Criminal Justice

November 2023 Leftovers

Catch and Release by Lawrence Block

We Do This 'til We Free Us: Abolitionist Organizing and Transforming Justice by Mariame Kaba

The League: How Five Rivals Created the NFL and Launched an Empire by John Eisenberg

Ghosts of West Baltimore by David Simmons

Mob Star: The Story of John Gotti by Gene Mustain and Jerry Capeci

Hit Me by Lawrence Block

Donnie Brasco by Joseph D. Pistone

November 30, 2023 by Jake Leave a Comment

Happy Thanksgiving to all who observe! Catch and Release *** Been angling to read more LB lately so I figured I’d knock out this short story collection for my monthly HCC read. Sadly, the results were predictable: a repetition of serial killers, hit men and un-sexy sex. I just can’t sink my teeth into books featuring short stories and this one was no exception. I enjoyed visiting Matt and Mick at Grogan’s again and the last story was fun but beyond that? Who lotta eh and […]

The System Is So Different Here, But It’s Still Broken

The Secret Barrister: Stories of the Law and How It’s Broken by Anonymous

April 5, 2019 by ASKReviews Leave a Comment

Best for: Anyone interested in the English criminal justice system. In a nutshell: An actively practicing barrister shares what goes on in the English justice system, and offers suggestions of ways to fix it. Worth quoting: “Early guilty please equal cheap guilty please. It does not follow, of course, that early guilty please equal correct guilty please.” “Defense legal aid, and the effective adversarialism that it permits, doesn’t simply protect the defendant; it protects the public by keeping the prosecution, and the court system, honest.” […]

I’ve spent an enjoyable 900 years with this book.

December 15, 2016 by Blingle Bells Leave a Comment

I don’t know if other people do this, but I usually have three books going that serve three different purposes. I have my reading in bed book, and it has to be interesting enough to keep me reading when the alternative is sleeping (Liane Moriarty is ideal for this). I have a book on the end table that’s light enough to read while my daughter plays (ex: home decor books). And I have spots for books that take a little discipline to get through, spots […]

“Each of us is more than the worst thing we’ve ever done.”

August 5, 2016 by Sophia Leave a Comment

“My frantic search for a ‘post-graduation plan’ led me to law school mostly because other graduate programs required you to know something about your field of study to enroll.” (4) I knew almost immediately that I had an affinity with Bryan Stevenson, author of Just Mercy (2014). He went to law school because he wasn’t sure what else to do, and he never felt like he fit in. I ended up in law school in the same way and wondered why everyone was so excited about […]

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