Crime & Criminal Justice

What do O. J. Simpson, the Lindbergh baby, and Gary Gilmore have in common? They were all the focus of famous crimes and/or trials in the United States. In this two-volume set, historical and contemporary cases that not only shocked the nation but that also became a part of the popular and legal culture of the United States are discussed in vivid, and sometimes shocking, detail. Each chapter focuses on a different crime or trial and explores the ways in which each became famous in its own time. The fascinating cast of characters, the outrageous crimes, the involvement of the media, the actions of the police, and the trials that often surprised combine to offer here one of the most comprehensive sets of books available on the subject of famous U.S. crimes and trials.

The criminal justice system is complicated--Understand it and your rights. Criminal law is full of complex rules and procedures, but this book demystifies them. It explains how the system works, why police, lawyers, and judges do what they do, and--most important--the options for suspects, defendants, and victims. It also provides critical information on working with a lawyer.

Legal Reference material located at the Penrose Library, 20 N. Cascade Ave.

The topics discussed in this criminal law outline are elements of crimes (including actus reus, mens rea, and causation), vicarious liability, complicity in crime, criminal liability of corporations, and defenses (including insanity, diminished capacity, intoxication, ignorance, and self-defense). Also included are inchoate crimes, homicide, other crimes against the person, crimes against habitation (including burglary and arson), crimes against property, offenses against the government, and offenses against the administration of justice.

In the United States today, one in every thirty-one adults is under some form of penal control, including one in eleven African American men. How did the "land of the free" become the home of the world's largest prison system? Challenging the belief that America's prison problem originated with the Reagan administration's War on Drugs, Elizabeth Hinton traces the rise of mass incarceration to an ironic source: the social welfare programs of Lyndon Johnson's Great Society at the height of the civil rights era.