Text and Materials on the Criminal Justice Process 4th ed

Text and Materials on the Criminal Justice Process provides a critical account of the criminal justice system, looking specifically at the role and impact of major players and institutions involved in each of the key decision-making stages.

The topic of criminal justice is an area fit for intense debate. This book contains a wide and varied selection of materials: statutes, case law, empirical research and official and unofficial reports, as well as commonwealth comparative material, theoretical perspectives, and academic comment. These materials are drawn together and given clear and thorough reference in the illuminating narrative, providing a deep and rich perspective on the criminal justice process in England and Wales today.

The text enables students to discover that this is a subject with no 'right' answers. Nicola Padfield directs the student on to further reading, and a case-study running throughout the book emphasises the practical reality of the criminal justice process.

New to this edition:-

• Whilst keeping the 'materials' clearly separate, the author's own commentary has been expanded
• Covers the broadening of police powers in the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 Focuses on the continuing debate over the constitutional status and organisational structures of police forces
• Discusses the impact of the re-involvement of the Crown Prosecution Service in charging decisions
• Considers the changing role of the magistrates' court and jury since the enactment of the CJA 2003
• Examines the impact of the Criminal Procedure Rules 2005
• Reviews the effects of the European Union, the European Court of Human Rights and other extra-national bodies on criminal justice
• Takes stock of the increasing complexity of sentencing law
• Includes the role of prisons, probation and the National Offender Management Service in the enforcement of sentences