Until recently, English law was distinctive because it provided for the police, rather than public prosecutors, to prosecute the accused. The 1986 creation of the Crown Prosecution Service changed the old system which had evolved over two centuries. Here, Hay and Snyder show how that old system emerged, and explore its place in state power, class relations, and constitutional theory. They examine the origins of police prosecutorial power, its social significance and features, and its evolution in comparison with policing in Scotland and Ireland.