The Compassionate Court?

“The Compassionate Court? is a beautifully reflexive and critical examination of prostitution diversion programs and their place in the problem-solving court movement. Despite the best efforts, these programs reinforce entrenched stigmas around race, gender, and class under the ‘cover’ of supposedly neutral crime-control goals. The authors converge around a troubling and powerful conclusion: these courts fail defendants, who are often victims themselves, withholding services to favor those who conform to norms of sexuality and femininity and reinforcing stereotypes that discipline women.”—Nicole Gonzalez Van Cleve, Associate Professor of Sociology at Brown University, and author of Crook County: Racism and Injustice in America’s Largest Criminal Court
“The Compassionate Court? presents a comprehensive analysis of prostitution diversion programs (PDPs). The accomplished scholars, drawing on a decade of research on two PDPs, reveal how well-intentioned criminal system reforms fall short in addressing underlying structural issues such as poverty, trauma, and housing and job insecurity. Through too-often-ignored stories of PDP participants and program professionals, this eye-opening book challenges current approaches and advocates for alternative solutions that account for the complex realities faced by marginalized sex workers.”—Barbara G. Brents, Professor of Sociology at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and coauthor of Paying for Sex in a Digital Age: US and UK Perspectives
"Overall, this book is an exemplary contribution to recent work critical of the encroachment of the criminal-legal system in human services, and it uses its rigorous qualitative data with those most affected to back up claims of the program’s harms. Its readability and empathetic treatment of the respondents make this ideal for a range of popular and academic audiences, including those whose perspectives are represented in this book."—Social Service Review
"[A] thought-provoking assessment of the many challenges that result from the criminalization of sex work in the United States.... The book is relevant to criminal justice education as it can be used inside and outside the classroom to foster critical conversations surrounding the criminalization of sex work, community corrections, gender and crime, and a larger discussion about criminal justice policy."—Journal of Criminal Justice Education
"In The Compassionate Court? researchers Corey Shdaimah and Shelly Wiechelt of the University of Maryland School of Social Work and Chrysanthi Leon of the University of Delaware Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice, investigate whether prostitution diversion programs are 'a new paradigm or business as usual....' In conducting this study over a ten-year period, the authors report a significant shift from optimism to despair."—Journal of Community Justice
“The Compassionate Court? explores the criminalization of sex work and presents a strong critical analysis of court-affiliated prostitution diversion programs (PDPs).... The authors’ study contributes to the ongoing policy debate regarding sex work and the risks and benefits of alternative criminal justice models.... Overall, The Compassionate Court? presents a necessary critical perspective on PDPs...with seamless introductions and conclusions. The Compassionate Court? gives a voice back to sex workers.... The authors’ study provided an insider view on how a newer approach to criminal justice would impact the intended beneficiaries. In this way, the authors succeed in issuing a wake-up call to readers of any knowledge base."— International Journal for Crime, Justice and Social Democracy