Law Enforcement in the 21st Century is the first book to examine the “linkage blindness” in the criminal justice system (the lack of connection between theories of policing and what actually happens in police departments), making linkages between theory and police practice through problem-solving and crime mapping applications.

It offers a fresh, new approach to presenting introductory law enforcement material that is both practical for the future law enforcement officer and intellectually rewarding for readers who may be entering a whole new field of study. The authors have organized the material in a developmental framework beginning with a discussion of law enforcement's place within the criminal justice system and a discussion of the origins of policing; the reader is then introduced to the traditional model of policing and the core aspects of the work—organizational structure and units, field operations, and investigations. The authors provide information important to law enforcement in the 21st century, including topics such as terrorism and the latest technology.