Book excerpt: Although the Schengen Convention has been in force since March 1995, no book has to date attempted an interpretation of the three authentic versions of the Convention in the light of a comparative study of applicable norms in the five original Schengen countries. This book is the result of a five-year study of the law applicable to the police in five countries (Belgium, The Netherlands, Luxembourg, France and Germany) and the possible impact of the differences on the application of the Schengen Convention. Moreover, the European Convention on Human Rights is used as a standard minimum for the interpretation. This book is an important tool for all practitioners in the field of cross-border criminal procedure law.