As the blood of criminal violence flowed through the streets in early 1920s America, the FBI was rendered helpless by unholy alliances with crooked politicians and shady dealings. A dynamic, young J. Edgar Hoover would change all that. After being named director of the FBI, Hoover quickly whipped...

As the blood of criminal violence flowed through the streets in early 1920s America, the FBI was rendered helpless by unholy alliances with crooked politicians and shady dealings. A dynamic, young J. Edgar Hoover would change all that. After being named director of the FBI, Hoover quickly whipped the bureau into crime-fighting shape through mass firings of "political hacks" and painstaking screening of new recruits. Hoover's meticulous revitalization of the FBI resulted in the forming of a small, coldly efficient force that eagerly awaited its chance to battle the criminal element. Once Congress removed limitations on making arrests and carrying firearms, Hoover and 600 "G-Men" took to the streets, matching guns and wits with America's most notorious gangsters in an all-out war. The G-Men rapidly nailed ruthless criminals and well-known kingpins such as John Dillinger, "Baby Face" Nelson, "Pretty Boy" Floyd, "Ma" Barker and her sons, "Machine Gun" Kelly, and "Creepy" Karpis (who was personally apprehended by Hoover). Through gripping accounts of actual incidents, William Breuer brings the reader to the front lines of battle with Hoover and his crimebusters. Thrilling manhunts, thwarted mayhem, and tense confrontations dominate the action as the FBI tracks down the most dangerous hoodlums, kidnappers, and marauders of the era. Breuer also examines the social obstacles of pursuing justice during that bleak period in American history. Citizen apathy spurred by the Depression further stacked the odds against the G-Men as they chased desperadoes across the landscape. Somehow, the FBI achieved unprecedented success in the face of almost insurmountable odds. This powerful volume demonstratesthe stunning evolution of a tattered, corrupt organization into a disciplined unit priding itself on integrity and a tireless dedication to duty. Most of all, Hoover's mystique and the sheer force of his will can be felt with

It is now common knowledge that the FBI and its long-time director, J. Edgar Hoover, were responsible for the creation of a massive internal security apparatus that undermined the very principles of freedom and democracy they were sworn to protect. While no one was above suspicion, Hoover appears to...

It is now common knowledge that the FBI and its long-time director, J. Edgar Hoover, were responsible for the creation of a massive internal security apparatus that undermined the very principles of freedom and democracy they were sworn to protect. While no one was above suspicion, Hoover appears to have held a special disdain for sociologists and placed many of sociology's most prominent American figures under surveillance. Using documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, this volume portrays the FBI's stalking of the sociological imagination, offering a detailed account of its investigations within the context of an overview of the history of American sociology. This groundbreaking analysis of a previously hidden chapter of American intellectual history suggests that the activities of Hoover and the FBI marginalized critical sociologists such as W.E.B. Du Bois and C. Wright Mills, suppressed the development of a Marxist tradition in American sociology, and likely pushed the mainstream of the discipline away from a critique of American society and towards a more quantitative and scientific direction.

"COINTELPRO"--an acronym for "Counterintelligence Program"--is the code name the FBI gave to the secret operations aimed at five major social and political protest groups: the Communist party, the Socialist Workers party, the Ku Klux Klan, black nationalist hate groups, and the New Left movement...

"COINTELPRO"--an acronym for "Counterintelligence Program"--is the code name the FBI gave to the secret operations aimed at five major social and political protest groups: the Communist party, the Socialist Workers party, the Ku Klux Klan, black nationalist hate groups, and the New Left movement. Spying on America, the first book to chronicle all five of the operations, tells the story of how the FBI, from 1956 until COINTELPRO's exposure in 1971, expanded its domestic surveillance programs and increasingly employed questionable, even unlawful, methods in an effort to disrupt what amounted to virtually our entire social and political protest process. Violations of citizens' constitutional rights were rampant, and the secret operations actually resulted in a number of deaths. At the time, neither the public nor the news media knew anything about COINTELPRO. In vivid detail, Spying on America demonstrates that the system of checks and balances designed to prevent such occurrences was simply not functioning--until an illegal act uncovered the secret activities. The book opens with the daring raid on a Media, Pennsylvania, FBI office by a group that adeptly used its booty--about 1,000 classified documents--to make COINTELPRO operations public. The burglars, who called themselves the Citizen's Commission to Investigate the FBI and with whom the FBI never caught up, used sophisticated techniques releasing copies of incriminating documents to the media at carefully timed intervals. Spying on America draws on newspaper and magazine articles, interviews with many of the people involved, and FBI memos to trace the historical beginnings and operating methods of COINTELPRO against each of the fivetargeted groups. In vivid detail, the author re-creates the reactions of the bureau--including the subsequent policy changes--as well as the response of the news media and the resulting shift in public attitudes toward the F

From the night watchmen of the 17th century to the highly publicized Rodney King hearings, the history and development of police policy and the role of police in American society are traced through this collection of 95 primary documents. Students, teachers, and interested readers can use this...

From the night watchmen of the 17th century to the highly publicized Rodney King hearings, the history and development of police policy and the role of police in American society are traced through this collection of 95 primary documents. Students, teachers, and interested readers can use this valuable resource to examine the development and role of the police in the United States through the words of the people who were involved in the struggle to enforce laws, uphold the Constitution, maintain safe and stable communities, and create efficient and effective police forces. An explanatory introduction precedes each document to aid the user in understanding the economic, political, social, and legislative forces that helped shape the role of the police in our society.