‘Clive has dedicated his 35 year career to unearthing the truth.’ So begins the preface to the autobiography of Clive Driscoll, a former Detective Chief Inspector with the Metropolitan Police (Driscoll, 2015 ). Driscoll is probably best known for leading the investigation that resulted in the conviction of two of the men responsible for the death of Stephen Lawrence. Criminal investigations and the entire criminal process culminating in the criminal trial are regularly characterized as a pursuit of the truth: Underlying the question of guilt or innocence is
56 4 Queer(y)ing the Experiences of LGBTQ Workers in Criminal Processing Systems Angela Dwyer and Roddrick A. Colvin This chapter examines research focused on the work lives of queer criminal processing system professionals. Despite nearly four decades of study, the main focus of research has been on queer officers in policing, specifically lesbian and gay police officers’ experiences, with limited research about bisexual and transgender police officers and almost none about nonbinary police officers. Beyond policing, we know very little about queer
Austerity continues to impact the criminal justice process in England and Wales: police numbers are down, the Crown Prosecution Service is in disarray, legal aid has been reduced, courts are closing and magistrates are leaving.
Research into the criminal process usually focuses on England, however this book offers a rare insight into South Wales. Drawing on first-hand accounts of lawyers, police, suspects, and the convicted and their families, it uncovers how these affected individuals navigate the challenges caused by austerity, what has changed and what can be done to improve the system.
This book is a reliable and evocative account of the reality of criminal justice in Wales.
This is the first book about the intermediary scheme, criminal justice’s untold ‘good news story’. Intermediaries are independent communication specialists who assist children and vulnerable adults at police interviews and trials, helping to improve the quality of their evidence and providing access to justice for those who previously had been excluded. Richly illustrated with case examples through intermediaries’ own descriptions of their work, the book also includes feedback from justice system personnel and over 70 judges.
This unique book provides a comprehensive explanation of how intermediaries work in practice and gives ‘behind the scenes’ insights into the criminal process. It will be of interest to practitioners and the wider public in England and Wales and encourage consideration of the scheme elsewhere.
Post-colonial legacies continue to impact upon the Global South and this edited collection examines their influence on systems of policing, security management and social ordering. Expanding the Southern Criminology agenda, the book critically examines social harms, violence and war crimes, human rights abuses, environmental degradation and the criminalisation of protest.
The book asks how current states of policing came about, their consequences and whose interests they continue to serve through vivid international case studies, including prison struggles in Latin America and the misuse of military force. Challenging current criminological thinking on the Global South, the book considers how police and state overreach can undermine security and perpetuate racism and social conflict.
Can the criminal justice system achieve justice based on its ability to determine the truth?
Drawing on a variety of disciplinary and interdisciplinary perspectives, this book investigates the concept of truth – its complexities and nuances – and scrutinizes how well the criminal justice process facilitates truth-finding. From allegation to sentencing, the chapters take the reader on a journey through the criminal justice system, exposing the marginalization of truth-finding in favour of other jurisprudential or systemic values, such as expediency, procedural fairness and the presumption of innocence.
This important work bridges the gap between what people expect from the criminal justice system and what it can legitimately deliver.
This accessible book introduces the key concepts and theoretical developments of queer criminology and explains what they mean for modern criminal justice frameworks and practitioners.
The book sets out experiences of the LGBTQ+ population as victims, offenders and professionals in legal systems in the US and internationally and explores what they mean for elements of those systems including police, courts, corrections and victims’ services. It is both a useful reference point for academics, students and professionals and a guide to how queer criminology can be theoretically applied and practically implemented in the worlds of policing, courts, corrections, and victims’ services.
When suspects are arrested, they spend their time in police custody largely in isolation and out of public view. These custody blocks are police territory, and public controversies about what happens there often only arise when a detainee dies.
Custody visitors are volunteers who make what are supposed to be random and unannounced visits to police custody blocks to check on the welfare of detainees. However, there is a fundamental power imbalance between the police and these visitors, which calls the independence and effectiveness of custody visiting into question.
Investigating this largely unexplored part of the criminal justice system, this timely book includes the voices of the detainees who have a unique insight into the scheme. It offers detailed proposals for radically reforming custody visiting to make it an effective regulator of police behaviour, with an explanation of the political context that could make that a reality.
The people most impacted by criminal justice policies and practices are seldom included in the decision-making processes that affect their lives.
Building on the ‘nothing about us without us’ social movement, this edited volume advocates an inclusive approach to criminology that gives voice to historically marginalized, silenced, and ignored groups.
Incorporating the experiences of service users, academics, and state and grassroots practitioners, this volume considers how researchers might bridge the gap between theory and lived experience. It furthers criminological scholarship by capturing the voices of marginalized groups and exploring how criminology can authentically incorporate these voices.
Available Open Access under CC-BY-NC-ND licence
We live in a society that is increasingly preoccupied with allocating blame: when something goes wrong someone must be to blame. Bringing together philosophical, psychological, and sociological accounts of blame, this is the first detailed criminological account of the role of blame in which the authors present a novel study of the legal process of blame attribution, set in the context of criminalisation as a social and political process. This timely and topical book will be essential reading for anyone working or researching in the criminal justice field. It will also be of wider interest to anyone wishing to discover the role of blame in modern society.
