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International Prison Standards And Transnational Criminal Justice, Dirk Van Zyl Smit

UC Irvine Journal of International, Transnational, and Comparative Law

Prison standards are an important element of transnational criminal

justice. This Article shows how legal standards governing prison conditions

emerged at the international and regional levels and considers how,

increasingly, they have gained legitimacy. It then describes how these

standards are applied in a way that contributes to a recognizable

transnational legal order in respect of prison conditions, which has real

impact at the national level. The Article pays close attention to the transfer

of prisoners between states, as a mechanism that operates transnationally

and, in the process, enhances the importance of international prison

standards. It concludes that the benefits …