Overview
Since the late 1970s, jail overcrowding has soared, sparking a proliferation of court-ordered reforms as well as public outcry over safety and spiraling corrections costs. As new jails fill up almost as soon as they open, conflict continues to grow among public officials, who, in turn, create policies that do little more than avoid blame and temporarily control the crisis. Wayne N. Welsh proposes that we can understand this crisis by tracing the interdependence of the jail system with local agencies of criminal justice and county government. If cities and counties are to find their way out of the current jail litigation ""mess,"" Welsh argues, problems, causes, and possible interventions must be aggressively identified within the broader legal, political, and organizational environments of jails. Counties in Court systematically examines the onset, process, and impact of court-ordered jail reform, critically probing the broad implications of both the intended and unintended effects. Based on interviews, court documents, and government statistics, Welsh's research ranges across many different jurisdictions.Within his analysis, Welsh develops a five-stage theoretical model of court intervention designed to initiate systemwide analysis and change. Author note: Wayne N. Welsh is Associate Professor of Criminal Justice at Temple University.
Full Product Details
Author: Wayne Welsh
Publisher: Temple University Press,U.S.
Imprint: Temple University Press,U.S.
Dimensions:
Width: 1.80cm
, Height: 1.80cm
, Length: 22.90cm
Weight: 0.363kg
ISBN: 9781566393416
ISBN 10: 1566393418
Pages: 256
Publication Date: 28 November 1995
Audience:
Professional and scholarly
,
Professional & Vocational
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: Out of stock
The supplier is temporarily out of stock of this item. It will be ordered for you on backorder and shipped when it becomes available.
Reviews
[W]ith the very rare exception, jails have not received any sustained scholarly attention. Welsh has changed all this. His book not only tells us a lot about the process and impact of conditions litigation on jails, he tells us a lot about how jails are administered and about the operations of county government. This is a welcome book indeed. --Malcolm Feeley, School of Law, University of California, Berkeley ...a notable addition to the literature and will serve as a useful source for investigations of institutional reform in the future. --American Political Science Review
""[W]ith the very rare exception, jails have not received any sustained scholarly attention. Welsh has changed all this. His book not only tells us a lot about the process and impact of conditions litigation on jails, he tells us a lot about how jails are administered and about the operations of county government. This is a welcome book indeed."" --Malcolm Feeley, School of Law, University of California, Berkeley ""...a notable addition to the literature and will serve as a useful source for investigations of institutional reform in the future."" --American Political Science Review
"""[W]ith the very rare exception, jails have not received any sustained scholarly attention. Welsh has changed all this. His book not only tells us a lot about the process and impact of conditions litigation on jails, he tells us a lot about how jails are administered and about the operations of county government. This is a welcome book indeed."" --Malcolm Feeley, School of Law, University of California, Berkeley ""...a notable addition to the literature and will serve as a useful source for investigations of institutional reform in the future."" --American Political Science Review"
