The overview for each country addresses the political system, the police, judiciary, law, corrections, and juvenile justice. These countries represent three of the four legal families that exist in the world today. England represents the common law system of justice; France and Sweden adhere to the Romano-Germanic family; Japan has a synthesis of common law and Romano-Germanic influences; and the Soviet Union reflects the socialist legal family. The fourth major legal family, the religious or philosophical, is not found in a modern industrialized country. The overview of each country shows how historic political structures and perspectives have influenced criminal justice philosophies and structures. Separate histories are presented for each component of the criminal justice systems of the countries. Criminal justice organization and administration are described, and the roles of criminal justice practitioners are portrayed. Legal procedures are explained, and some of the critical issues that face each component of a country's criminal justice system are identified and discussed. For individual chapters, see NCJ-134584-88. Chapter figures; appended offense (murder, robbery, and burglary) statistics and clearance statistics for 1976-85 for England, France, Japan, and the United States; a 441-item bibliography; and a name and subject index