Organizations
Several organizations exist to support the welfare of the law enforcement and criminal justice communities, as well as crime victims and offenders. A few are listed here, along with what they are about, in their own words:
Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences
"An international organization established in 1963 to foster professional and scholarly activities in the field of criminal justice."
American Probation and Parole Association
"APPA is at the vanguard in exploring issues relevant to the field of community-based corrections."
American Society of Criminology
"The American Society of Criminology is an international organization concerned with criminology, embracing scholarly, scientific, and professional knowledge concerning the etiology, prevention, control and treatment of crime and delinquency."
Criminal Justice Policy Foundation
"The foundation is a private, non-profit educational organization that promotes solutions to the problems facing the criminal justice system."
International Association of Chiefs of Police
The International Association of Chiefs of Police is the world's oldest and largest nonprofit membership organization of police executives, with over 20,000 members in over 89 different countries. IACP's leadership consists of the operating chief executives of international, federal, state and local agencies of all sizes.
National Crime Prevention Council
A national non-profit organization involved in community crime prevention. These are the folks that brought us McGruff the Crime Dog. Click on the "Topic in Crime Prevention" link in the upper right-hand corner for an excellent collection of crime and criminal justice-related links.
"The Sentencing Project is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization which promotes decreased reliance on incarceration and increased use of more effective and humane alternatives. It is a nationally known source of criminal justice policy analysis, data and program information. Its reports, publications and staff are relied upon by the public, policymakers and the media."
"The Texas Police Association, organized in Fort Worth on March 6, 1895, is the oldest law enforcement organization of its type in the state. Represented in its membership are officers from municipal police departments, sheriff's departments, constable's offices, the Department of Public Safety, federal agencies, and others."
Texas Police Chiefs Association
"The Texas Police Chiefs Association was founded in 1958 to promote, encourage and advance the professional development of Chiefs of Police and senior police management personnel throughout the State of Texas. TPCA is the only official state law enforcement administrator's organization in Texas and, as such, it is concerned on a statewide basis with all issues involving the criminal justice system."
Texas State Troopers Association
"The Texas State Troopers Association is a voluntary labor organization comprised of over 2,000 non-supervisory commissioned officers of the Texas Department of Public Safety."
Victim Offender Mediation Association (VOMA)
"...supports and assists people and communities working at restorative models of justice. VOMA provides resources, training, and technical assistance in victim-offender mediation, conferencing, circles, and related restorative justice practices.