Punishing Disease: HIV and the Criminalization of Sickness

347 Pages·2017·6.22 MB·English

by  Trevor Hoppe

Punishing Disease
The publisher and the University of California Press Foundation
gratefully acknowledge the generous support of the Anne G. Lipow
Endowment Fund in Social Justice and Human Rights.
Punishing Disease
HIV and the Criminalization of Sickness
Trevor Hoppe
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESS
University of California Press, one of the most distinguished university presses
in the United States, enriches lives around the world by advancing scholarship in
the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. Its activities are supported
by the UC Press Foundation and by philanthropic contributions from individuals
and institutions. For more information, visit www.ucpress.edu.
University of California Press
Oakland, California
© 2018 by The Regents of the University of California Design/Art Direction:
Jonathan Lefrançois and Pulp & Pixel. Illustrations: Justin Karas for Pulp &
Pixel.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Hoppe, Trevor,
1983– author.
Title: Punishing disease : HIV and the criminalization of sickness /
Trevor Hoppe.
Description: Oakland, California : University of California Press,
[2018] | Includes bibliographical references and index. | Identifiers:
LCCN 2017020960 (print) | LCCN 2017023297 (ebook) | ISBN
9780520965300 (ebook) | ISBN 9780520291584 (cloth : alk. paper)
| ISBN 9780520291607 (pbk. : alk. paper) Subjects: LCSH: AIDS
(Disease)—Social aspects—United States. | AIDS (Disease)—Law
and legislation—United States.
Classification: LCC RA643.83 (ebook) | LCC RA643.83 .H67 2018 (print) |
DDC 362.19697/92—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017020960
Manufactured in the United States of America
26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Contents
List of Illustrations
Acknowledgments
Introduction. Punishment: AIDS in the Shadow of an American Institution
PART ONE. PUNITIVE DISEASE CONTROL
1. Controlling Typhoid Mary
2. “HIV Stops with Me”
3. The Public Health Police
PART TWO. THE CRIMINALIZATION OF SICKNESS
4. Making HIV a Crime
5. HIV on Trial
6. Victim Impact
Conclusion. Punishing Disease
Appendix 1. Methods: On Analyzing the Anatomy of a Social Problem
Appendix 2. State HIV Bills
Notes
Index
Illustrations
FIGURES
1. Coercion and punishment timeline
2. Google Ngrams for “AIDS victims” and “people living with HIV,” 1980–
2008
3. HIV Stops With Me ad: “I disclose with honesty.”
4. HIV Stops With Me ad: “I am the cure.”
5. HIV Stops With Me ad: “I believe in responsibility.”
6. Undetectable = Uninfectious
7. HIV testing campaign: “Testing makes us stronger.”
8. HIV testing campaign: “My reasons for getting an HIV test.”
9. HIV testing campaign: “Get a free HIV test.”
10. HIV Stops with Me ad: “Detectable/Undetectable”
11. Sample client acknowledgment form
12. Model warning letter
13. HTTO identification
14. HIV-specific criminal legislation, by state
15. HIV on trial: Number of cases in Michigan and Tennessee, by year
16. Total number and moving average of HIV convictions in six states, by
year
17. Average prison and probation sentences in six states, by number of
months, 1992–2015
18. Average prison and probation sentences in six states, by gender, race, and
gender by race
19. Average prison sentences by trial and plea in three states, by gender, race,
and gender by race
20. Average prison sentences in three states, by sexuality (men) and sexuality
by race (men)
21. Average prison sentences by trial and plea in three states, by sexuality
(men) and sexuality by race (men)
22. HIV Stops with the State
TABLES
1. What do health officials think about Michigan’s “health threat” laws?
2. HIV on trial: By the numbers
3. Descriptive statistics of the population of convicted defendants
4. Estimated rates of conviction per 10,000 HIV-positive diagnoses in five
states