Crime and Punishment in the U.S.

Clear, comprehensible, and authoritative treatment of the core aspects of criminal justice that should prove both accessible and engaging to nonspecialist readers. Essays focus on types of crimes, apprehension of wrongdoers, criminal trials, and types of punishment to give the set a sharply defined focus on crime and punishment. The set gives special attention to criminals: Who they are, what types of crimes they commit, what motivates them, the impact of their criminal activities on society, and the cost to them of their criminal activities.

There are 40 core articles on specific categories of crime--ranging from animal abuse and arson to vandalism and white-collar crime. Each of these articles includes profiles of perpetrators of these crimes and summarizes what typically becomes of them. Nearly 100 articles pertain to issues on criminal defendants and about 45 articles on attorneys, judges, and trial procedures. A third thrust of the set is on corrections--sentencing, punishment, prison systems, prison conditions, and parole and pardons--subjects to which it devotes about 47 essays. Finally, the set contains 20 articles on municipal, state, and federal law-enforcement agencies, including specific agencies such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Coast Guard. These and other essays cover the relationships among these agencies, as well as their investigative work, specific functions, and arrests and other procedures.