The construction of intolerable punishments: On the value of documenting the pains of old prisoners

Abstract

This article closely reviews a selection of criminology studies on the pains of older prisoners to examine the construction of a particular type of ‘intolerable’ punishment. The term ‘intolerable’ depicts the moral line between acceptable state punitive treatments and those that become so unbearable they are being or should be abandoned. The article finds that the pains of older prisoners are characterised as quantitatively significant, qualitatively distinct, and comparatively worse. Such construction, however, misses the societal dimension of ageing in prison and perpetuates a reductive and stereotypical understanding of ‘old age’ centred on prisoners’ deteriorating bodies. In critically examining the role that criminological research may play in distinguishing between acceptable and intolerable punishments, the article sets out the value of documenting the pains of ageing prisoners.