Frank M. Bainbridge-Walter L. Mims Professor of Law & Irving and Frances Silver Faculty Scholar
Professor Russell Gold’s article, Look What You Made Me Do, was published in Vol. 82 of Washington & Lee Law Review.
In the article, Professor Gold argues that even though we have recognized for centuries that crime is the product of both individual choice and circumstances, our criminal procedure flattens that complexity. It coerces defendants into telling the story of their crimes as though it were nothing more than their own bad choices, which damages our broader public understanding of the nature of crime and impedes systemic change.