_Book Review

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Jan 9, 2024

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Crook County: Racism and Injustice in America's Largest Criminal Court 1 Since the dawn of courts and sentencing systemic racism has been a historical disparity that has plagued the United States criminal justice system. Crook County: Racism and Injustice in America's Largest Criminal Court examines racial bias and its impacts on legal professionals, challenges faced by defendants, and the influence of politics on justice. With her focus on her findings at the Cook County Criminal Court in Chicago, Illinois where her journey occurred. The book includes the author’s analysis and narratives to capture oppressive dynamics that occur within the court system and uncover the harsh realities of a legal system that perpetuates racial bias and injustice. This review aims to discuss the implications of systemic racism and discrimination throughout the court process and its actors as it relates to the key course themes and will highlight the urgency for reform. Nicole Gonzalez Van Cleve, who is an associate professor of sociology and African- American studies, embarked on a journey to reveal the truths of systemic racism and injustices that prevail within the Cook County criminal court. An insider’s perspective is offered through the author’s integration of prior knowledge mixed with her experiences as a participant and observer, this aids in the connection of these stories with the feelings of the reader. Crook County begins with dissecting the complex systems of the Cook County court system, painting a detailed picture of the inner workings of Cook County used to showcase macro-level issues of courts and sentencing processes. The author perfectly combines her storytelling and analysis to shed light on how the court system operates at the intersections of law, politics, and racial dynamics. Racial bias has a presence in every crevice of the courtrooms of Cook County, Chicago. The author ensures to include this in her description of its presence beginning at the initial racial profiling encounters involving street-level bureaucrats. Then moving to pretrial detention and

Crook County: Racism and Injustice in America's Largest Criminal Court 2 bail discrimination, to the final decisions made by judges, and beyond. This bias is often reflected in the discretion and autonomy of court officials. Most often this happens through stereotypes of defendants, attorneys, and judges that have the potential to cloud judgment, shape decisions, and maintain the forms of colorblind racism that falsely claim polarity from the previous overt forms. The examination and discussion of racial punishment reveals that it continues to persist before, during, and after the conviction of offenders which inflicts not only the defendant but also their families. The author highlights blatant inequities that force the reader to come to terms with the invasive nature of systemic racism. Gonzalez Van Cleve's analysis is interwoven with the key course theme of the effects of social context on criminal justice operations that are clearly demonstrated in Crook County: Racism and Injustice in America's Largest Criminal Court . These personal accounts are effective in getting the reader to empathize and humanize defendants and legal professionals, with an optimistic view that the reader will be able to understand the emotional and mental toll and the effects that systemic racism takes on the lives of incarcerated individuals, their families, and court officials. The author reports on the defendants' personal narratives and the racial, cultural, economic, and social differences, taking into account the defendants' points of view. The reader is left with a profound emotional response to the troubling and devastating experiences as well as an understanding of the anger and hopelessness felt by people embedded in the inner workings of the criminal justice system. The narratives of the defendants and incarcerated individuals that Gonzalez Van Cleve has amplified have also proven to be a strong criticism of a system that repeatedly failed to maintain the principles of equality and justice time and time again. These narratives help to create more touching and relatable stories, specifically for those who have not had experience

Crook County: Racism and Injustice in America's Largest Criminal Court 3 with the criminal justice system or its actors. In this book, defendants, attorneys, and judges all share their similarly unique experiences, each revealing a facet of the racism that taints criminal justice operations. Detailed by Gonzalez Van Cleve are the perspectives of defense attorneys who admit to the racialized and discriminatory workings of a courtroom, their disdain for the culture, and their inability to take action in fear of being met with internal sanctions These stories illustrate the impact of systemic racism on people from all aspects of the court and ensures that no stone is left unturned in regards to the court system, and readers are given a well-rounded view of the mass injustices penetrating not only the Cook County court but courts nationwide. Crook County addresses yet another aspect of systemic inequalities in the court systems, relating back to the main key course theme of harms and inequities caused by institutions, policies, and practices. The journey through the book investigates and discloses the truths of the influence politics has on the court system, and personal interests and political agendas have on judicial decision-making. The book and author make it very evident that justice is often sacrificed at the expense of politics and is said to be a commodity traded for political profit. Gonzalez Van Cleve demonstrates this through examples of corruption and discrimination that have been historically shown to sabotage the values of justice and equity through everyday legal practices and punishments. Crook County: Racism and Injustice in America's Largest Criminal Court does a phenomenal job of easily defining legal terms and explaining sociological concepts to an audience with little to no prior knowledge of the inequities and nuances within the court systems. The storytelling this book portrays attracts and holds the reader's interest throughout the book. It also does an excellent job of dissecting the criminal justice system and all the disparities associated with systemic racism, but it may fall far short of explaining alternative answers and improvements.

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Crook County: Racism and Injustice in America's Largest Criminal Court 4 The audience is given a clear picture of the racial inequities in Cook County during Nicole Gonzalez Van Cleve's time and documentation in Crook County: Racism and Injustice in America's Largest Criminal Court . This story is meant to represent a sample of a much larger population and much larger issues stemming from the historical origins of bias and discrimination embedded across the United States' criminal courts. The personal experiences shared throughout this book amplify the voices of those who are silenced, create a strong impact on the reader, and aim to call into question the systemic racism that exists within our institutions. While reading, the audience should confront their own biases, and contemplate their own roles in their contribution toward dismantling the system. Different feelings will arise from the injustices depicted in the book, which will hopefully motivate readers to strive for justice. Anyone who wants to know what, why, and how racial disparities still exist in the US court system should read Crook County: Racism and Injustice in America's Largest Criminal Court. The harsh realities of racial profiling in law enforcement, bail, the courts, and discriminatory sentencing are revealed in this book. By documenting this time, the author's efforts take a significant step toward impacts on the long-term reform of the US criminal justice system.

_Book Review

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