Crime and Policing in Rural and Small-Town America

Weisheit et al. (from Illinois State U.) tackle the issue of crime and the criminal justice system in rural areas of America in a study that began as a project for the National Institute of Justice. Noting that crime differences in rural areas have not been studied widely, they examine this environment, stressing the police perspective. Factors such as the availability of guns, economics, and race are considered, in addition to trends and comparisons to urban crime, drugs and alcohol, hate crimes, and policing and other parts of the criminal justice system. This edition expands upon the earlier one and considers methamphetamine production, rural gangs, and homicide. Annotation ©2006 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)