The author considers the formal framework of rules and procedures, the informal and discretionary nature of the decisions made, and the broader social context in which criminal justice operates. Throughout the text, reference is made to the Police and Magistrates' Courts Act of 1994 and the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act of 1994. The developments examined are the reorganization of the police, changes in sentencing policy, the effects of the Woolf Report on the prison service, the abolition of the right to silence, the criminalization of "squatting," and the creation of "secure training units" for children as young as 12. Nine chapters provide an overview of Britain's criminal justice system, the organization and regulation of the police, police crime measurement and investigation, the prosecution process, court and trial procedures, sentencing and noncustodial penalties, the prison system of England and Wales, and the justice system for juveniles and young adults. Tables of cases, statutes, and statutory instruments are provided, along with a 151-item bibliography and a subject index. For individual chapters, see NCJ 158655-63.