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Taming the System

The Control of Discretion in Criminal Justice, 1950-1990

Samuel Walker author

Format:Hardback

Publisher:Oxford University Press Inc

Published:29th Jul '93

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Taming the System cover

Since the American Bar Foundation Survey of the Administration of Criminal Justice (1953 - 1969) "discovered" the phenomenon of discretion in criminal justice, it has become something of a truism that the administration of criminal justice in the United States consists of a series of discretionary decisions by officials in regard to police discretion, bail, plea bargaining and sentencing. This book is a history of the attempts over the past forty years to control these discretionary powers in the criminal justice system. Walker brings together an enormous literature in a synthesis that will be of great value to professionals, reformers and students of the criminal justice system. In a field which largely produces short-ranged "evaluation research", this study, in taking a wider approach, distinguishes between the role of the courts and the role of administrative bodies (the police) and evaluates the longer-term trends and the successful reforms in criminal justice history.

"Displays a formidable command of the relevant literature...A concise and balanced overview of a critical dimension in the operation of the criminal justice system."--CHOICE "[A] comprehensive, very well-organized, and informative account..."--Contemporary Sociology "With such titles as Popular Justice: A History of American Criminal Justice (1980) and In Defense of American Liberties: A History of the ACLU (1990), Samuel Walker secured his status as a major voice in criminal justice history. Taming the System buttresses his reputation by demonstrating once again his considerable strengths: mastery of the topic, clear and effective prose, well-crafted arguments, [and] sound conclusions."--The Journal of American History

ISBN: 9780195078206

Dimensions: 218mm x 147mm x 21mm

Weight: 413g

208 pages