Constituting fewer than 15% of the nation's police officers, women have found it especially difficult to rise through the ranks and achieve higher posts. Here, those few women who have made it to the top—about 1% of the chiefs and sheriffs in American policing—share their stories and describe the challenges they faced as they rose to their positions. Each of the chiefs compted for their offices with other candidates, almost always male. The sheriffs—virtually all elected officials— came under even closer scrutiny. While few in number, these top cops illustrate the emergence of women as more than token leaders of American sheriff and police departments. They are unique groundbreakers who have managed to breach the brass ceiling. Here is the fascinating story of how individual women are setting a pace for other women in one of the most male-dominated public service fields in America, second only behind firefighting in its image as a place where few women have successfully negotiated careers to the top. Who are these women, and how did they earn the top spot? Are they nontraditional women, or women in nontraditional positions? Do they share common characteristics in terms of family backgrounds, race, ethnicity, age, or marital status? To what do they attribute their success in the face of overwhelming obstacles? How can their experiences with education, careers, service, and assignments help other women achieve similar success in this field or in others? Schulz answers these questions as she vividly recounts the paths to the top for these determined and exceptional women.

A policewoman chronicles her historic legal battle against sexism within the LAPD in this “valuable . . . and at times, frightening” memoir (Kirkus Reviews). Former Army major Fanchon Blake dreamed of becoming a top cop. She joined the LAPD in 1948, confident that her efforts and talent would be rewarded. Instead, despite long hours and high achievement ratings, Blake—like all other women on the force—was denied promotion time and again. Over the years, the tenacious officer challenged the LAPD’s discriminatory agenda from within. Eventually, she broke the “blue wall of silence” by going to the press. And when all else failed, Blake saw one last chance to effect change: she filed a complaint against the LAPD with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in 1973. What followed was a harrowing struggle against discrimination that would make history for women and other minority groups. Despite the ensuing verbal abuse, silent treatment, and intimidation, Blake pushed on. Seven years later, her heroic efforts would finally make it possible for women to bust through the brass ceiling.

In this unique book, the authors present, for the first time, information from over a hundred strategic police leaders in 22 countries about how they are selected for high office, how they are held to account and what their views are on current and future challenges in policing.

Vols. 1 and 2 cover U.S. law enforcement. Vol. 3 contains articles on individual foreign nations, together with topical articles on international law enforcement.

Virtually unique in the field, Women and Policing in America deals with women as criminal justice professionals, rather than as victims or perpetrators. It is the only coursebook offering a diverse selection of peer-reviewed articles devoted to women in American policing. With comprehensive, accessible chapter introductions by co-authors who are among the most authoritative and respected professionals in the field, Women and Policing in America will become a foundational text for this rapidly growing area of research, college study and employment. Hallmark features of Women and Policing in America: Foundational, peer-reviewed articles on provocative topics, including: Tribal policing. Minority female officers. Lesbian officers. Police women in administrative roles. Affirmative action, unions, and female police employment. Use of force. Gender and stress. Diverse readings cover the chronology of and context for: Issues spanning the entire arc of a female police officer's career. Developments affecting women in American policing. History of women in policing--from the first police matrons to today's female police chiefs. Comprehensive, accessible chapter introductions by authoritative co-authors place readings in context. Challenging, engaging overviews of each topic. Extensive reference lists, suggested readings, and areas for future research. Chapter 1. The History of Women in PolicingChapter 2. Hiring, Training, Retention, and PromotionChapter 3 The Police Role and the Acceptance of Women in PolicingChapter 4. Workplace Experiences of Women in PolicingChapter 5. Police Practices: Women on PatrolChapter 6. The Future of Women in Policing

Stress in policing remains a serious concern for individual officers, their families, their organizations and society at large. As an editor of the Psychological and Behavioural Aspects of Risk series, Ronald J. Burke brings together the latest research findings and intervention strategies, shown to be effective, by an international group of experts. The contributors comprise of a group of high profile researchers and writers who are experts in their respective fields. This edited collection addresses such issues as: The increased risk of international terrorism Racial profiling Police Culture Police integrity Police suicide Inadequate police training The work of police officers exposes them to sources of stress that increase several risks in terms of their psychological and physical health, their family relationships, physical injuries, emotional trauma, ambiguity about their roles in society. Shift work, and undercover work add additional burdens to officers and their families. Police work also places risks on the communities in which officers serve in terms of officers being inadequately trained to deal with mentally ill citizens.

The United Nations has called violence against women "the most pervasive, yet least recognized human rights abuse in the world" and there is a long-established history of the systematic victimization of women by the state during times of peace and conflict. This book contributes to the established literature on women, gender and crime and the growing research on state crime and extends the discussion of violence against women to include the role and extent of crime and violence perpetrated by the state. State Crime, Women and Gender examines state-perpetrated violence against women in all its various forms. Drawing on case studies from around the world, patterns of state-perpetrated violence are examined as it relates to women’s victimization, their role as perpetrators, resistors of state violence, as well as their engagement as professionals in the international criminal justice system. From the direct involvement of Condaleeza Rice in the United States-led war on terror, to the women of Egypt’s Arab Spring Uprising, to Afghani poetry as a means to resist state-sanctioned patriarchal control, case examples are used to highlight the pervasive and enduring problem of state-perpetrated violence against women. The exploration of topics that have not previously been addressed in the criminological literature, such as women as perpetrators of state violence and their role as willing consumers who reinforce and replicate the existing state-sanctioned patriarchal status quo, makes State Crime, Women and Gender a must-read for students and scholars engaged in the study of state crime, victimology and feminist criminology.