1 Prisoners' rights: from social death to citizenship 1
Introduction 1
The significance of prisoners' rights 5
Taking rights seriously 9
Terrorism and insecurity 11
Prisoners as citizens 14
Prisoners as non-citizens 20
Conclusions 25
2 The historical development of prisoners' rights: rights versus discretion 26
Introduction 26
The prisoners' rights movement in the UK 27
Residual rights 29
Judicial review 31
Prisoners' rights litigation in the United States 35
The evolution of prisoners' rights in the Netherlands 45
Conclusions 48
3 The increasing importance of international human rights law and standards 49
Introduction 49
The United Nations Declaration of Human Rights 51
The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights 52
The UN Convention against Torture 53
The European Prison Rules 54
The European Committee for the Prevention of Torture 56
The European Convention on Human Rights 60
Conclusions 68
4 Prison conditions 69
Introduction 69
Deaths in custody 71
Torture 73
Inhuman and degrading treatment 74
Work, training and education 85
Prison conditions in the Netherlands 87
Prison conditions in the United States 97
Conclusions 109
5 Procedural justice 111
Introduction 111
Sentence length 114
Challenging indeterminate sentences 115
Mandatory life sentences 121
Terrorist offences 123
Access to the courts 124
Disciplinary proceedings 125
The right to complain 129
Procedural justice in the Netherlands 135
Procedural due process challenges in the United States 137
Conclusions 140
6 Contact with the outside world 141
Introduction 141
Interference with correspondence 145
Freedom of expression 152
The right to family life 157
Conclusions 172
7 The right to equality 173
Introduction 173
The framework of equality law 175
Gender equality 180
Sexual orientation 189
Transgender prisoners 189
Age and disability discrimination 191
Black and minority ethnic prisoners 193
Religious minorities 201
Equality issues in the American prison system 205
Conclusions 210
8 The prisoner as citizen: the right to vote 211
Introduction 211
The European Court of Human Rights judgment in Hirst v UK 212
The response to Hirst 214
Proposals for change 216
Justifications of felon disenfranchisement 219
The case for re-enfranchisement 227
Prisoner disenfranchisement in the United States 231
Conclusions 238
9 Conclusion: making room for prisoners' rights 240
Introduction 240
Progressive developments 245
The attack on human rights 246
Conclusions 250
Notes 253
Bibliography 258
Prison Service Orders 270
Index 271