Victor Hassine, "Life Without Parole" (2nd Ed. -1999)

Why did I pick up inmate Victor Hassine's Life Without Parole: Living in Prison Today? I'm always interested in hearing firsthand accounts of what it's like to be locked up. I'm also fascinated by any account of the choices people make when they are in a crisis situation. I think it's fair to say that being incarcerated is akin to being in a "crisis situation". The rules are obviously different behind bars as opposed to being out on the streets. The prisoner is surrounded by those who chose to break society's laws. To survive and keep one's dignity, it's important to project an image of strength. Whether or not the authors of such books relate the unmitigated truth, the reader experiences the flavor of an extreme and foreign environment. These works are rarely ever boring.

Hassine's book is especially interesting because he is serving a life term without the possibility of parole in the Pennsylvania state prison system. Since 1981, he has tried to make a home at SCI-Graterford (outside Philadelphia) and SCI- Pittsburgh (also referred to as Western Penitentiary). Additionally he has lived at SCI-Camp Hill and SCI-Rockview (his most current residence). Therefore he has substantial experience with the specific conditions of punitive institutions in the state where I live. Aside from convicted cop killer Mumia Abu-Jamal (currently held at SCI-Greene in Waynesburg), I know of no other contemporary inmates in Pennsylvania that have authored books.

Victor Hassine's story is an unusual one, as far as criminals are concerned. He is a naturalized citizen and originally from Egypt. He grew up Jewish in Trenton, NJ. In 1980 he graduated from New York Law School. Shortly after finishing his degree, he was accused and convicted of hiring a hitman to kill a man over a drug dispute. The victim survived, but in the process an innocent man died. With no prior record to speak of, Hassine entered the correctional system with a large amount of fear. As a naive "fish" he had no choice but to quickly learn how to survive in his new environment.

Life Without Parole begins with a chapter entitled "How I became a Convict". Hassine doesn't dwell on the actions that caused him to end up in prison, but rather describes in detail how he was processed, classified and integrated into the general population. He outlines his initial feelings and his strategy for protecting himself. Being neither wholly black nor white, there were no easy affiliations for him to make. Early on he pissed away a prized job working as a clerk in the Major's office- all because he was tempted by a freshly cooked contraband hamburger. After a period of time trying to insulate himself with books and painting in his cell, he was convinced by an "old head" (wise inmate) that he needed to engage the life he could not escape. Apparently being a loner with lots of possessions in prison is a recipe for victimization. (Hassine cautions that a new inmate is especially vulnerable because he is prone to sleeping through the morning, while the doors of his cell remains unlocked. This makes him a target for rape, theft, or other forms of brutalization by prison predators.)

As the months passed by, Hassine's observations about his fellow inmates, his captors, and the system began to coalesce. He started recording his thoughts and ideas on paper, and eventually he collected them into Life Without Parole. It is divided into three sections: "Prison Life", "Interviews", and "Op Ed". In the second part, Hassine gives some of his fellow convicts the opportunity to tell their stories. Through these segments Hassine explores issues such as sexual victimization, AIDS, medication as a means of control, the changing nature of solitary confinement, and the conflict between "old heads" and the new arbitrarily-violent inmates who have nothing to lose. Perhaps the most affecting story is related by Hassine himself- he recounts his role as a witness to a particularly savage incident during a riot at Western Penitentiary.

In the "Op Ed" chapters, Hassine seizes the opportunity to address what he sees as the biggest challenges facing prison administrators today. He identifies overcrowding as the most significant problem in contemporary prisons. He believes that every other difficulty can ultimately be traced back to this factor. Rape comes in a multitude of forms, but is made much easier by doubling the occupancy of cells originally designed to house one inmate. The relationship between prisoners and guards is steadily deteriorating as tired and frustrated guards pull overtime shifts to compensate for staffing shortages. Staffs are losing control of the prisons, as they exhaust their limited resources in just trying to meet the basic needs of those incarcerated. There is no longer any money available for rehabilitation or treatment of criminals. And Hassine maintains that this situation is like a "runaway train". The consequences of overcrowded prisons will eventually spill out into the society-at-large.

Although Life Without Parole is a slim volume, and its authorial voice often comes across as surprisingly detached, it is not without its merits. Those looking for a book that combines personal anecdotes with a touch of academia will be pleased and edified by Hassine's writing style. (Evidently Life Without Parole is being used as a college text in Criminology courses- a fact which explains the multiple editions and the $42.95 price) Additionally, Pennsylvania residents will find the local associations meaningful. I recommend it with mild reservations.