Criminal (In)Justice
A Critical Introduction
3rd Edition
Published on 14. April 2026
Book
Paperback/Softback
491 pages
978-1-0719-5615-1 (ISBN)
Description
Criminal (In)Justice: A Critical Introduction, Third Edition examines the American criminal justice system and the social forces that shape it. Written in a conversational voice, it challenges students to confront structural inequalities in the justice system and the broader society it serves, prompting the question, "What can I do to make this better?"
Reviews / Votes
We are currently in an era where the complexities of the American criminal justice demand thoughtful analysis and informed action, Fichtelberg's textbook rises to that occasion. -- Kelly L. FisherMore details
Edition
3rd Revised edition
Language
English
Place of publication
Thousand Oaks
United States
Publishing group
Sage Publications Inc Ebooks
Target group
College/higher education
Edition type
Revised edition
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Unsewn / adhesive bound
Dimensions
Height: 231 mm
Width: 187 mm
Weight
680 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-0719-5615-1 (9781071956151)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Aaron Fichtelberg received his BA from UC San Diego, a Master's Degree from DePaul University, an LLM from Utrecht University in the Netherlands, and a PhD from Emory University. He is currently an Associate Professor at the Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice at the University of Delaware, where he has taught criminal law and criminal justice for 15 years. Criminal (In)Justice: A Critical Introduction is his fourth book. His earlier works are: Crime Without Borders: An Introduction to International Criminal Justice, Law at the Vanishing Point, and Hybrid Tribunals: A Comparative Examination. He has also published in journals such as The Journal of International Criminal Justice, Criminal Justice Ethics, the Journal of Science and Engineering Ethics, and the Journal of Theoretical and Philosophical Criminology. His work generally combines the study of criminal justice with a critical perspective provided by the humanities.
Content
About the Author
Acknowledgments
To Professors Using This Book
General Introduction
Part I: Crime
Chapter 1: Defining, Classifying, and Measuring Crime
The Media and Crime
The Rhetoric of "Crime"
Defining Crime
Classifying Crime
Measuring Crime
The Politics of Crime Data
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Notes
Chapter 2: Criminal Law
The Rule of Law
The "Ingredients" (Elements) of Crime
Defenses
Jaywalking: The Invention of a Crime
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Notes
Chapter 3: Criminology
Perspectives on the Crime Problem
Religious Approaches to Crime
Classical Criminology
Biological Criminology
Psychological Criminology
Sociological Criminology
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Notes
Chapter 4: Crime and Inequality
Economic Inequality and Crime
Racial Inequality and Crime
Gender Inequality and Crime
Intersectionality
Green Criminology, Queer Criminology, and Postmodernism
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Part II: Policing
Chapter 5: The Nature and History of Policing
Distinctions in American Policing
Policing From a Critical Perspective
Policing From a Critical Perspective
Policing in America: The Early Years
Federal Policing
The 1960s and Their Aftermath
The Homeland Security Era and Beyond
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Chapter 6: Modern Policing
The Organization of Policing
The Use of Force
The Constitution and the Police: The Fourth Amendment
Police Discretion
Civil Forfeiture
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Chapter 7: Police Deviance
Police Deviance in Context
Overenthusiastic Policing
Corruption
The Causes of Police Deviance
Addressing Police Deviance
Defunding the Police?
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Part III: Courts And Trials
Chapter 8: Courts
The Function(s) of the Trial
Adversarial Justice
Plea Bargains
The Courtroom Workgroup
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Notes
Chapter 9: Criminal Trials
The Process is the Punishment"
Pretrial
The Trial
Jury Instructions, Deliberation, and Verdict
Appeals and Appellate Courts
The Supreme Court
Politics and Constitutional Interpretation
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Part IV: Corrections and Special Topics
Chapter 10: The Theory and History of Punishment
Why We Punish
The History of Punishment
The Rise of the Prison
Prison Labor and Indeterminate Sentencing
Rehabilitation
Mass Incarceration
The Prison-Industrial Complex
After Incarceration?
