The changing role of the American prosecutor /

Empirical researchers have recently focused on prosecutors after neglecting them for years. They find these important officials in a state of flux. Worrall (criminology, Texas at Dallas) and Nugent-Borakove (director, Office of Research and Evaluation at the American Prosecutors Research Institute) argue that as prosecutors are becoming more open to public scrutiny and organized pressure, they are also becoming more innovative and proactive in their efforts to control crime. Then, in a series of independent essays, the editors and 14 lawyers and social scientists draw on the new research to discuss the ways in which prosecutors are responding to changes in the law (like sentencing guidelines and "anticipatory prosecuting" under antiterrorism laws) and the emergence of new institutions and crime-control strategies (including community-based policing, drug courts, and the diversion of offenders to treatment opportunities). Prosecutors' offices are becoming more decentralized and their staffs are increasingly cooperating closely with other governments and outside agencies. Many of the contributors are themselves empirical researchers, and seem well acquainted with recent studies. By organizing and applying these recent findings, they make them accessible to students. Summing Up: Recommended. All readership levels. P. Lermack Bradley University