The overview documents the increasing concern of citizens with crime and its control; and argues that the major 'crime control perspective' is conservative and race specific and that much of the research focusing upon race and crime is ambiguous and contradictory in nature. It further notes new research findings concerning 'accumulated disadvantaged status' and the role of organizational factors in criminal justice decisionmaking. Two papers in the first section deal with racial bias in the criminal justice system: the first examines black overinvolvement in criminal activity; the second reviews the present status of Hispanics and the criminal justice system. Racial aspects of criminal decisionmaking constitute the focus of the second section. One study uses path-analytic techniques to assess the relationship between parole outcome and race, using American Indians as the research subjects. Other papers deal with the use of extreme force by New York City police officers against white and nonwhite suspects, investigate possible differences between black and white violent delinquents, and use data from 10 California counties to examine the influence of extralegal factors on the disposition of status offenders. Two possible models for change are presented in the final section: the first focuses upon the concept of community justice and the second examines the role of criminal justice education programs in colleges and universities. Tabluar data are included, and references follow each paper. Brief biographical notes on each author are appended. For individual papers, see NCJ 76981-90.