A Brief Introduction to Criminal Justice: Practice and Process

A Brief Introduction to Criminal Justice: Practice and Process is a condensed version of the best-selling Introduction to Criminal Justice: Practice and Process by Kenneth J. Peak and Tamara D. Madensen-Herold. This new text uses a practical, applied approach to teach students the fundamentals of the U.S. criminal justice system in a concise and accessible format. The authors draw on their many years of combined practitioner and academic experience to explain the importance of criminal justice and show how key trends, emerging issues, and practical lessons can be applied in the field. This title is accompanied by a complete teaching and learning package.

Table of Contents:
PREFACE ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ABOUT THE AUTHORS PART I. CRIMINAL JUSTICE AS A SYSTEM: THE BASICS Chapter 1. Fundamentals of Criminal Justice: Essential Themes and Practices Introduction Foundations of Criminal Justice: Legal and Historical Bases Crime Control and Due Process: Do Ends Justify Means? Discretion: Making and Applying the Law The Criminal Justice Process: An Overview of Flow and Functions The Wedding Cake Model of Criminal Justice Ethics Throughout the Criminal Justice System In a Nutshell Key Terms & Concepts Review Questions Learn by Doing Chapter 2. Foundations of Law and Crime: Nature, Elements, and Measurement Introduction Common Law and Its Progeny Modern-Day Sources and Hierarchy of Law Criminal and Civil Law Substantive and Procedural Law Essential Elements: Mens Rea and Actus Reus Felonies and Misdemeanors Offense Definitions and Categories Measuring Crime and Victimization In a Nutshell Key Terms & Concepts Review Questions Learn by Doing Chapter 3. Ethical Essentials: Doing Right When No One Is Watching Introduction Good Examples of Bad Examples Philosophical Foundations Ethics in Policing “Random Acts of Kindness”: The Hidden Side of Police Work Ethics in the Courts Ethical Conduct of Federal Employees Ethics in Corrections Ethics Tests for the Criminal Justice Student In a Nutshell Key Terms & Concepts Review Questions Learn by Doing PART II. THE POLICE Chapter 4. Police Organization: Structure and Functions Introduction English and Colonial Roots: An Overview Policing Comes to the United States Federal Law Enforcement State Agencies Local Agencies: Municipal Police Departments and Sheriff’s Offices Interested in a Career? Some General Considerations On Guard: The Private Police In a Nutshell Key Terms & Concepts Review Questions Learn by Doing Chapter 5. Police Training, Patrolling, Investigating: Forming, Reforming, and Solving Introduction From Citizen to Patrol Officer Having the “Right Stuff”: Defining the Role Use of Discretion Community Policing and Problem Solving Use of Force: A Sacred Trust From Patrol Officer to Detective: The Work of Forensics and Investigators In a Nutshell Key Terms & Concepts Review Questions Learn by Doing Chapter 6. Expounding The Constitution: Laws of Arrest, Search, and Seizure Introduction The Fourth Amendment The Fifth Amendment The Sixth Amendment In a Nutshell Key Terms & Concepts Review Questions Learn by Doing PART III. THE COURTS Chapter 7. Court Organization: Structure, Functions, and the Trial Process Introduction American Courts: A Dual Court System State Courts Federal Courts Making Preparations: Pretrial Processes The Trial Process Technologies in the Courts In a Nutshell Key Terms & Concepts Review Questions Learn by Doing Chapter 8. The Bench and The Bar: Those Who Judge, Prosecute, and Defend Introduction Those Who Would Be Judges: Selection Methods and Issues Judges’ Benefits, Training, and Challenges The Art of Judging, Courtroom Civility, and Judicial Misconduct The Attorneys Courtroom Work Group Defenses In a Nutshell Key Terms & Concepts Review Questions Learn by Doing Chapter 9. Court Methods and Challenges: Sentencing and Punishment Introduction Purposes of Punishment Types of Sentences to Be Served Sentencing Guidelines Victim Impact Statements Capital Punishment Aggravating and Mitigating Circumstances Criminal Appeals In a Nutshell Key Terms & Concepts Review Questions Learn by Doing PART IV. CORRECTIONS Chapter 10. Prisons and Jails: Structure and Function Introduction Correctional Facilities as Organizations State Prisons as Organizations Federal Prisons Supermax Prisons Private Prisons Jails as Organizations Technologies in Correctional Facilities: Going After Contraband In a Nutshell Key Terms & Concepts Review Questions Learn by Doing Chapter 11. Corrections in the Community: Probation, Parole, and Other Alternatives to Incarceration Introduction Why Alternatives to Incarceration? Origins of Probation and Parole Probation and Parole Today Functions of Probation and Parole Officers Other Alternatives: Intermediate Sanctions Confronting Recidivists: The Risk-Need-Responsivity (RNR) Model Restorative Justice In a Nutshell Key Terms & Concepts Review Questions Learn by Doing PART V. EXTRAORDINARY PROBLEMS AND CHALLENGES Chapter 12. On the Crime Policy and Prevention Agenda: Drug Abuse, Sex Trafficking, Terrorism, and Immigration Introduction America’s Drug Epidemic Sex Trafficking Policing Terrorism Immigration: Who Should be Coming to America? In a Nutshell Key Terms & Concepts Review Questions Learn by Doing ASSESS YOUR AWARENESS ANSWERS GLOSSARY NOTES INDEX

About the Author :
Kenneth J. Peak, Ph.D., is a professor emeritus and former chairman of the criminal justice department at the University of Nevada, Reno, where he was named “Teacher of the Year” by the UNR Honor Society and also served as acting director of public safety. He has authored or coauthored more than 40 books on community policing, introductory policing, justice administration, introduction to criminal justice, women in law enforcement, and police supervision and management; two historical books (on bootlegging and temperance); and more than 60 journal articles and additional book chapters on a wide range of justice-related subjects. He has served as chairman of the Police Section, Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences and a past president of the Western Association of Criminal Justice. Prior to coming to UNR, Dr. Peak held positions as a municipal police officer, nine-county criminal justice planner; and director of a four-state Technical Assistance Institute. He also served twice as a chief of university police and as an assistant professor at Wichita State University (five years). He received two gubernatorial appointments to statewide criminal justice committees while in Kansas and holds a doctorate from the University of Kansas. Tamara D. Herold is an associate professor of criminal justice and graduate director at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). She holds a doctorate from the University of Cincinnati. Her research interests include crime opportunity structures, place management, and crowd violence. She is the recipient of UNLV’s Spanos Distinguished Teaching Award, Faculty Excellence Award, and Greenspun College of Urban Affairs Teaching Award. Her publications propose, extend, or test crime science theoretical models. They also help to translate research findings into practice and policy. Her work has appeared in various outlets, including Criminology and Justice Quarterly. She has published numerous practitioner-focused research papers, including two Problem-Oriented Policing Guides funded by the COPS Office and research monographs selected as Herman Goldstein Excellence in Problem-Oriented Policing Award finalists. Her book Preventing Crowd Violence (co-edited with Johannes Knutsson), has been translated into two foreign languages. Dr. Herold serves as director of UNLV’s Crowd Management Research Council, and conducts research and training for police agencies, major sports leagues, and private industries.