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ROBERT F. MEIER AND GILBERT GEIS (2006) Criminal Justice and Moral Issues Los Angeles: Roxbury ISBN 1 931719 62 4, pp. 272, pb.
Criminal justice educators who incorporate the study of morality and ethics into their curriculum already enjoy a well-stocked instructional toolbox. Braswell, McCarthy, and McCarthy (2005), Pollock (2004), and others have contributed substantial works to the discipline's increasing focus on morality and ethics. Those excellent books set forth foundational knowledge about the study of ethics in general, and then deliver discussion-oriented, case-study material about the application of ethical thought to differing facets of the criminal justice system and its attendant professions. Meier and Geis' Criminal Justice and Moral Issues projects a different but equally effective approach to the study of the relationship between morality and criminal justice. The book examines six controversial issues that have traditionally occupied the misty border between morality and legality, and expounds upon these complex matters through a variety of lenses.
This book challenges the reader to contemplate how society considers the nature and definition of criminal activity itself. Organized as a series of selfcontained works, each chapter examines a particular controversial or illicit behavior. The topics are those that have traditionally been blurred between social conceptions of immoral and illegal acts: pornography, gambling, homosexuality, drug use, abortion, and sex work. Each chapter includes a historical overview, discussion of policy implications, and a balanced review of the conflicting opinions regarding the controversial aspects of these prickly and multi-dimensional topics.
Meier and Geis question how crime is defined and characterized in our system, particularly the role that competing collective values play in the process. The writing style is instructional and refreshingly unbiased. The chapters are lean and cogent. The content allows the professor to engage the class in teasing apart the assumptions and beliefs underlying some of society's more controversial laws. The chapter material provides strong class discussion points that can be further illuminated against the context of other materials, depending on the...