75
• Series: Elements in Criminology
• Subjects: Natural sciences, medicine, IT, technology > IT, data processing > General, dictionaries; Social sciences, law, business > Law > Criminal law, criminal procedural law, criminology; SOCIAL SCIENCE / Criminology, Crime & criminology, Penology and punishment, Penology & punishment, Data analysis: general, Probation services, Violent crimes, Data science and analysis