The criminal justice system is a key social institution pertinent to the lives of citizens everywhere. Fundamentals of Criminal Justice: A Sociological View, Second Edition provides a unique social context to explore and explain the nature, impact, and significance of the criminal justice system in everyday life. This introductory text examines important sociological issues including class, race, and gender inequality, social control, and organizational structure and function.

The criminal justice system is a key social institution pertinent to the lives of citizens everywhere. Fundamentals of Criminal Justice: A Sociological View, Second Edition provides a unique social context to explore and explain the nature, impact, and significance of the criminal justice system in everyday life. This introductory text examines important sociological issues including class, race, and gender inequality, social control, and organizational structure and function.

Introduction to Criminal Justice is the first textbook to approach theories and practices of criminal justice from a sociological perspective. It empowers students to develop expertise in criminal justice and understand how its central tenets are informed by broader sociological principles and concepts, such as power, race, gender, and class. This text is organized around five themes: justice, police, courts, corrections, and crime control. Offering both foundational and contemporary texts, theoretical and empirical discussions, and quantitative and qualitative approaches, the readings underscore the inextricable relationship between social structures and the criminal justice system. This comprehensive text will expose students to some of the best thinking and research in the field.

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Providing an overview of the sociological approaches to law and criminal justice, this book focuses on how law and the criminal justice system inevitably affect one another, and the ways in which both are intimately connected with wider social forces.

This current collection of essays on contemporary U.S. criminal justice policy is a timely response to the significant recent growth of policy-oriented research in the fields of criminology and criminal justice. "U.S. Criminal Justice Policy: A Contemporary Reader" addresses how criminal justice policy issues are framed, identifies participants in the policy process, discusses how policy is made, and considers the constraints and opportunities found in the policy process. Findings are linked to broader institutional, cultural and global criminal justice trends, and are used to determine what recent research reveals about crime policy and democratic governance. The main goal of this book is to encourage readers to engage in a dialogue about criminal justice policy, and to think about the potential for criminal justice reform.

For all courses in introduction to criminology, crime and society, introduction to criminal justice, and related fields. Taking a sociological perspective, this book offers award-winning coverage of criminology and highlights issues of race, ethnicity, gender and social class throughout. Criminology: A Sociological Understanding, 6e, provides a sociological perspective on crime and criminal justice by treating social structure and social inequality as central themes in the study of crime-and major factors in society's treatment of criminals. It gives explicit attention to key sociological concepts such as poverty, gender, race, and ethnicity, and demonstrates their influence on crime. Moving beyond simple "get tough" approaches, the book emphasizes the need to understand social causes of criminal behavior in order to significantly reduce it. This sixth edition continues to include certain chapters that remain uncommon in other criminology texts, including Chapter 2: Public Opinion, the News Media, and the Crime Problem; Chapter 11: Violence Against Women; Chapter 14: Political Crime; and Chapter 18: Conclusion: How Can We Reduce Crime? In addition, the book's criminal justice chapters, Chapter 16 (Policing: Dilemmas of Crime Control in a Democratic Society) and Chapter 17 (Prosecution and Punishment), continue to address two central themes in the sociological understanding of crime and criminal justice: (1) the degree to which race and ethnicity, gender, and social class affect the operation of the criminal justice system; and (2) the extent to which reliance on the criminal justice system can reduce the amount of crime. Throughout the text, key concepts are supported with a comprehensive package of pedagogical material and teaching/learning aids. Teaching and Learning Experience This book offers a unique sociological introduction to the field of criminology. It provides: A unique sociological perspective: Emphasizes the need to understand social causes of criminal behavior in order to significantly reduce it Award-winning coverage: Features topics not covered in other introductory criminology texts Strong pedagogical features: Gives students the tools to master key concepts faster and more effectively while making class preparation quick and easy for instructors

A unique sociological introduction to the field of criminology with award-winning coverage that highlights issues of race, ethnicity, gender, and social class Criminology: A Sociological Understanding, Sixth Edition, provides a sociological perspective on crime and criminal justice by treating social structure and social inequality as central themes in the study of crime and major factors in society's treatment of criminals. It pays explicit attention to key sociological concepts such as poverty, gender, race, and ethnicity, and demonstrates their influence on crime. Moving beyond simple get tough approaches, the book emphasizes the need to understand social causes of criminal behavior in order to significantly reduce it. The Sixth Edition continues to include chapters that remain uncommon in other criminology texts, and addresses two central themes in the sociological understanding of crime and criminal justice: (1) the degree to which race and ethnicity, gender, and social class affect the operation of the criminal justice system; and (2) the extent to which reliance on the criminal justice system can reduce the amount of crime. Throughout the text, pedagogical features give students the tools to master key concepts faster and more effectively while making class preparation quick and easy for instructors. "

This thoroughly revised and updated Second Edition provides a clear and concise introduction to the American criminal justice system in an engaging and accessible format. It examines the people and processes that make up the system and how they interact. It also covers the historic context of the criminal justice system so that students will understand how and why we developed the system that is in place today. Updated throughout, the authors include thematic boxes to pique students' interest with current and relevant topics that were drawn from today's news, court cases that range from those that established the fundamentals of the due process to those that are provocative and controversial, and from personal commentaries by those who work in the criminal justice system. This Second Edition provides contemporary data and updated case studies and references for all topics, and will help your students understand the relationships between the police, the courts, and corrections.Criminal Justice: The Essentials, Second Edition will provide your undergraduate students a framework for thinking about crime and justice, aid them in becoming familiar with the terminology of the criminal justice system, and ulimately help them understand how and why the American criminal justice system works as it does.Instructors resources will include Microsoft PowerPoint lecture slides, test bank, and an instructor's manual with lecture outlines and discussion questions. There will also be a companion website packed with a rich variety of interactive study tools for students.

Introduction to the Criminal Justice System: A Practical Perspective examines the basic organization, structure, and function of the criminal justice system, while also illuminating contemporary issues and barriers that can delay, prevent, or impact the system's function of achieving justice. Through stories from the field and discussions of everyday challenges, students are introduced to the criminal justice system through a uniquely practical lens. The text is organized into five parts. In Part I, students learn foundational information about the American criminal justice system, crime and its impact, and criminal law and criminal justice. Part II explores the history of law enforcement, its organization and structure, and police and the law. In Part III, students read about the structure and organization of criminal courts, the pretrial and trial process, and sentencing, including the death penalty. Part IV speaks to community corrections and institutional corrections. Part V provides insights on juvenile justice and delinquency. In the final part, students consider the future of the criminal justice discipline and system. Introduction to the Criminal Justice System is ideal for foundational courses in criminal justice, sociology, and social work. Francis Williams has served as a practitioner, researcher, scholar, public speaker, and educator on issues of prevention programs, security, law enforcement, police and community relations, race and crime, and crime policy for over 38 years. He holds a Ph.D. from Northeastern University, a M.Ed. from Cambridge College, and is the program coordinator and a professor of criminal justice at Plymouth State University. Laura Dykstra is an assistant professor of criminal justice at Plymouth State University. She received her M.A. and Ph.D. in criminology and criminal justice from the University of Maryland, College Park. Her research interests include drug-related crime, mental health, research methodology, and violent crime and victimization, especially among young adults.