(This post is a summary of my latest work. Click here to read more.) My research shows that the Massachusetts Department of Correction (DOC) routinely […]
Therapeutic Jails? An Oxymoron
Old adages can be true: Sometimes the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Sometimes, however, it is paved with the dangerously mistaken notion […]
Jailing Women in Massachusetts
Nearly three times as many women are incarcerated in Massachusetts county jails as in the (in)famous MCI-Framingham state prison for women. If you didn’t know […]
Beyond Collateral Damage: How Incarcerating Men Harms Women
This post is a shortened version of a paper written together with Steven Murnane and other members of the Women and Incarceration Project at Suffolk […]
Women, Incarceration, and Violent Crime
This post is a summary of the report Women, Incarceration, and Violent Crime in Massachusetts by Rebecca Stone, Susan Sered, Cherry Russell and members of […]
Ineffectiveness of Prison-Based Therapy: The Case for Community-Based Alternatives
Executive Summary The full policy brief is posted here. Purpose and Scope: In light of imminent plans in Massachusetts to build a new women’s prison […]
A new women’s prison would be a mistake
This article by Erin Braatz and Susan Sered appeared in CommonWealth Journal, Jan. 16, 2021. It is the first in a series of projects by […]
Debunking the Myth of Gender-Responsive Treatment in Prison
This series of posts explores whether involuntary confinement and incarceration constitute appropriate responses to the challenges faced by women involved with the criminal justice system. […]
Beyond Recidivism and Desistance
This post is part 3 of a 3 part series. Part 1: Recidivism: Is It a Real Thing? Part 2: Desistance from Crime: Is It […]
Desistance from Crime: Is It a Real Thing?
This post is is the 2nd in a 3 part series: Part 1: Recidivism: Is It a Real Thing? Part 3: Beyond Recidivism and Desistance […]