Collective Morality And Crime In The Americas

This book examines the nature of collective morality as it materializes in public commentary about crime in the Americas and identifies the ways in which the moral community is talked into being and how the imagined moral universe is mapped.

The second edition of Crime Policy in America describes the process of policy-making and the substantive nature of policy directions in crime and justice in America, particularly from the beginning of the 1970s. This book examines the nature of presidential policy-making in crime and justice from Nixon to Obama, congressional policy-making since the birth of the Bill of Rights, and judicial policy-making since the promulgation of the Judicial Act of 1789. The perspective of this book is deeply historical, sociological, and legalistic. Historically, the book has explored the evolution of different policy strategies at different periods of American history; sociologically, it scrutinized the impact of the get-tough policy paradigm on crime and justice, and from a legal perspective it has examined the conflict and the consensus of Congress and the federal judiciary on different issues of crime and justice from drug crimes to sex crimes to counterterrorism. The second edition of the book has particularly illuminated the changing directions of US crime policy from the dominance of the “get tough” approach in the 1980s and 1990s to a more balanced approach to crime control and prevention in the beginning of the 21sr century.

The great waves of foreign immigration, the onset of rapid industrialization, the emergence of an urban working class--all features of the post Civil War United States that might have contributed to rising crime rates--did not. Ted Robert Gurr suggests that a growth of the "civilizing process" occurred in which people turned away from violence and internalized or displaced aggressive impulses. The process began among upper socio-economic groups and was given institutional expression in various reform movements. Beginning in the 1920s, the educated classes in America repudiated moral improvement as it had been defined during the preceding century. Child rearing views began to change in the 1920s. Character development was replaced with personality development. By the 1960s, the baby boom generation had come of age. The psychology of radical individualism and the philosophy of individual rights triumphed. The factors that most directly influence crime (family structure, moral development, the level of personal freedom) are the very things that U.S. citizens do not easily change or, for persuasive reasons, do not wish to change. Law becomes more important as informal social control becomes less important. Thousands of neighborhood organizations and civic enterprises have emerged from a desire to reduce crime by direct popular action. This recourse to informal communal action has grown out of a reaffirmed allegiance to a communal theory of social control. (SM)

Saney cogently argues that in the absence of adequate support within social and legal norms, a heavy burden is placed upon the criminal justice system, a burden that it cannot carry. Criminal law and the courts fail to provide for either swiftness or certainty of punishment; police have failed to overcome the basic American distrust of authority to gain the comparable support enjoyed by police in other countries; and the penal system operates under contradictory goals, isolated from public view or support. The final chapter presents a succinct set of proposals for changing the justice system to one that would be humane and more just. Choice This thought-provoking study of the crime problem in America provides an in-depth look at the sociological forces that are dominant in today's society and examines the possible influence of certain contemporary values and perceptions on criminal activity, the quality of justice in the American courts, and the attitude of the general public. The author discusses the various factors that can affect or encourage criminal behavior and relates these directly to the way people feel and respond to the incidence of crime and its punishment, and to a growing lack of confidence in the criminal justice system. Crime in America is first presented in a factual context, followed by a discussion of its cultural influences, and finally with a consideration of its criminal law aspects.

An Introduction to Criminal Law walks readers through a chronological and simplistic (yet detailed) dissection of the legal labyrinth. The comprehensive principles of criminal law are explained step-by-step with a focus on the professional applications of legal principles within the criminal justice system. Full of practical hands-on exercises, this resource is ideal for introductory undergraduate courses in criminal justice programs.

In a panoramic history of our criminal justice system from Colonial times to today, one of our foremost legal thinkers shows how America fashioned a system of crime and punishment in its own image.

Intended for an undergraduate criminal law course within a criminal justice program, A Brief Introduction to Criminal Law, Second Edition provides a gentle introduction to the subject ideal for students that do not intend to pursue law school. The principles of criminal law are explained step-by-step with a focus on the professional applications of legal principles within the criminal justice system. The second edition contains more and updated case studies, additional coverage of consitutional law and terrorism, and enhanced figures and tables. Written in a conversational tone, A Brief Introduction to Criminal Law, Second Edition is the ideal resource for undergraduate students taking a criminal law course.

Surveys the history of criminal justice and punishment in the United States, drawing on source materials ranging from the 1654 Maryland Public Morality Codes to trial transcripts from the O.J. Simpson Trial.

Through an examination of violent neighborhoods this book shows how criminals affect local politics in Colombia, Brazil, and Jamaica.