Image: Tim Carroll

Fight disinformation: Sign up for the free Mother Jones Daily newsletter and follow the news that matters.


A purse snatcher in California is required to wear tap shoes so people can hear him coming. A wife batterer in Ohio must allow his wife to spit in his face. Dubbed “formal shaming,” these creative sentences—usually performed in front of probation or parole officers—are a throwback to the 17th century, when criminals faced their community from stocks in the town square. Their growing popularity stems from prison overcrowding and public demands for a more effective judicial system—and, some say, from a desire for old-fashioned revenge.

DATE 1990 OFFENDER Steven Dodd WHERE Onalaska, Texas CRIME Abducted his children during a custody battle SENTENCE INCLUDED Driving 91 miles each way to the mounted police stables in Houston, where he shoveled manure for 20 hours a month for six years.

DATE 1996 OFFENDER William Frazier WHERE Memphis, Tenn. CRIME Sprayed his wife with lighter fluid during an argument while he was lighting the barbecue SENTENCE INCLUDED Delivering a sermon to his congregation about his crime and the importance of learning to control one’s temper.

DATE 1996 OFFENDER Joel Witwer WHERE Houston CRIME Spousal abuse SENTENCE INCLUDED Apologizing to his wife over a loudspeaker from the steps of City Hall at noon, in front of women’s groups and the media.

DATE 1997 OFFENDER Takeisha Brunson WHERE Fort Pierce, Fla. CRIME Bought marijuana with her children (ages 6 and 2) in the car SENTENCE INCLUDED Running an ad in a local paper that featured her picture with the caption: “I was convicted of buying drugs in the presence of my children.”

DATE 1997 OFFENDER Daniel Alvin WHERE Hinesville, Ga. CRIME Organized and accepted money for a bogus bus trip to a basketball game SENTENCE INCLUDED Circling the county courthouse wearing a sign reading: “I am a convicted thief.”

DATE 1997 OFFENDER Michael Hubacek WHERE Houston CRIME Killed two people while driving drunk SENTENCE INCLUDED Carrying a sign at the scene of the accident once a month reading: “I killed two people here while driving drunk”; keeping pictures of the victims in his wallet; volunteering in a hospital’s emergency room on weekend nights; watching an autopsy of a person killed in a similar accident; speaking to youth groups; and placing birthday flowers on the victims’ graves.

AN IMPORTANT UPDATE

We’re falling behind our online fundraising goals and we can’t sustain coming up short on donations month after month. Perhaps you’ve heard? It is impossibly hard in the news business right now, with layoffs intensifying and fancy new startups and funding going kaput.

The crisis facing journalism and democracy isn’t going away anytime soon. And neither is Mother Jones, our readers, or our unique way of doing in-depth reporting that exists to bring about change.

Which is exactly why, despite the challenges we face, we just took a big gulp and joined forces with the Center for Investigative Reporting, a team of ace journalists who create the amazing podcast and public radio show Reveal.

If you can part with even just a few bucks, please help us pick up the pace of donations. We simply can’t afford to keep falling behind on our fundraising targets month after month.

Editor-in-Chief Clara Jeffery said it well to our team recently, and that team 100 percent includes readers like you who make it all possible: “This is a year to prove that we can pull off this merger, grow our audiences and impact, attract more funding and keep growing. More broadly, it’s a year when the very future of both journalism and democracy is on the line. We have to go for every important story, every reader/listener/viewer, and leave it all on the field. I’m very proud of all the hard work that’s gotten us to this moment, and confident that we can meet it.”

Let’s do this. If you can right now, please support Mother Jones and investigative journalism with an urgently needed donation today.

payment methods

AN IMPORTANT UPDATE

We’re falling behind our online fundraising goals and we can’t sustain coming up short on donations month after month. Perhaps you’ve heard? It is impossibly hard in the news business right now, with layoffs intensifying and fancy new startups and funding going kaput.

The crisis facing journalism and democracy isn’t going away anytime soon. And neither is Mother Jones, our readers, or our unique way of doing in-depth reporting that exists to bring about change.

Which is exactly why, despite the challenges we face, we just took a big gulp and joined forces with the Center for Investigative Reporting, a team of ace journalists who create the amazing podcast and public radio show Reveal.

If you can part with even just a few bucks, please help us pick up the pace of donations. We simply can’t afford to keep falling behind on our fundraising targets month after month.

Editor-in-Chief Clara Jeffery said it well to our team recently, and that team 100 percent includes readers like you who make it all possible: “This is a year to prove that we can pull off this merger, grow our audiences and impact, attract more funding and keep growing. More broadly, it’s a year when the very future of both journalism and democracy is on the line. We have to go for every important story, every reader/listener/viewer, and leave it all on the field. I’m very proud of all the hard work that’s gotten us to this moment, and confident that we can meet it.”

Let’s do this. If you can right now, please support Mother Jones and investigative journalism with an urgently needed donation today.

payment methods

We Recommend

Latest

Sign up for our free newsletter

Subscribe to the Mother Jones Daily to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

Get our award-winning magazine

Save big on a full year of investigations, ideas, and insights.

Subscribe

Support our journalism

Help Mother Jones' reporters dig deep with a tax-deductible donation.

Donate