The book contains articles from a variety of sources. The articles are intended to create a series of discussions and to expand the student's awareness of the criminal justice system through exposure to "critical thinking" topics. The articles are presented in 18 chapters, each including key issues, discussion questions and Websites to obtain more information on the subject matter: (1) Overview of the System; (2) Our System of Justice; (3) Explanation of Contemporary Crime; (4) Scope of the Crime Problem; (5) The Criminal Justice System and Crime; (6) Organization and Operation of Law Enforcement; (7) Critical Issues for Law Enforcement; (8) Police Operations; (9) The Courts; (10) Roles in the Court System; (11) Pretrial and Trial Processes; (12) Sentencing; (13) The Correctional System; (14) Community Corrections; (15) Juvenile Justice; (16) Criminal Victimology and Victim's Rights; (17) Drug Abuse and the Criminal Justice System; and (18) Our Criminal Justice System: Today and Tomorrow. Notes, bibliographies, tables, references, figures