Sarah Gottlieb Publishes Chapter in the Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Criminology The chapter examines a trend of prosecutors running for office to use their power to reform the criminal legal system.

By Law Communications
April 10, 2025

Washington and Lee law professor Sarah Gottlieb has published a chapter in the “Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Criminology” (Henry Pontell ed., 2025). The chapter, “Progressive Prosecution and the Progressive Prosecutor Movement,” examines a trend of prosecutors running for office to use their power to reform the criminal legal system.

“These new prosecutors are called “progressive prosecutors,” although there is no widely accepted definition of the term. There is debate within and outside of the legal community about what it means to be a progressive prosecutor. Scholars and activists disagree about whether it is possible for those tasked with charging and incarcerating defendants to be the drivers behind large-scale criminal reforms. Supporters of the progressive prosecutor movement believe not only that prosecutors are the best situated to achieve large-scale criminal reforms but also that they have an obligation to do so, given their role in perpetuating mass incarceration and racial disparities in the criminal legal system. Prison abolitionists do not believe that prosecutors can enact this change. They argue that progressive prosecutors will only give further legitimacy to a system that perpetuates racism and violence. There is also debate regarding whether the progressive reforms being implemented by these new prosecutors are achieving the goals and results the movement envisioned,” writes Gottlieb.

The chapter is available online at the W&L Law Scholarly Commons.

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