Norval Morris, 80; Law Professor, Expert on Criminal Justice
Norval Morris, 80, a former dean of the University of Chicago Law School and internationally recognized expert on criminal justice and prison reform, died of heart failure Saturday at Chicago’s Mercy Hospital.
A professor of law and criminology, he wrote extensively about criminal justice reform and worked with the United Nations on issues involving the treatment of criminals. He also advocated education and training programs for prison inmates.
Morris directed the university’s Center for Studies in Criminal Justice from 1965 to 1975, and served as dean from 1975 to 1978.
Born in Auckland, New Zealand, he served in the Australian army during World War II.
He graduated from the University of Melbourne and earned his doctorate in criminology at the London School of Economics in 1949. From 1950 to 1958, he was on the faculty of the University of Melbourne.
From 1962 to 1964, Morris was director of the U.N. Institute for the Prevention of Crime and Treatment of Offenders in Tokyo.
He joined the University of Chicago faculty in 1964 and was a visiting professor at several U.S. educational institutions, including Harvard Law School.
Morris was the author of several books and the editor of “The Oxford History of the Prison: The Practice of Punishment in Western Society.”
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