BOOKS


"Innovative, well-researched, and persuasive, this is a full-throated call for change."
Publishers Weekly

“An extraordinary and long overdue collection offering myriad ways that we can and must completely overhaul the way we imagine as well as implement ‘justice.’”
—Heather Ann Thompson, historian and Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Blood in the Water”

"At a moment of growing support to challenge mass incarceration, Parsimony and Other Radical Ideas About Justice provides us with a compelling vision for transforming our approach to public safety. It is long past time to reject punishment as a guiding principle and to adopt instead a strategy that relies on strengthening the capacity of individuals and communities to thrive."
—Marc Mauer, senior advisor, The Sentencing Project, and author of Race to Incarcerate

WATCH: THE SQUARE ONE PARSIMONY BOOK LAUNCH

Edited by Jeremy Travis and Bruce Western (2023)

“Jeremy Travis [is] a 'policy artist' .. a term not found in any dictionary, or in fact in any school of government or public policy.  It's more of a calling, an orientation, than a discipline; its members can be found in government, in law, in communities, in nonprofits, in advocacy organizations, in education and scholarship... What joins such together is a burning need to address critical issues in our public life; a recognition that any such real work requires respect for, and the tools of, government, law, communities, advocacy, scholarship, and all the rest; a deftness and flexibility with those worlds and those tools; a feel for strategy; and an adamantine relentlessness about producing real results in the world.  The speeches in this volume are the record of a consummate policy artist operating from the remarkable platform that John Jay College of Criminal Justice was, and that he evolved it to be, during his tenure.”
—From the forward by David M. Kennedy

Selected speeches by Jeremy Travis (2017)

The Growth of Incarceration in the United States examines research and analysis of the dramatic rise of incarceration rates and its affects. This study makes the case that the United States has gone far past the point where the numbers of people in prison can be justified by social benefits and has reached a level where these high rates of incarceration themselves constitute a source of injustice and social harm.

The Growth of Incarceration in the United States recommends changes in sentencing policy, prison policy, and social policy to reduce the nation's reliance on incarceration. The report also identifies important research questions that must be answered to provide a firmer basis for policy. The study assesses the evidence and its implications for public policy to inform an extensive and thoughtful public debate about and reconsideration of policies.

Edited by Jeremy Travis, Bruce Western, and Steve Redburn (2014)

"This tour de force is perhaps the best policy book I've ever read―conceptually rich, empirically compelling, and savvy to boot." ― Christopher Edley Jr., Dean, School of Law, University of California, Berkeley, and former Director, The Civil Rights Project, Harvard University

"...[A] must-read for anyone interested in prisoner reentry and social justice in America." -- Joan Petersilia, Ph.D., Professor of Criminology, University of California, Irvine, and author of When Prisoners Come Home

"...[C]ombines a compelling theoretical perspective with a detailed practical guide to fashioning an effective public policy strategy..." -- Marc Mauer, Assistant Director, The Sentencing Project, and author of Race to Incarcerate

By Jeremy Travis (2005)

What are the public safety consequences of the fourfold increase in the number of individuals entering and leaving the nation's prisons each year? Many have speculated about the nexus between prisoner reentry and public safety. Law enforcement officials have attributed increases in violence in their communities to the influx of returning prisoners. Politicians have recommended policies that keep former prisoners out of high crime neighborhoods in the belief that crime would be reduced. The chapters in this book address these issues and suggest policies that will keep released prisoners from committing new crimes.

Edited by Jeremy Travis and Christy Visher (2005)

"...essential reading for those interested in strengthening fragile families, rebuilding communities, restoring justice, and creating social change." -- Beth E. Richie, Ph.D., Head, Department of African American Studies and Professor of Women’s Studies and Criminal Justice, University of Illinois at Chicago

"...intelligent and remarkably readable, packed with policy prescriptions, and suitable for a wide audience." -- Joan Petersilia, Ph.D., University of California, Irvine, Author of When Prisoners Come Home: Parole and Prisoner Reentry

"I highly recommend this encyclopedic book for anyone interested in the problems of incarceration and prisoner reentry" -- Reginald Wilkinson, Director, Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction

Edited by Jeremy Travis and Michelle Waul (2004)