Florida's Criminal Justice System - 9781611636802

Florida's Criminal Justice System focuses on the problem of crime and the responses the ''Sunshine State'' has implemented. Written by a professor who also served as a municipal law enforcement officer for 29 years, this book provides readers with both an academic perspective and a practical orientation. The book opens with an examination of civic health in the state, exposes some shortcomings of the Florida educational system, and then addresses the need for college students to focus more intensively on the state's criminal justice system. After introducing students to the major features of the Florida State Constitution, the book presents several ways of examining the state's crime problem. It then proceeds to describe how the law enforcement community is structured, discusses selected features of Florida criminal law, paints a picture of how the court system is organized and illustrates how cases move through the halls of justice, before visiting the corrections system to see how that sector is contoured and some of the difficulties with which it grapples. There is a separate chapter that explores the Florida experience with the death penalty and visits some of the solutions the state has crafted to ongoing problems. Another chapter is devoted to the problem of juvenile delinquency, how that system is structured, and some of the ongoing challenges it faces. Last, but not least, the book looks at crime victims and how Florida strives to safeguard their interests. Anybody contemplating a criminal justice career in Florida will find this book informative and thought-provoking.