| Virtual Justice: The Flawed Prosecution of Crime in America Revised Edition Contributor(s): Uviller, H. Richard (Author) |
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ISBN: 0300074433 ISBN-13: 9780300074437 Publisher: Yale University Press OUR PRICE: $41.58 Product Type: Paperback - Other Formats Published: March 1998 Annotation: In this fascinating book a distinguished legal authority and former prosecutor examines the flaws, contradictions, and weaknesses in the American justice system. The gripping stories he tells about the investigation and trial of criminal cases -- from evidence gathering to jury selection to plea bargaining -- reveal what's really going on and demonstrate how the system often delivers virtual -- rather than actual -- justice. "Virtual Justice both enlightens and entertains. It is a vivid, incisive, sometimes disquieting account of the many fictions imbedded in our earnest but oft-foundering criminal justice system". -- Scott Turow "This imaginative, careful, and common-sensical book makes a real contribution in stimulating thought about serious and difficult issues". -- Judge Stephen F. Williams, United States Court of Appeals, Washington, D.C. "Uviller's critique of America's criminal justice process -- in particular of the jury system and the down-grading of judges -- is sharp and entertaining. His proposals for reform are ingenious and suitably tentative". -- Charles Wheeler, Daily Telegraph "In this thoughtful, accessible, and often personal book, Columbia University law professor Uviller argues that our criminal justice system often errs against the public interest by hampering police and prosecutors in their efforts to stop crime". -- Publishers Weekly "This provocative book written for both a sophisticated lay public and the cognoscenti will open a wonderful dialogue on the fault lines of criminal justice and what repairs are needed". -- Lawrence Fleischer, Lawyer's Bookshelf |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Political Science | Law Enforcement - Law | Criminal Law - General - Law | Criminal Procedure |
| Dewey: 347.305 |
| Series: Flawed Prosecution of Crime in America |
| Physical Information: 0.9" H x 6.15" W x 9.23" (1.00 lbs) 336 pages |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: Sensational trials obsessively televised and reported by news media have led many Americans to question the effectiveness of their criminal justice system. Do police have the laws they need--or the competence--to do their job? Can juries recognize the truth in the tangle of evidence presented to them? What do lawyers actually contribute to the quest for justice in the criminal court? In this fascinating book a distinguished legal authority examines the flaws, contradictions, and weaknesses in our American justice system. The gripping stories he tells about the investigation and trial of criminal cases reveal what's really going on and demonstrate how the system often fails to deliver true justice. H. Richard Uviller deftly covers major aspects of the criminal justice process, from the gathering of evidence, capture and custody, and eyewitness identification to plea bargaining, selecting the jury, and the role of the judge. He illuminates each aspect of the process by creating and then analyzing a scenario drawn from the daily business of the courtrooms of the nation, a scenario in which police or judges may find themselves frustrated or immobilized, often by the law itself. Uviller explains the legal quandaries that often bedevil the process and shows how decisions by the Supreme Court have relieved or aggravated perplexity. He concludes that the prohibitions limiting investigation, the pervasive combat mentality between defense and prosecution lawyers, and, in particular, the power vested in a random collection of ordinary people gathered together as a jury all contribute to a criminal justice system that produces virtual--rather than actual--justice. |