This newly revised edition includes two new chapters exploring events in policing since the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, MO in 2014. More than summarizing historical events, Cooper contextualizes the subsequent riots in light of classic sociological theory and political philosophy, and offers a potential and compelling new direction for improving both police use of force and the relationship between police and communities.

Using Pennsylvania as a case-study, this book examines how BARJ legislation “trickles down” to the law enforcement level and affects police officer behavior, discretion, and decision-making processes.

Offering a diagnostic global perspective on police brutality, Towards Anti-policing: Prefiguring Possibilities beyond the Thin Blue Line raises critical questions about whether policing is needed at all and what underlying purpose it actually serves. In this post-pandemic era, where the grip of authoritarianism has only tightened, Towards Anti-policing positions radical grassroots activism as a first line of critical defiance against the ‘Fear Terror Paradigm’ of policing logics and the pervasive brutality that this form of community control represents.

Using Philadelphia as a case study, this book analyzes the evolution of predatory policing, attempts to curb aggressive practices, and the resultant chasm between reform efforts and the expansion of police discretion.

In Everyone a Sheriff, the word "sheriff" serves as a metaphor for programs involving citizens in social control initiatives. Partnership between community members and their local police force is at the heart of any effective strategy aimed at reducing urban crime and insecurity. Ordinary community residents represent a vast, untapped resource in the fight against crime, disorder, and fear. The real story of citizens long association with the policing function is revealed. The book highlights include: an in-depth examination of volunteerism primarily at the law enforcement level; the importance of preparing youth and minorities for careers in policing and homeland security; the need for transitioning police and citizen volunteers from serving not only as peacekeepers, but becoming "peacemakers"; a realistic view of various pitfalls when regular and volunteer police are thrust into patterns of co-existence when fighting crime out on the street or seeking solutions to crime; numerous examples of current police-sponsored citizen academies, police cadet and junior deputy programs; histories of the invention of police and citizen-supported neighborhood crime watch programs. The only way to successfully cross the divide between the police and public is to give meaning to the phrase: "the police are the people, and the people are the police."

Brian Behnken offers a sweeping examination of the interactions between Mexican-origin people and law enforcement—both legally codified police agencies and extralegal justice—across the U.S. Southwest (especially Arizona, California, New Mexico, and Texas) from the 1830s to the 1930s. Representing a broad, colonial regime, police agencies and extralegal groups policed and controlled Mexican-origin people to maintain state and racial power in the region, treating Mexicans and Mexican Americans as a "foreign" population that they deemed suspect and undesirable. White Americans justified these perceptions and the acts of violence that they spawned with racist assumptions about the criminality of Mexican-origin people, but Behnken details the many ways Mexicans and Mexican Americans responded to violence, including the formation of self-defense groups and advocacy organizations. Others became police officers, vowing to protect Mexican-origin people from within the ranks of law enforcement. Mexican Americans also pushed state and territorial governments to professionalize law enforcement to halt abuse. The long history of the border region between the United States and Mexico has been one marked by periodic violence, but Behnken shows us in unsparing detail how Mexicans and Mexican Americans refused to stand idly by in the face of relentless assault.

With an engaging and balanced approach, former police officer and policing scholar Willard M. Oliver encourages students to think critically about the role of the police and the practice of policing in American society today. Policing America builds a basic understanding of contemporary police practices upon a foundation of essential theory and research. In a readable style, the author offers a contextual understanding of concepts in policing, supported by academic research, and balanced with the voice of the American police officer. New to the Third Edition: Updated with new statistics and research Carefully streamlined and edited to ensure teachability and accuracy Current policing journal articles findings included and cited Discussion of the modern political movement of “defunding the police” and how this impacts both the police and the community Coverage of the use of video doorbell technology and its effect on policing Professors and students will benefit from: Succinct yet thorough treatment of all policing topics, with a balanced approach that emphasizes contemporary policing Discussion of best policing practices and research Real-world issues highlighted in text boxes Hypotheticals that exemplify theory in practice in every chapter A design for learning that includes charts, graphics, and summaries of key points A focus on encouraging students to think critically about the role of policing in today’s society