Decreasing prison population in the Netherlands
Hilde Wermink, Assistant Professor at the Institute of Criminal Law & Criminology was interviewed on this topic for an article published in US News on 13 May.
She gave a brief explanation of how penal decisions are taken in the Netherlands (compared to the US) and also discussed her research which studies the effects of prison sentencing on crime from various angles (length of detention, incapacitation effect and the effects of a prison sentence compared to other alternatives). Among other things, she remarks that compared to the US, the courts in the Netherlands tend to hand down a prison sentence far less often and are more likely to order a fine or community service
At Leiden Law School Hilde Wermink participates on the Prison Project which studies the effects of prison sentencing on the lives of ex-prisoners and their families.