Norval Morris
Encyclopedia
Norval Morris was a law professor, criminologist, and advocate for criminal justice and mental health reform.
Morris was a strong influence on United States law professors and criminologists including James B. Jacobs (NYU), Marc Miller (Arizona), Kevin Reitz (Minnesota), Michael Tonry (Minnesota), and Franklin E. Zimring (Berkeley), and Albert Alschuler (Northwestern). He was a close friend and colleague of U.S. Supreme Court associate justice Harry A. Blackmun and of federal district court judge Abner Mikva.
Morris was widely regarded as an advocate for the rights of inmates in prisons and mental hospitals. His theories on prison reform were implemented at the federal penitentiary at Butner, N.C..
Morris was a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
, a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation
, a Fellow of the American Society of Criminology
, a board member of the Chicago Bar Foundation (1982-88), a chairman of the board and board member of the National Institute of Corrections
.
. He received his Ph.D. in law and criminology in 1949 and was appointed to the Faculty of Law at the London School of Economics
.
In the 1950s, Morris was chairman of the Commission of Inquiry on Capital Punishment in Ceylon. Drawing on his experiences there, he later wrote The Brothel Boy & Other Parables of the Law (1992) a fictional reconstruction of the experiences of Eric Blair (George Orwell
) as a Burmese policeman and magistrate, which Morris used to examine ethical and legal issues.
At the University of Melbourne, Morris was Secretary and Foundation Member in the Department of Criminology (1951-58), Associate Professor of Criminology (1955-58) and Senior Lecturer in Law (1950-58). He was Dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of Adelaide
(1958-62).
In the United States, Morris was a visiting professor at Harvard University
, the University of Utah
, the University of Colorado
and New York University
. In 1962-64, he was founding director of the United Nations Institute for the Prevention of Crime and Treatment of Offenders (Asia and Far East).
In 1964 he became a member of the University of Chicago Law School
faculty and from 1975 to 1978 was Dean of the University of Chicago Law School.
He and Omaha lawyer Robert J. Kutak precipitated the creation of the National Institute of Corrections within the U.S. Bureau of Prisons in 1971-1972. Morris served on the institute's board until his death.
In 1978, his stance on the Fourth Amendment and gun control in his 1970 book with Gordon Hawkins ("There can be no right to privacy in regard to armament") cost him an appointment to the federal Law Enforcement Assistance Administration
, even though he dismissed the proposals in the book as "Utopian" and "science-fiction".
From 1979 to 1987, Morris served on the Police Board of the City of Chicago. In 1994 Morris took emeritus status at Chicago Law School, working as a consultant and advisor until his death in 2004 at the age of eighty. He was survived by a wife, three sons and three grandchildren.
Morris was a strong influence on United States law professors and criminologists including James B. Jacobs (NYU), Marc Miller (Arizona), Kevin Reitz (Minnesota), Michael Tonry (Minnesota), and Franklin E. Zimring (Berkeley), and Albert Alschuler (Northwestern). He was a close friend and colleague of U.S. Supreme Court associate justice Harry A. Blackmun and of federal district court judge Abner Mikva.
Morris was widely regarded as an advocate for the rights of inmates in prisons and mental hospitals. His theories on prison reform were implemented at the federal penitentiary at Butner, N.C..
Morris was a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
, a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation
American Bar Foundation
Established in 1952, the ' is an independent, nonprofit national research institute located in Chicago, Illinois committed to objective empirical research on law and legal institutions...
, a Fellow of the American Society of Criminology
American Society of Criminology
The American Society of Criminology is an international organization whose members pursue scholarly, scientific and professional knowledge concerning the measurement, etiology, consequences, prevention, control, and treatment of crime and delinquency...
, a board member of the Chicago Bar Foundation (1982-88), a chairman of the board and board member of the National Institute of Corrections
National Institute of Corrections
The National Institute of Corrections is an agency of the United States government. It is part of the United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons....
.
Career
Norval Morris was born in 1923 in Auckland, New Zealand. He served in the Australian army in World War II. He earned LL.B. and LL.M. degrees at the University of MelbourneUniversity of Melbourne
The University of Melbourne is a public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. Founded in 1853, it is the second oldest university in Australia and the oldest in Victoria...