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Chapter 11: Prison Life
Going to Prison
The Prison Population
Types of Prisons
Life in Prison, the Inmate Code
Women in Prison
Trans People in Prison
The Rights of the Incarcerated
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Notes
Chapter 12: Alternatives to Prison
The Collateral Effects of Incarceration
Community Corrections
Sex Offenses and Criminal Punishment
Alternative Incarcerations
Restorative Justice
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Chapter 13: The Death Penalty
The History of the Death Penalty
The Death Penalty and the Constitution
Other Developments in the Death Penalty
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Notes
Chapter 14: Juvenile Justice
The Language of Juvenile Justice
The History of Childhood Crime
Juvenile Justice
Juvenile Corrections
Special Cases
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Notes
Glossary
References
Index
Acknowledgments
To Professors Using This Book
General Introduction
Part I: Crime
Chapter 1: Defining, Classifying, and Measuring Crime
The Media and Crime
The Rhetoric of "Crime"
Defining Crime
Classifying Crime
Measuring Crime
The Politics of Crime Data
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Notes
Chapter 2: Criminal Law
The Rule of Law
The "Ingredients" (Elements) of Crime
Defenses
Jaywalking: The Invention of a Crime
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Notes
Chapter 3: Criminology
Perspectives on the Crime Problem
Religious Approaches to Crime
Classical Criminology
Biological Criminology
Psychological Criminology
Sociological Criminology
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Notes
Chapter 4: Crime and Inequality
Economic Inequality and Crime
Racial Inequality and Crime
Gender Inequality and Crime
Intersectionality
Green Criminology, Queer Criminology, and Postmodernism
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Part II: Policing
Chapter 5: The Nature and History of Policing
Distinctions in American Policing
Policing From a Critical Perspective
Policing From a Critical Perspective
Policing in America: The Early Years
Federal Policing
The 1960s and Their Aftermath
The Homeland Security Era and Beyond
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Chapter 6: Modern Policing
The Organization of Policing
The Use of Force
The Constitution and the Police: The Fourth Amendment
Police Discretion
Civil Forfeiture
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Chapter 7: Police Deviance
Police Deviance in Context
Overenthusiastic Policing
Corruption
The Causes of Police Deviance
Addressing Police Deviance
Defunding the Police?
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Part III: Courts And Trials
Chapter 8: Courts
The Function(s) of the Trial
Adversarial Justice
Plea Bargains
The Courtroom Workgroup
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Notes
Chapter 9: Criminal Trials
The Process is the Punishment"
Pretrial
The Trial
Jury Instructions, Deliberation, and Verdict
Appeals and Appellate Courts
The Supreme Court
Politics and Constitutional Interpretation
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Part IV: Corrections and Special Topics
Chapter 10: The Theory and History of Punishment
Why We Punish
The History of Punishment
The Rise of the Prison
Prison Labor and Indeterminate Sentencing
Rehabilitation
Mass Incarceration
The Prison-Industrial Complex
After Incarceration?
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Chapter 11: Prison Life
Going to Prison
The Prison Population
Types of Prisons
Life in Prison, the Inmate Code
Women in Prison
Trans People in Prison
The Rights of the Incarcerated
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Notes
Chapter 12: Alternatives to Prison
The Collateral Effects of Incarceration
Community Corrections
Sex Offenses and Criminal Punishment
Alternative Incarcerations
Restorative Justice
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Chapter 13: The Death Penalty
The History of the Death Penalty
The Death Penalty and the Constitution
Other Developments in the Death Penalty
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Notes
Chapter 14: Juvenile Justice
The Language of Juvenile Justice
The History of Childhood Crime
Juvenile Justice
Juvenile Corrections
Special Cases
Chapter Summary
Review/Discussion Questions
Key Terms
Notes
Glossary
References
Index