Paul Tullis has a haunting piece in the New York Times on the role of forgiveness in the criminal justice system–explored through the aftermath of a devastating murder of a young woman, Ann Grosmaire, by her boyfriend Conor McBridge. The long article is a really tough read, but I appreciate that Tullis explores restorative justice through the response to an unquestionably terrible crime; too often, I fear, alternatives to traditional carceral approaches are discussed only for minor offenses like drug use and petty theft, which allows everyone, from defenders of the prison system to abolitionists, to avoid the hardest questions.

The details of the Ann’s killer’s sentencing process and punishment will likely only satisfy moderate reformers, but testimonies from the Grosmaire ...