Book Review: Peculiar Institution: America’s Death Penalty in an Age of Abolition

• Author: Beth Bjerregaard
• DOI: 10.1177/0734016811405190
• Published date: 01 December 2011
• Date: 01 December 2011
• Subject Matter: Book Reviews

With the exception of the crack epidemic during the 1980s and 1990s, the overall juvenile

offending rates have been decreasing for quite some time. Even with a reduction in youth

offending, the general public and justice officials will continue to entertain the idea that juve-

nile offending rates are at an all-time high, distortedly reminiscing about the ‘‘good old days’’

when youth were not as dangerous and unremorseful. The authors address this issue in this par-

ticular book by informing the reader that this perception of youth offending has been around,

since the beginning of time. They conclude that this line of thought is one of the driving forces

that perpetuate juvenile justice policy cyclically. Other ideas that seem to propel the cycle of

juvenile justice is the notion that justice policies make delinquency worse and that policy

changes will reduce crime.

The authors further describe how justice officials, the general public, and founders of the

juvenile justice system have contributed to the ongoing cycle of juvenile justice. For greater

insight, they suggest that interested parties move away from the common practice of examining

the metaphorical ‘‘trees’’ or smaller events and happenings at a particular point in time pertaining

to youth offending (e.g., lenient treatment, harsh treatment, etc.). Instead, it is vital that youth

offending be evaluated as if flying in an airplane, looking at the metaphorical ‘‘forest’’ which

includes continuing patterns and their historical context.

Probably, the most controversial issue discussed in this reading is whether a juvenile should

be held accountable for offenses considering their lack of brain development. There are several

neurological studies that reveal that the brain does not fully develop until a person is approx-

imately 25 years of age. Despite the advances in technology revealing this startling information,

juveniles continue to be punished and held accountable for their actions based on what individ-

uals assume when they hear the word ‘‘delinquent.’’ The authors associate this logic with the

juvenile justice cycle because initially during the 1800s children were viewed as small adults,

anditwasnotrareforyoungchildrentobepunishedandhousedwithadultcriminals.How-

ever, as the cycle continues, children are perceived differently, for instance, during the found-

ing of the House of Refuge, children were thought to be malleable, and it was believed their

behavior was influenced by their inadequate, pauper, criminal pa rents. Advocates for the House

of Refuge believed that there should be a ‘‘middle ground’’ between sending children to adult

prison and letting them go. After the 1960s until the present, justice officials attempt to provide

‘‘the best of both worlds.’’

Overall, the book is interesting, informative, and a worthy update to the juvenile justice

literature. The authors achieved their goal of demonstrating how the cycle of juvenile justice has

influenced policies concerning juveniles by providing a thorough assessment of the reoccurring

nature of laws, perceptions, and history. This book is suitable for criminal justice professionals,

students, justice officials, as well as the general public. It has the potential to positively alter

perceptions of juveniles. The only weakness is that the autho rs do not offer an examination of how

females have been treated in the cycle of juvenile justice. Despite this shortcoming, I would

recommend this book given the adage ‘‘if one is not knowledgeable about the mistakes of the past,

he is doomed to repeat it.’’

D. Garland

Peculiar Institution: America’s Death Penalty in an Age of Abolition Cambridge, MA:

The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2010. 1, 417 pp. $35.00. ISBN: 978-0-674-05723-4

Reviewed by: Beth Bjerregaard, University of North Carolina, Charlotte, NC, USA

DOI: 10.1177/0734016811405190

530 Criminal Justice Review 36(4)