Policing And Violence

Policing and Violence

This comprehensive, accurate, and timely account of police violence provides readers with a complete understanding of the concept and all that it entails--covering its history to future directions, and ten different areas of police violence. Each chapter in the reader addresses police violence as it is used "by" and "against" officers, and all highly competent contributing authors (including both practitioners and academics) have a strong background in the various areas. Chapter topics examine the research surrounding violent acts, the reasons officers feel justified in using excessive force, an account of situational factors affecting an officer's likelihood to use or be the victim of violence, measurements of deadly force, training issues, the importance of officer pursuits, violence and the community policing philosophy, and international rates of violent police-citizen encounters and the differences between countries. For use in the police academy--and by the ACLU, citizen action groups, and civilian review boards.From the Back CoverEvery day, somewhere in the United States, there is a violent event involving a police officer. Although sometimes on the recipient side of the violence, often the officer is the one contributing to the violence. Despite the fact that the violent action by the officer may be justifiable, any violent act brings unwanted, and often unwarranted, criticisms against the police. The criticism can usually be attributed to the lack of understanding by critics about the context of policing and violence. Policing and Violence is an introduction and attempt to better explain the how and why of police violence.In Policing and Violence, Drs. Ronald Burns and Charles Crawford and co-authors, throughout the text review the history and context of police violence in an effort to identify the possible explanations for its existence. The underlying theme is that while not condoned, there are times that violence by police may be necessary, and should be better understood.Policing and Violence represents an in-depth examination of policing and violence through the perspectives of respected academics and practitioners. This text will help broaden the readers understanding of the relationship between the police and violence.About the Author"Ronald G. Burns" received his Ph.D. from the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Florida State University. He is an assistant professor of criminal justice in the Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice at Texas Christian University. His most recent publications appeared in "Police Quarterly; Police Practice and Research; Crime, Law and Social Change; Studies in Symbolic Interaction; Sociological Spectrum;" and "Environment and Behavior." His primary research interests center on police violence and media construction of crime. Recent research includes an examination of image shaping on behalf of the Food and Drug Administration and an observation of the factors related to a suspect resisting arrest."Charles E. Crawford" is an associate professor of sociology at Western Michigan University. He recently published in the areas of gender and sentencing, prison sexual violence, suspect resistance at arrest, and racial profiling. His current research involves the study of situational factors in police use of force and racial and pretextual stops. He conducts evaluation research for the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety.Excerpt.