Miller's Children - by James Garbarino (Paperback)

About the Book

"Miller's Children is a comprehensive look at the consequences of the US Supreme Court's decision in the case of Miller v. Alabama, which outlawed mandatory life-without-parole sentences for juvenile murderers. This book describes the author's fieldwork as a psychological expert witness in more than forty resentencing cases of juveniles affected by the Miller decision (and follow-up rulings), providing a wide-ranging review of research on human development in adolescence and early adulthood. It focuses on how and why convicted teenage murderers have been able to accomplish dramatic rehabilitation and transformation, emphasizing the role of spiritual development, education, reflection, and mentoring in that process."--Provided by publisher.

Book Synopsis

Miller's Children is a passionate and comprehensive look at the human consequences of the US Supreme Court's decision in the case of Miller v. Alabama, which outlaws mandatory life-without-parole sentences for juvenile murderers. The decision to apply the law retroactively to other cases has provided hope to those convicted of murders as teenagers and had been incarcerated with the expectation that they would never leave prison until their own death as incarcerated adults.

Psychological expert witness James Garbarino shares his fieldwork in more than forty resentencing cases of juveniles affected by the Miller decision. Providing a wide-ranging review of current research on human development in adolescence and early adulthood, he shows how studies reveal the adolescent mind's keen ability for malleability, suggesting the true potential for rehabilitation.

Garbarino focuses on how and why some convicted teenage murderers have been able to accomplish dramatic rehabilitation and transformation, emphasizing the role of education, reflection, mentoring, and spiritual development. With a deft hand, he shows us the prisoners' world that is filled, first and foremost, with stories of hope amid despair, and moral and psychological recovery in the face of developmental insult and damage.

From the Back Cover

"Miller's Children is a compelling read, thoroughly researched and abundantly compassionate. This riveting work doesn't just make a case--it calls us all to a larger sense of kinship and the birth of a new inclusion. This is a rare book that gives voice to those previously unheard. It challenges us to stand with the demonized so that the demonizing stops."--Gregory J. Boyle, S.J., Founder of Homeboy Industries

"Should childhood criminals pay with their lives? James Garbarino has interviewed many of them years after their convictions, and in this apologetic, he argues passionately that they should not."
--Thomas Grisso, Emeritus Professor, University of Massachusetts Medical School

"This beautifully written book is informed by an understanding human development, it's grounded in solid research findings, and it's infused with knowledge of the law. It is a much-needed work, destined to become a classic in the field." --Kathleen M. Heide, PhD, Professor of Criminology, University of South Florida, author of Understanding Parricide: When Sons and Daughters Kill Parents

Review Quotes

"The narratives and empirical perspectives woven throughout Miller's Children allow Garbarino to push readers to consider that hope exists for juvenile killers and for the future of adolescent justice in the United States."-- "Adolescent Research Review"

"Miller's Children sings of rehabilitation and the kind of mitigation we would want for our own children."

-- "Times Literary Supplement"

"Miller's Children reflects the depth of [Garbarino's] expertise and the hope he has come to have in the power of human transformation... [the book] offers readers a rich understanding of the psychology behind adolescent homicide, while also giving us reason to believe in the possibility of transformation and redemption for all youth."-- "Criminal Law and Criminal Justice Books"

"A compelling and compassionate text that explores the impact of the 2012 US Supreme Court's decision in Miller v. Alabama. . . . Weaving individual stories together with human development research, he builds a compelling argument that rehabilitation can give these youths a second chance in society. He emphasizes the role of education, reflection, mentoring, and spiritual development in rehabilitation. An eloquent reflection on the value of hope in the face of despair."-- "CHOICE" (10/1/2018 12:00:00 AM)

"Garbarino has written previously on adolescent violence, and in recent years he has served as a psychological expert witness in post-Miller resentencing hearings. Miller's Children reflects the depth of his expertise and the hope he has come to have in the power of human transformation."-- "Criminal Law and Criminal Justice Books" (5/1/2018 12:00:00 AM)

About the Author

James Garbarino holds the Maude C. Clarke Chair in Humanistic Psychology and is Senior Faculty Fellow with the Center for the Human Rights of Children at Loyola University Chicago. He has served as an adviser to the National Committee to Prevent Child Abuse, the National Institute for Mental Health, the American Medical Association, the U.S. Advisory Board on Child Abuse and Neglect, and the FBI. He is the author of Listening to Killers: Lessons Learned from My Twenty Years as a Psychological Expert Witness in Murder Cases and Lost Boys: Why Our Sons Turn Violent and How We Can Save Them.