. He received his Ph.D. in law and criminology in 1949 and was appointed to the Faculty of Law at the London School of Economics
London School of Economics
The London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
.
In the 1950s, Morris was chairman of the Commission of Inquiry on Capital Punishment in Ceylon. Drawing on his experiences there, he later wrote The Brothel Boy & Other Parables of the Law (1992) a fictional reconstruction of the experiences of Eric Blair (George Orwell
George Orwell
Eric Arthur Blair , better known by his pen name George Orwell, was an English author and journalist...
) as a Burmese policeman and magistrate, which Morris used to examine ethical and legal issues.
At the University of Melbourne, Morris was Secretary and Foundation Member in the Department of Criminology (1951-58), Associate Professor of Criminology (1955-58) and Senior Lecturer in Law (1950-58). He was Dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of Adelaide
University of Adelaide
The University of Adelaide is a public university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third oldest university in Australia...
(1958-62).
In the United States, Morris was a visiting professor at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, the University of Utah
University of Utah
The University of Utah, also known as the U or the U of U, is a public, coeducational research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The university was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret by the General Assembly of the provisional State of Deseret, making it Utah's oldest...
, the University of Colorado
University of Colorado at Boulder
The University of Colorado Boulder is a public research university located in Boulder, Colorado...
and New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
. In 1962-64, he was founding director of the United Nations Institute for the Prevention of Crime and Treatment of Offenders (Asia and Far East).
In 1964 he became a member of the University of Chicago Law School
University of Chicago Law School
The University of Chicago Law School was founded in 1902 as the graduate school of law at the University of Chicago and is among the most prestigious and selective law schools in the world. The U.S. News & World Report currently ranks it fifth among U.S...
faculty and from 1975 to 1978 was Dean of the University of Chicago Law School.
He and Omaha lawyer Robert J. Kutak precipitated the creation of the National Institute of Corrections within the U.S. Bureau of Prisons in 1971-1972. Morris served on the institute's board until his death.
In 1978, his stance on the Fourth Amendment and gun control in his 1970 book with Gordon Hawkins ("There can be no right to privacy in regard to armament") cost him an appointment to the federal Law Enforcement Assistance Administration
Law Enforcement Assistance Administration
The Law Enforcement Assistance Administration was a U.S. federal agency within the U.S. Dept. of Justice. It administered federal funding to state and local law enforcement agencies, and funded educational programs, research, state planning agencies, and local crime initiatives.The LEAA was...
, even though he dismissed the proposals in the book as "Utopian" and "science-fiction".
From 1979 to 1987, Morris served on the Police Board of the City of Chicago. In 1994 Morris took emeritus status at Chicago Law School, working as a consultant and advisor until his death in 2004 at the age of eighty. He was survived by a wife, three sons and three grandchildren.
Writings
Morris was the author, co-author or editor of at least 15 books and hundreds of articles during his 55-year academic career, including:- Norval Morris, Maconochie's Gentlemen: The Story of Norfolk Island and the Roots of Modern Prison Reform, Oxford U Press USA, 2003, ISBN: 978-0195169126.
- Norval Morris and David Rothman, The Oxford History of the Prison, Oxford U Press, 1995, ASIN: B001UW5S3G.
- Norval Morris,The Brothel Boy and Other Parables of the Law, Oxford U Press USA, 1992, ISBN: 978-0195093865.
- Norval Morris and Michael Tonry, Between Prison and Probation: Intermediate Punishments in a Rational Sentencing System, St. Martin's, 1986, ASIN: B002KUGAE8; 1991, ASIN: B002G6T6O2.
- Norval Morris, Madness and the Criminal Law, U Chicago Press, 1982, ASIN: B0025RQLWW.
- Norval Morris and Gordon J. Hawkins, The Honest Politician's Guide to Crime Control, U Chicago Press, 1970, 1972, ISBN: 978-0226539027; Phoenix Books, 1970, 279 pages, ISBN: 978-0226539010.