The article begins with the observation that the policymaking process has been largely neglected in studies of crime policy. In drawing on Laswell's (1936) call for policy researchers to analyze the entire complex, shifting policy universe, this article proposes a contextual approach to criminal justice policy analysis that examines all the variables that influence the policymaking procedure and policy content. Three steps are recommended for such an analysis. The first step involves identifying the various contextual features that are in some measure distinctive to the criminal justice policy environment. The second step consists of organizing this environment into a policy community with a subgovernment and an interested public that has strong opinions about what a policy should be. This step should expose patterns of power and influence that help shape policy. The final step requires the researcher to determine the networks and relationships that evolve within the policy community and to consider the implications of these patterns for the development of policy. Only by analyzing the context in which criminal justice policies are derived can criminologists understand why the findings of criminological research are or are not incorporated into criminal justice policy. 2 figures and 47 references