In addition to describing the organization and administration of each criminal justice component, the overview explains the roles of the criminal justice practitioners, examines the legal process, and assesses some of the critical issues that face the system. The relationship between the communist ideology and the Soviet justice system is discussed in both its historical and contemporary contexts. For years the Soviet Union has been known for its obsessive commitment to security from within and beyond its borders. This is partly due to its geographical proximity to its traditional enemies to the south and west. Moreover, since World War II it has emerged as the principal advocate of a political, social, and economic system that provides an alternative to democratic capitalism. The Soviets' commitment to ensure security from within has implications for its criminal justice system. Although the Soviet Union is committed to the achievement of a collectivist society based on the Marxist-Leninist principles of socialism and communism, some of its approaches to crime may be instructive for capitalist countries; for example, the Soviets have used volunteers extensively in law enforcement and order maintenance. Noninstitutional sanctions for adults may serve as models, even though sanctions are based on a collective response. The requirement that both juveniles and their parents be accountable for delinquent actions has received renewed interest in the West. From a Western perspective, the Soviets have a justice system that is overly brutal and oblivious to due process consideration. This is due largely to a long-standing characteristic of the Russian people, i.e., a greater respect for power and authority than for legality. In the Soviet Union a lesser degree of deference is paid to law than to the policies of the Communist Party. This attitude may be changing, however, under Gorbechev's leadership. 3 organizational figures