Critical Issues in Criminal Justice

Featuring chapters written by various experts in the discipline, Critical Issues in Criminal Justice: Historical Perspectives provides students with well-researched information regarding vital developments in the field of criminal justice, all the while framing these developments with historical context and insight.

The book features five distinct sections. In Section I, chapters address the need for diversity in policing, the relationship between the economy, police staffing, and crime rates, use of force in policing, and terrorism. Section II offers chapters on the effects of mass incarceration on minorities and restorative justice. In Section III, students read about DNA evidence in court cases, the criminal justice system and the media, and the challenge of child pornography cases.

Section IV addresses special topics, including criminal justice education, immigration policy, PTSD and healing in criminal justice personnel, and transitional justice. The final section provides perspectives on implicit bias in law enforcement, juvenile justice in California, and new standards and principles for policing.

Critical Issues in Criminal Justice explores the history of the criminal justice system, both its trials and triumphs, in an effort to encourage future practitioners to learn from the past and move the discipline forward. It is ideal for criminal justice courses and programs.