Description
Book SynopsisPolicing is a source of perennial conflict and philosophical disagreement. Though the injustices of our world seemingly require some kind of policing, the police are often sources of injustice themselves. But this is not always a result of intentionally or negligently bad policing. Sometimes it is an unavoidable result of the injustices that emerge from interactions with other social systems. This raises an important question of just policing: how should police respond to the injustices built into the system? Just Policing attempts an answer, offering a theory of just policing in non-ideal contexts.Jake Monaghan argues that police discretion is not only unavoidable, but in light of non-ideal circumstances, valuable. This conflicts with a widespread but inchoate view of just policing, the legalist view that finds justice in faithful enforcement of the criminal code. But the criminal code leaves policing seriously underdetermined; full enforcement is neither possible nor desirable. So, p
Trade ReviewMonaghan embeds a normative account of policing in a broader conception of social and political philosophy. The result is comprehensive, original, and extraordinarily timely. * Douglas Husak, Rutgers University *
Table of ContentsAcknowledgements 1. Questions of just policing 2. Policing in a complex and coupled criminal legal system 3. The problem of police legitimacy 4. Legitimacy-risks and the separation of police powers 5. To protect (and serve), proportionally 6. Maintaining order in the face of disagreement 7. On the democratic authorization of police power 8. The form of police agencies Conclusion
