Edited by the chief librarian and associate dean at John Jay College of Criminal Justice and professor of criminal justice at City University of New York, Encyclopedia of Law Enforcement provides a thorough overview of law enforcement in the U.S and around the world. According to the introduction, the public's view of policing is significantly influenced by the popular media, which oversimplifies police work; therefore, there is "an urgent need for providing students and the general interested public balanced information on what law enforcement does, with all of its ramifications." The encyclopedia's aim "is to survey the entire field of law enforcement and to be as comprehensive as possible."

The more than 550 alphabetically arranged entries were written by 300 law enforcement scholars and practitioners. Entries are signed and include a list of recommended readings and cross-references. The work is well organized into three volumes. Volume 1 is dedicated to issues related to law enforcement at the state and local levels, and volume 2 focuses on the federal level. Volume 3 examines policing in the international arena, covering approximately 160 countries. As indicated in the topical "Reader's Guide," the text covers an extensive range of broad subject areas, including "Civilian/Private Involvement," "Federal Agencies/Organizations," "International Law Enforcement," "Personnel Issues," and "Police Procedures." Examples of specific entries include Affirmative action in policing, AMBER Alert, America's Most Wanted, Federal Bureau of Investigation , and INTERPOL. Controversial issues are not ignored, and there are entries on topics such as Civil rights violations by police; Police misconduct ; and Profiling, racial. In addition to the main text, each volume has its own extensive bibliography of scholarly, news, government, and Internet sources. An appendix in volume 2 contains articles on policing issues for 1989-2003 from the Law Enforcement News . Each volume has a comprehensive "Master Index."

The Encyclopedia of Law Enforcement is a valuable contribution to the field of criminal justice. It is accessible to students and general readers and should be particularly useful for correcting misconceptions about police work. It is recommended for academic and large public libraries. Michelle Hendley
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Review

"This unique encyclopedia is separated into three volumes: State and Local, which covers aspects of policing applicable to the lives of every-day citizens; Federal and National, which emphasizes laws, organizations, and initiatives on a nation-wide scale; and International, which delves into law enforcement practices around the world. Though Sullivan (government, emeritus, John Jay Coll. of Criminal Justice) is the overall editor of the set, each volume boasts its own distinguished editors as well as a corps of academic writers.  Volume 3 is uniquely valuable: there is currently no comparable source, with its articles-maps included-on police function in more than 150 countries...aimed at the general reader, law enforcement practitioners, students, and academics, the encyclopedia aims to create a more nuanced understanding of law enforcement than the one available from news media and television shows and to serve as a resource for "law enforcement as a serious academic study [now] in its second generation." Recommended for both specialized and general collections."
(Janice Dunham Library Journal )

"The Encyclopedia of Law Enforcement provides a through overview of law enforcement in the U.S. and around the world. . . .  The Encyclopedia of Law Enforcement is a valuable contribution to the field of criminal justice. It is accessible to students and general readers and should be particularly useful for correcting misconceptions about police work. It is recommended for academic and large public libraries." (Michelle Hendley BOOKLIST )

More than 300 academic and professional experts have contributed 568 essays addressing such topics as civilian involvement in law enforcement, uniform crime reports, response time, drug enforcement, racial profiling, vehicle searches and whistle-blowing. . . . this set is suitable for both academic and public libraries. (John R.M. Lawrence, Reference Librarian )

"The thematic divisions offers a fine focus on different types of policing, with entries on the law enforcement system and process covering laws, areas of enforcement, legal history and more. From entries on international terrorism to drunk driving, over three hundred contributors of scholars, researchers and practitioners in different areas of law enforcement provide a reference packed with material essential for understanding the system: agencies and organizations, investigation techniques, military issues, conduct and ethical questions and much more, from the general to the specialized topic. An outstanding library reference." (MIDWEST BOOK REVIEW )

"The weight 3-volume ENCYCLOPEDIA OF LAW ENFORCEMENT isn't for the general lending collectiion but is a special and ongoing recommendation for the college collection with courses strong in criminal justice. Each volume is divided by law area: V. 1 covers State and Local, V. 2 is Federal and V. 3 is international. The thematic divisions offers a fine focus on different types of policing, with entries on the law enforcement system and process covering laws, areas of enforcement, legal history and more. From entries on international terrorism to drunk driving, over three hundred contributors of scholars, researchers and practitioners in different areas of law enforcement provide a reference packed with material essential for understanding the system: agencies and organizations, investigation techniques, military issues, conduct and ethical questions and much more, from the general to the specialized topic. An outstanding library reference." (James A. Cox The Midwest Book Review ) 






# Hardcover: 1736 pages
# Publisher: Sage Publications, Inc; 1 edition (December 15, 2004)
# Language: English
# ISBN-10: 0761926496
# ISBN-13: 978-0761926498