NCJ Number
135904
Date Published
1992
Length
679 pages
Annotation
This overview of the American criminal justice system discusses the nature of crime, criminals, and criminal justice; the criminal justice system's reaction to crime through the police and the courts; and the reaction to criminals through the corrections system.
Abstract
Part 1 discusses "Crime, Criminals, and Criminal Justice" and opens with a chapter on the problems of defining crime within the structure of law; it is followed by a chapter on problems involved in the measurement of the nature and extent of crime that has been committed. Other chapters in Part 1 discuss the nature of crimes and criminals, theories of crime causation, and the nature of criminal justice and criminal justice processing. Part 2, "Reacting to Crime," focuses on the police and the courts. Chapters on the police cover the history and goals of the police, the structure of law enforcement in America, police organization and operation, and issues in policing (police personality, the control of police behavior, police work, and police professionalism). One chapter reviews the history and development of the Federal and State courts followed by chapters on court personnel (judge, prosecutor, and defense attorney) and court procedures (plea bargaining, trials, and sentencing). Part 3, "Reacting to Criminals," contains three chapters on the history and operation of jails and prisons as well as alternatives to incarceration (parole, probation, community-based corrections, and alternative corrections for juveniles). Each chapter contains a summary, a list of key terms, a key case, and study questions as well as profiles of programs and policies related to the chapter topic. Notes and author and subject indexes