Frederic G Reamer, On the Parole Board: Reflections on Crime, Punishment, Redemption and Justice
| Published date | 01 April 2018 |
| Author | Robert Werth |
| Date | 01 April 2018 |
| DOI | 10.1177/1462474517731736 |
| Subject Matter | Book Reviews |
Frederic G Reamer, On the Parole Board: Reflections on Crime, Punishment, Redemption and Justice,
Columbia University Press: New York, 2017, 296 pp. (including index): 978-0231177337, $23
(pbk), $90 (cloth)
In the last chapter of Frederic Reamer’s book On the Parole Board: Reflections on
Crime, Punishment, Redemption and Justice, the author notes: ‘‘[b]eing responsible
for decisions about the fate and freedom of other human beings is daunting‘‘
(p. 262). While seemingly understated and coming near the end, this sentiment
comes through throughout the entire book. Reamer—currently a professor of
social work—served on the Rhode Island Parole Board from 1992 to 2016.
During this time, he was involved in making ‘‘tens of thousands of decisions‘‘
(p. x) about whether individuals would receive parole or not and whether or not
those on parole would remain in the community or be returned to prison. Reamer
walks readers through the difficulties, moral complexities, and uncertainties of this
work. At the same time, the book sheds light on the context in which such work
takes place. That is, in an era of continuing mass incarceration, calls for criminal
justice reform, exploration of the role of risk assessments within correctional deci-
sion making, and scholarly desires to explore the penal state from within, Reamer
provides readers with a first-hand glimpse of his nearly 25 years on the parole
board.
These experiences are at the center of this expansive, yet often intimate, book.
Reamer provides a voluminous amount of information about his day-to-day activ-
ities as a parole board member. He walks us through a number of particular parole
hearings, often providing partial transcripts of the conversations between board
and parole seeker. He also narrates life history information and the circumstances
surrounding the crimes individuals were convicted of. For a general audience,
Reamer certainly humanizes incarcerated individuals; he writes compassionately
about how many have experienced considerable challenges and traumas in their
lifetimes. At other points, Reamer does the same thing for victims and family
members of victims.
While often compelling, the sheer amount of stories and transcripts could
untether the book, yet Reamer weaves these stories together into his reflections
about parole and the entire criminal justice ‘‘system‘‘. While his time on the parole
board is at the center of the narrative, the subtitle represents the heart of this book.
Throughout each chapter, Reamer shares his reflections on crime, punishment,
redemption, and justice. In fact, at times, the book has the feel of a memoir,
with the author providing his personal musings on a variety of topics. Among
others, he reflects on the causes of crime, the role of punishment and retribution,
whether ‘‘inmates who have committed the most evil crimes are truly evil‘‘ (p. 61),
and offenders’ capacity for change and reform.
Reamer does not shy away from pointing out problems and shortcomings within
prisons and criminal justice. He pulls from both scholarly research and his own
experiences on the parole board in doing so. For instance, he is critical of manda-
tory—and lengthy—criminal sentencing, the use of solitary confinement,
Book reviews 275
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