Against the Latin American Current? Conditions and Mechanisms of Decarceration in Chile
Latin American countries have experienced a significant rise in incarceration rates over the past three decades (1995-2025). However, Chile presents an exception. After a significant increase in the 2000s, its incarceration rate was reduced by 33% between 2010 and 2020. The presentation will delve into the conditions that facilitated this decarceration process.
SocSci Hub
Date: Wednesday 25 June 2025
Time: 16:00 - 17:00
Venue: Online
Category: Public lectures, Academic events
Speaker: Professor Javier Wilenmann, Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, Chile.
Using individual-level administrative data on prison entries and exits, along with aggregate administrative data from different criminal justice agencies, it will focus on three likely drivers of the decarceration process: variations in crime detection and arrest rates; the expansion of non-custodial sanctions; and a gradual reduction in the average duration of prison stays.
From a theoretical point of view, the presentation will emphasize the role of proximate causes—specific legal and political processes—over broader background causes such as the rise of neoliberalism or late modernity.
Finally, the presentation will briefly analyze the aftermath of the Chilean decarceration process, highlighting the volatility of penal trends in Chile. The Chilean case underscores the contingent and reversible nature of penal change, offering insights into broader discussions on the dynamics of punishment in Latin America and beyond.
Bio:
Javier Wilenmann is professor at the Faculty of Law of the Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez in Santiago, Chile. He holds a PhD in Law from the University of Freiburg, Germany. He has published extensively both in legal and sociolegal fields. His research focuses on the behavior of criminal justice, especially in Chile and Latin America.
This online workshop is part of the Social Penalities Across Boundaries series which is organised by Professor Richard Sparks, University of Edinburgh, Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research, and Professor Máximo Sozzo, Universidad Nacional del Litoral in Argentina (UNL).