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81 Police J. 345 (2008)
Book Reviews

handle is hein.journals/policejl81 and id is 355 raw text is: ZOE JAMES Reviews Editor Z.James@plymouth.ac.uk REVIEWS BLACKSTONE'S CRIMINAL PRACTICE 2009 Lord Justice Hooper and David Ormerod (eds) Oxford University Press, 2008 Reviewed by Jon Mack LLB LLM Since my last review in the pages of this annual publication two years ago,1 there has, inevitably, been a morass of new criminal law, both statutory and common. Over the past two years Blackstone's Criminal Practice has grown by half an inch, reflecting the need to squeeze as much of the new material as possible into its pages. As one might expect, the price has also increased, to £185 for the basic book. A CD-ROM version is also available, but nothing beats the ease with which this book can be browsed through. Blackstone's Criminal Practice is an encyclopedia of the rules and regulations of the criminal justice system. Beat officers may be more familiar with other publications, such as the Beat Officer's Companion, or Jack English's Police Law. Although the lion's share of the book is concerned with Offences and Procedure, also included are sections on Sentencing and Evid- ence. At first glance, this does not seem of particular interest to the police, but a detailed explanation of the rules relating to hearsay is included - the importance of which is underestimated by the police at their peril. The Appendices are 'source focused', which means that useful materials such as the Criminal Proced- ure Rules (2005), the Code for Crown Prosecutors, and the PACE Codes of Practice (among others) are included. One of the strengths of Blackstone's Criminal Practice is that it is annually updated, and the Oxford Unversity Press website provides reg- ular updates on law and practice. Additionally, two paper supple- ments are published, the aim of which is to inform readers more fully of developments during the year (October-September). As usual, Blackstone's Criminal Practice is compiled by an expert panel of lawyers and judges, and the rigour with which material has been tested is evident. The contributors include seven professors, eight silks, and the DPP. Case analysis is sharp and reliable, and the authors get straight to the heart of many The Police Journal, Volume 81 (2008) 345 DOI: 10.1358/pojo.2008.81.4.449

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