The Future of Police Reform

Samuel Walker is Emeritus Professor of Criminal Justice at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. He is the author of many books including The New World of Police Accountability, 3rd Edition; The Color of Justice: Race and Ethnicity in American Criminal Justice, 6th Edition; and The Police in America: An Introduction, 9th Edition.

This timely book describes what may be the most significant impetus for reform in the last 100 years of American policing. Consent decrees are court-monitored agreements between the federal government and local jurisdictions committing communities to an inventory of serious, potentially expensive, and usually politically fraught reform of police practices. A central insight of the book is that consent decrees facilitate the reform of internal systems by coordinating the integration of policymaking, funding, training for, equipping, supervising, and rewarding a suite of reform efforts. This promotes true organizational transformation, which is more likely to survive than half-hearted commitments to piecemeal changes that are often thwarted politically and may not survive future cost-cutting. This lesson should travel beyond the individual agencies involved, for it describes what true police reform requires. * Wesley G Skogan, author of Police and Community in Chicago and Community Policing: Can It Work? * Sam Walker has hit another home run! He has used his skills as a police historian to explain and analyze how the USDOJ Pattern or Practice Program plays a major part in the broader effort of police reform. The Future of Police Reform is an investigation of the historical attempts at reform and showcases recent developments including de-escalation strategies and procedural justice. Dr. Walker explains how agencies should focus on collaborative, problem-oriented approaches that lessen the negative impact on communities of color. It is a must read for anyone interested in police reform. * Geoffrey P. Alpert, co-author of Evaluating Police Uses of Force *