The Law and Politics of Police Discretion

The author, a law professor and former deputy sheriff, discusses the problems attending the extensive discretion given to police officers on the job. The book focuses primarily on the decision to arrest and on the development of the mechanisms to control the discretionary nature of that decision. Convinced that individual prejudices can and do play a part in arrest decisions, Professor Williams evaluates alternatives designed to produce impartial and controlled law enforcement. He concludes that only through the collective efforts of the police, state and local government officials, and the judiciary can effective guidelines be formulated and implemented.

Harvard Law Review