NCJ Number
170029
Date Published
1997
Length
222 pages
Annotation
In June 1997, a symposium was convened by the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Justice Programs to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the 1967 President's Crime Commission, and members from the commission were invited to provide their insights and share their experiences with criminal justice professionals.
Abstract
The symposium provided a unique opportunity to reflect on the past and to contemplate lessons for the future. The symposium also served as reminder of the substantial progress that has been made in the field of criminal justice and represented a collaborative effort by the Office of Justice Programs and its bureaus. Symposium participants focused on criminal justice historical perspectives; continuity and change in crime in the United States and lessons from the past three decades; the changing nature of crime, criminals, and crime problems; and the changing nature of criminal justice system responses to crime. In addition, symposium participants considered the 30-year war against crime, building better criminal justice policies based on better knowledge, research and statistics as tools for measuring and responding to changes in the criminal justice system, and societal responses to crime. Appendixes to the symposium report contain additional information on the Corrections Report of the President's Crime Commission and on the challenge of crime in a free society. References and figures