Charged

If you could only read one book on criminal justice reform, this would be the one I'd recommend. (Maybe in conjunction with [b:Punishment Without Crime: How Our Massive Misdemeanor System Traps the Innocent and Makes America More Unequal 39834671 Punishment Without Crime How Our Massive Misdemeanor System Traps the Innocent and Makes America More Unequal Alexandra Natapoff https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1524097576s/39834671.jpg 61593949] and/or [b:The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness 6792458 The New Jim Crow Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness Michelle Alexander https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1328751532s/6792458.jpg 6996712], but if it's just one book, this is the one.) Prosecutors have incredible, essentially unchecked power in the American justice system, which means the county/state/court a case is in has a major impact on 1) whether a defendant gets charged at all, 2) what the charge is, and 3) what options are available to resolve the case. I work in a large county with a newly-elected “progressive” DA, and while that has made a difference, nothing substantial will change without the rank-and-file prosecutors being on board and changing how they think about their job (I work with a lot of excellent prosecutors, but as this book shows, all it takes is a few who are more concerned about convictions than justice). I'd like to see a book that covers the transition within a DA's office (like the Philadelphia or Brooklyn ones Bazelon seems to have spent a lot of time with for this book) from old-school to more reform-oriented, because clearly the change isn't an easy one. This book touches on so many aspects of reform, from racial disparity to cash bond, and shows how they're all impacted by the prosecutors' decisions at every level. It's well-written and compelling, not dry at all, and if I had one wish, it'd be for every prosecutors' office in the country to read the 21 suggestions for reform in the appendix and truly take them on board. Imagine the difference that could make, if every prosecutor cared more about doing the right thing instead of their conviction rates.