Origins
Since the beginning of 2020, the world is confronted to the spread of COVID-19. The repercussions from the health crisis itself and from the implementation of emergency measures are many and diverse. Health and safety challenges, as well as changes in lifestyle have affected different aspects of crime and the criminal justice system (e.g. police, courts, prisons, probation).
This exceptional historical period has prompted many researchers to analyze the evolution of the crisis originated by the pandemic and its consequences from different perspectives.
At the latest ESC conference in September 2020, several researchers already presented papers related to the COVID-19 pandemic, which raised the idea of creating a forum of discussion on that topic for criminologists.