Book excerpt: This book formulates a theory of the origin and evolution of the police function, using both historical and cross-cultural analysis. It explains the incremental changes in the police function associated with the transition from kinship-based to class-dominated societies, and examines the implications of these changes for modern police-community relations. It suggests that the police institution has a double and contradictory function: at the same time, and in the same society, it seeks to be the agent of the people it polices and of the dominant class. The authors critique community policing and suggest how communities may be reconstituted in order to create a community police. A comprehensive bibliography enhances this study for students, teachers, and professionals in the fields of criminal justice and sociology.