The UK Ministry of Justice says prisoners do not have an automatic right to have books. They need incentives as part of their rehabilitation and should earn privileges, including the right to buy books from the outside the prison. Preventing parcels of books from being sent in gives prison authorities more control. “Good behavior is […]
Today we discussed Poe’s dark tale, “A Cask of Amontillado.” The men were especially interested in the idea of being walled-up (imprisoned) as a sadistic form of punishment totally out of proportion to the original (possibly imaginary) “insult.” Of the protagonist Montresor, Mr. Fitzgerald wrote, “he reminds me of some DC and Baltimore killers a […]
Mr. C Doyle on Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Tell Tale Heart”: I liked the story, wish it has been longer. I also liked Poe, and his style of insanity. As soon as I read the line, “I loved the old man,” I knew he was going to die! It was strange how I seemed to […]
Our discussion of Jekyll and Hyde turned out to be very thoughtful, even though a couple of the men were absent (ie. in lockup). This is unfortunate, because when things keep changing, when a routine is constantly broken, it can seem unreal, and anyone who experiences it that way is going to feel isolated from […]
I’m a little behind on my postings… but here’s an update on the men’s first encounter with Stevenson’s The Strange Tale of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde. I warned the men that this short novella would be very different from the story we all think we know—that of the upright Victorian gentleman and his evil […]
Joshua Miller, one of our long-time instructors in the program, has been moving through the application process for the Open Society Institute – Baltimore Community Fellowships program (to support our work at JCI). Yesterday he received word that he has made it through the first round, and is being invited to submit a full proposal. […]
Continuing with my long-overdue posting of student writing from last summer’s class, here is part I of Mr. Shabazz’ reflections on crime, race, and class (he was kind enough to break this up into two parts in his letter to me, so I will be posting part II soon). Mr. Shabazz and I had some […]
It was a great pleasure to be in the company of you and the students. It’s refreshing to be able to let your hair down and just get to know people from the outside. But in prison you always have to be prepared for anything, so it was nice to feel like you were free…As […]
Visit the criminal justice class page to see examples of students group projects.
Our talented artist Renaissanz Rzen will be having a one-man show at the Rosenberg Gallery, Brown Center, Maryland Institute College of Art in the first week of October 2014. Stay tuned for more details! “Now and Later,” 24″x30″ acrylic on canvas.