Controlling the Dangerous Classes: A History of Criminal Justice in America

Controlling the Dangerous Classes: A History of Criminal Justice in America
ISBN-10
0205571891
ISBN-13
9780205571895
Category
Law / Legal History
Pages
367
Language
English
Published
2008
Publisher
Pearson Allyn and Bacon
Author
Randall G. Shelden

Description

This text covers the history of criminal justice from a critical perspective and explores the historical biases of the criminal justice system.

The overall theme of this book is that both the making of laws and the interpretation and application of these laws throughout the history of the criminal justice system has, historically, been class, gender, and racially biased. Moreover, one of the major functions of the criminal justice system has been to control those from the most disadvantaged sectors of the population, that is, the “dangerous classes.” This theme is explored using a historical model, tracing the development of criminal law through the development of the police institution, the juvenile justice system, and the prison system.

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