French Criminal Justice: A Comparative Account of the Investigation and Prosecution of Crime in France

(Paperback)

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Basing much of its analysis upon the first major empirical study of the French pre-trial process, this monograph breaks new ground in the field of comparative criminology. Moving away from idealised accounts of judicially supervised investigations, it provides a better understanding of the ways in which an inquisitorially rooted criminal process operates in practice and the factors that influence and constrain its development and functioning. The structure and operation of French criminal justice is set within a broad range of contexts - of political, occupational and legal cultures - from the French Republican tradition of state-centred models of authority, across the growing influence of the ECHR, to the local conditions which determine the ways in which individual discretion is exercised. The French model of investigative supervision and accountability is contrasted with more adversarial procedures and in particular, the different ways in which the reliability of evidence is guaranteed and the interests of the accused protected. Systematic observation of the daily working practices of police, gendarmes, prosecutors and juges d'instruction across a number of sites and time periods, provides a unique and detailed account of the ways in which the French criminal process operates in practice. The understandings and insights generated from this data are then set within a wider legal and political analysis, which considers issues such as the influence and interference of the State within matters of justice; a comparative analysis of the judicial and defence functions; and the extent to which ECHR 'fair trial' guarantees are able to produce legal and ideological change within a process which depends upon a central and judicially supervised investigating authority. This book will be essential reading for teachers, researchers and students working in the area of criminal justice, comparative criminal justice/criminology, as well as French and European studies.

Reviews

Hodgson has written the best empirically-based account of French criminal process available to us, certainly in English and possibly in any language. Students and scholars will undoubtedly welcome French Criminal Justice as a major original contribution to comparative socio-legal scholarship. -- Paul Roberts * British Journal of Criminology Vol 48, No 2 *
Apart from the intrinsic value of the work, this book offers an illustration of the valuable contribution that comparative studies can makeThis work is a very significant contribution to the literature on French criminal justice. -- John Bell * Journal of Law and Society, Vol 33, No 4 *
this book provides a comprehensive comparative analysis of the functions of the judiciary and the defence in French criminal justice. -- Laura Segger * Justice Journal, Vol 3, No 1 *
Jacqueline Hodgson's book is a welcome addition to the field of comparative studiesThe interviews are often illuminative, and handled with informed flexibilityThere is much interest in this highly readable book. -- Dr Sophie Turenne * Legal Studies, Vol. 26 No. 4 *
cet ouvrage est un outil prcieux qui peut toucher un large public d'enseignants et de cherchers, mais aussi d'tudiants et de dcideurs publics qu'intresse un point de vue extrieur sur notre systme. -- Aurlie Binet-Badard * Revue de Science Criminelle et de Driot Pnal Compar 2 *
Hodgson synthesizes a wide array of information about legislative developments in France and Britain as well as the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights, which she skillfully interweaves with her own observations, excerpts from interviews, and responses to questionnaires. She displays a formidable command of French sociolegal research on the cultures of police, gendarmes, and magistrates. -- Jacqueline Ross * The American Journal of Comparative Law Vol. 55, No 2 *

Author Bio

Jacqueline Hodgson is Professor of Law at the University of Warwick.