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

Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back

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