Text and Materials on the Criminal Justice Process provides a critical account of the criminal justice system, looking specifically at the role and impact of major players and institutions involved in each of the key decision-making stages. The topic of criminal justice is an area fit for intense debate. This book contains a wide and varied selection of materials: statutes, case law, empirical research and official and unofficial reports, as well as commonwealth comparative material, theoretical perspectives, and academic comment. These materials are drawn together and given clear and thorough reference in the illuminating narrative, providing a deep and rich perspective on the criminal justice process in England and Wales today. The text enables students to discover that this is a subject with no 'right' answers. Nicola Padfield directs the student on to further reading, and a case-study running throughout the book emphasises the practical reality of the criminal justice process.