Book review of The Turnaround: America's top cop and crime reduction

¶ … America's Top Cop Reversed the Crime Epidemic

William Bratton's biographical account of his experience in America's criminal justice system is both riveting and highly significant to the progress our justice system has made throughout the years. However, Bratton's story is rightfully critical of certain practices and injustices that remain in both the criminal and legal systems. Addressing both sociological, political, and personal concerns, Bratton poignantly reflects on the experiences he has had rising through America's criminal justice system as a police officer and successful police administrator. Bratton's highly personal accounts of his background and what lead him to the police officer and societal leader that he is today are both inspiring and meaningful. While many citizens choose to either have a critical or unwaveringly supportive view of the criminal justice system and of the men and women who work within it, Bratton's biography demonstrates that what our society deeply needs at this point in time is people who will not turn a blind eye to corruption, but who will also give the system's officers support and respect when they need it most.

In the Turnaround, Bratton's account of his experiences as a police officer are relevant to the general reader (specifically, someone without much background of the criminal justice system) because Bratton incorporates his personal history and thoughts continuously throughout the book. From the very beginning, Bratton captivates readers with relatable experiences of growing up in a working-class, blue-collar section of Boston. The reader can relate to Bratton's father working two jobs to make ends meet, the reader can sympathize with Bratton wanting to be a police officer from a very early age simply because the cops in his neighborhood functioned as the leadership and heroes people could look up to and respect. Bratton's prose is not overly verbose, and does not intimidate the reader. Rather, Bratton's retelling of his life experiences truly intrigue the reader, thus making us more willing to accept the important social views he professes.

Throughout the Turnaround, Bratton discusses the importance of equality, fairness, and most importantly respect. With these contemporary viewpoints, Bratton is able to persuade the reader that there are indeed deep systemic problems in our criminal justice system, but that the efforts of both the public and the government and civil servants are necessary in combating each issue. Bratton significantly writes: "Crime, the theory went, was caused by societal problems that were impervious to police intervention. That was the unchallenged conventional wisdom espoused by academics, sociologists, and criminologists. I intended to prove them wrong. Crime, and as important, attitudes about crime, could be turned around. Using law enforcement expertise, leadership and management skills, and an inspired workforce, I intended to create an organization whose goal and mission was to control and prevent crime -- not just respond to it. By turning around the NYPD, and reducing crime and fear, we would turn around the city. and, who knows, maybe even the country" (pg. xi). Bratton's highly inspirational language demonstrates that while although there are problems with the current system as it is, these problems can indeed be fixed. The reader is made to feel that despite these problems being pervasive the criminal justice system on both a state and federal level, the opportunity to combat these problems is within our reach. We just have to work together.

Also important in the Turnaround is how Bratton addresses the racial tensions and other key issues (such as gender and sex inequalities) in our country and throughout the criminal justice system. Bratton poignantly notes: "Our statistics told us clearly that a large percentage of the crime in New York was being perpetrated by blacks and Hispanics. This was a fact. But what also need to be understood was that most of the victims were also blacks and Hispanics. They were the chief victims of crime and of police ineffectiveness in reducing crime. They had a right to be protected" (pg. xxviii). It seems that these days, issues of race, gender, and sex inequalities are hot-button issues for everyone. When government officials and especially police officers bring them to light, many citizens feel that they are either catering to one group or another, instead of finding a common, fair stance. However, Bratton impressively demonstrates that a more collaborative viewpoint is necessary in order for our society to work together to both understand these hot-button issues, as well as fix the underlying inequalities surrounding them.