Brutal murders. Bizarre crimes. Eccentric crooks. And Scotland's toughest gangsters. Bryan McLaughlin faced the challenge of tackling crime on Glasgow's mean streets and throughout Scotland for more than 30 years, finding himself involved with nearly 300 killings. He started as a bobby on the beat, worked in the elite Serious Crime Squad and later headed up the force's Criminal Intelligence Branch. When he retired he became a private eye, helping free the victim of one of Scotland's most notorious miscarriages of justice. Now Bryan McLaughlin lifts the lid on his dealings with notorious godfather Arthur Thompson, tells of his satisfaction at nailing slippery gangster Tam McGraw with an Al Capone-style tax sting, looks back on the bomb attack on Glasgow's High Court and reveals remarkable information about the legendary Bible John murders. As well as these notorious cases, Bryan also looks back at the human side of policing as he encountered it, including the touching tale of the old lady who grew a tree in her living room, the madman who killed a boy for throwing snowballs and reveals how a million-dollar heist in Germany was cracked because a Glasgow ned stole a video recorder.And who could forget the crooked businessman who had a lie-detecting elephant in his office and a teddy bear as his advisor? Or the strange encounters with murder victims who ended up in bizarre situations - up a tree, frozen to the spot and even one taking part in a game of cards. This is an astonishing memoir from one of our top police officers, sometimes shocking, sometimes hilarious or macabre but always utterly fascinating.

In 1976, Detective Greg MacAleese came up with a concept to combat crime. He called the program Crime Stoppers and today it is cited along with fingerprinting and DNA as the top three innovations in modern day policing. The Albuquerque Police Department, which embraced the idea and brought it to fruition, continues to hail Crime Stoppers as the most successful anti-crime program in the history of law enforcement. For MacAleese, who was born in Canada but spent his high school and college years in the United States, Crime Stoppers was like a roller coaster ride, and the book reveals a story, that until now hasn't been told. Assigned as an investigator to the Violent Crimes Unit only three years after becoming a police officer, MacAleese was in a hospital emergency room watching the life ebb from a 20-year-old victim who was callously shot during a robbery at a gas station. A short time later he promised the mother of Michael Carmen that he would solve the slaying and it was that vow which became the catalyst to launch Crime Stoppers. From an idea to curb lawlessness in what at the time was one of the most crime-ridden and dangerous cities in the United States, Crime Stoppers has grown to a worldwide network of more than 1,600 programs. Accumulatively since 1976, Crime Stoppers has solved 1.5 million crimes, seized $10 billion in illicit drugs and recovered more than $2 billion in stolen property. Most people believe Crime Stoppers is run by law enforcement, but this book explains how programs in various cities are charitable organizations with volunteer boards and operate in partnership with the police, the media and the community.

Conflicting attitudes about addictive and illegal drugs fuels controversy over drug legalization. This book debates arguments for and against legalized drugs in a fair and objective manner.

In 1996, Garland published the second edition of the Encyclopedia of Police Science, edited by the late William G. Bailey. The work covered all the major sectors of policing in the US. Since then much research has been done on policing issues, and there have been significant changes in techniques and in the American police system. Technological advances have refined and generated methods of investigation. Political events, such as the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 in the United States, have created new policing needs while affecting public opinion about law enforcement. These developments appear in the third, expanded edition of the Encyclopedia of Police Science. 380 entries examine the theoretical and practical aspects of law enforcement, discussing past and present practices. The added coverage makes the Encyclopedia more comprehensive with a greater focus on today's policing issues. Also added are themes such as accountability, the culture of police, and the legal framework that affects police decision. New topics discuss recent issues, such as Internet and crime, international terrorism, airport safety, or racial profiling. Entries are contributed by scholars as well as experts working in police departments, crime labs, and various fields of policing.

This book provides a comprehensive, authoritative and wide-ranging account of the background, theory and practice of crime prevention and community safety. It will be essential reading for anybody with interests in these fields, and will be the major work of reference on this subject for those engaged in the practice, study or teaching of crime prevention. The book provides a detailed overview of the main theories and perspectives informing crime prevention policy and practice, and includes chapters covering efforts to address a number of the main types of crime problem. It also includes chapters relating to research methodologies used in conducting and evaluating crime prevention initiatives.