A Primer in the Politics of Criminal Justice

A host of new classroom-friendly features have been added to the greatly expanded second edition of this concise, lively overview of the politics of criminal justice. Seamlessly integrating concepts and findings from the disciplines of political science and criminology, the new edition offers chapters on: · campaigns and elections includes summaries of key crime-related issues raised in each presidential election campaign since the 1960s;· chief executives includes a review of anti-crime policy initiatives in presidential administrations from John F. Kennedy s to George W. Bush s;· legislatures includes a digest of major federal anti-crime legislation enacted since the 1960s;· courts includes an analysis of the structure and role of the judicial systems and their impact on criminal justice policies;· bureaucracies includes descriptions of the most important federal criminal justice agencies;· interest groups includes a guide to the most prominent national criminal justice interest groups; and,· media and public opinion includes an overview of opinion surveys on the most controversial criminal justice policy issues, plus analysis of the role of the media in shaping those opinions.Responses to the recent rise of Internet-related crime provide real-world examples of the political processes described in each chapter. Each chapter provides a list of key concepts and a set of review questions. Includes a comprehensive bibliography and an index. An instructor s manual is available.