Understanding Today's Police.

Policing in today's society involves a host of complexities never experienced, even in the recent past. Understanding and articulating these complexities can, at times, prove to be an overwhelming task. Many law enforcement text books that adequately discuss the theoretical aspects of the job fail to shed light on coping with these complexities by applying those theories to everyday policing.

Understanding Today's Police goes beyond theory and offers readers thought-provoking and realistic examples of everyday police work. Throughout the text, the author presents a wide variety of "case in point" discussions depicting examples of real life situations that have occurred in policing, which help illustrate more conceptual points made in the text.

The book begins with an overview of the role of law enforcement in society. This introduction provides the foundation for the remainder of the text by summarizing the various roles of the police and by providing readers with a brief history of American policing. However, as the author makes clear, this historical perspective serves only as a backdrop to the main focus of the text - an in-depth examination of the roles and functions of today's police and the challenges that will face the police of tomorrow.

To encourage readers to think critically about the different components of the discussion, the author includes a "Do You Know" section after each chapter. The questions posed in each of these sections challenge readers to go beyond a surface understanding of the points discussed in the preceding chapter. Many of the questions invite readers to think in terms of how the issues discussed might affect their local agencies.

The author also uses a systems approach to discuss policing. He examines policing from a federal, state, and local perspective. The reader then can dissect and explore components of the criminal justice system at each of these levels.

The text goes on to provide a broad examination of the various areas of policing, including patrol, criminal investigations, organization and management, police and the law, police discretion, police personalities, personnel issues, and police-community relations. Throughout the discussion of these issues, the author underscores the relationship of the police to other sectors of the criminal justice system.

In the final chapter, the author discusses issues that affect policing today and explores influences that likely will impact it in the future. The discussion encourages readers to ask critical questions about the future role of policing in society. The chapter concludes with a brief essay on the criteria the author considers necessary to enhance the professional status of policing.

Throughout the text, the author provides an overview of the police research relevant to the topics under discussion. Each chapter concludes with a list of additional resources to which readers can refer to enhance their knowledge of particular topics.

Understanding Today's Police provides a rich learning experience for students and newly sworn law enforcement officers. In addition, the book offers valuable insights for veteran officers wishing to update their knowledge and understanding of the profession. This well-written book provides a comprehensive review of policing today and examines critical issues that will impact it in the future.

Reviewed by Sgt. Michael L. Birzer, M.A. Sedgwick County Sheriff's Department Wichita, Kansas