Criminology Explains Police Violence - by Philip Matthew Stinson (Paperback)

About the Book

"Criminology Explains Police Violence offers a concise and targeted overview of criminological theory applied to the phenomenon of police violence. In this engaging and accessible book, Philip M. Stinson highlights the similarities and differences among criminological theories, and provides linkages across explanatory levels and across time and geography to explain police violence. This book is appropriate as a primary or secondary text in criminology, policing, and criminal justice special topic courses. Stinson uses examples from his own research to explore police violence, acknowledging the difficulty in studying the topic because violence is often seen as a normal part of policing"--

Book Synopsis

Criminology Explains Police Violence offers a concise and targeted overview of criminological theory applied to the phenomenon of police violence. In this engaging and accessible book, Philip M. Stinson, Sr. highlights the similarities and differences among criminological theories, and provides linkages across explanatory levels and across time and geography to explain police violence.

This book is appropriate as a resource in criminology, policing, and criminal justice special topic courses, as well as a variety of violence and police courses such as policing, policing administration, police-community relations, police misconduct, and violence in society. Stinson uses examples from his own research to explore police violence, acknowledging the difficulty in studying the topic because violence is often seen as a normal part of policing.

From the Back Cover

"Philip Stinson combines his extensive credentials as a criminologist with his professional knowledge of police and policing to produce a comprehensive account of how major theories of crime causation can be used to explain and predict criminal violence by police officers. The prose is crisp and clear. The contribution is substantial."--Franklin Zimring, Professor of Law, University of California at Berkeley

"Stinson masterfully intertwines his experiences as a police officer, attorney, and researcher, to produce a concise and important primer on police violence. An eye-opening book that should receive wide readership among criminologists and police practitioners. I anticipate the book will quickly become a must-read in the field."--Shaun Gabbidon, Professor of Criminal Justice, Penn State Harrisburg

"This thoroughly engaging book comprehensively reviews the numerous components of police crime. It is built upon Stinson's decades-long work building and analyzing a unique database of problem officers and incidents, and relevant scholarship. A necessary read for scholars, students, and police professionals who want to understand why some officers engage in crimes and how many still remain as working law enforcement professionals."--Jeffrey Ian Ross, Professor of Criminal Justice, University of Baltimore

"Come for an easy-to-follow discussion of police crime in the United States. Stay for the shocking and admittedly addicting stories of cops who used their positions of authority to commit crimes and elude culpability for years. Stinson's research provokes serious reflection about the ways we screen and monitor police officers."--Natalie Todak, Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice, University of Alabama at Birmingham

"While Stinson has become one of the foremost public commentators on the issue of criminal misconduct by police officers, his research and honest conclusions are even more powerful and on point in this book. By using history, policy, the law, and sociological patterns, Stinson--himself an ex-police officer--has provided a cogent framework for deep examination and change in policing for the better."--Brian G. Gilmore, Associate Professor of Law, Michigan State University

"Stinson's application of criminological perspectives represents a significant leap forward in our understanding of police violence. His synthesis of that literature and its application is nothing short of masterful, and this work will be beneficial to both scholars and practitioners."--Chris Harris, author of Pathways of Police Misconduct

Review Quotes

"Simply put: this book is a must-read for anyone who studies policing."-- "Criminal Law and Criminal Justice Books"

"Provides a rich overview of traditional criminological theories and their connection to police misconduct."-- "Journal of Criminal Justice Education"

About the Author

Philip Matthew Stinson, Sr. is Professor of Criminal Justice at Bowling Green State University. His research on police misconduct, including his comprehensive police crime database (policecrime.bgsu.edu), has been featured in outlets such as FiveThirtyEight, Democracy Now!, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, VICE, and many others.