Current Issues in American Law Enforcement: Controversies and Solutions

"Through the years, the police have performed the time-honored functions of controlling crime, maintaining law and order, and providing services. This comprehensive book redefines the police role in many communities, especially as police departments have moved toward the creation of a partnership with citizens, private agencies and other community service departments. Major topics include: (1) an added major development in the external review of police conduct with anticipation that police review boards will become more prevalent; (2) the fact that internal review will still be an important process of the organizational response to police misconduct acknowledging Internal Affairs is here to stay; (3) the trend for the courts at the federal level to intervene with Consent Decrees, Memorandums of Understanding, and Technical Assistance letters in cities from coast to coast; and (4) the use of deadly force that has reached the point where it is viewed as a recurrent police problem. Major cases such as the Rodney King beating, the Louima case, the James Byrd case, and the Matthew Shepard case are examined to see how these issues impacted our operational and legal system. The book also addresses the issues of profiling and vehicular pursuit that remain a major issue in many communities, and while remedies have cured some of these problems, it still remains a major issue. The text also focuses on the inroads that women in policing are making as more females enter law enforcement and ascend to positions of higher power. Law enforcement professionals, policymakers, investigators, attorneys, and the general public will find the book to be of special interest"--BOOK JACKET.