Half-title page. "This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by Springer Nature. The registered company is Nature America Inc. New York." Includes bibliographical references (pages 197-209) and indexes.
Contents:
Dedication -- Preface -- Chapter 1. Shaping constitutional law: the example of prisoners' rights (judicial decision making and constitutional law; plan for the book; a short overview of the development of prisoners' rights) -- Chapter 2. Pioneering litigation: Black Muslims as an assertive political minority (Black Muslims and the law; Muslim prisoners and litigation; the essential role in Cooper v. Pate; the example of Martin Sostre; conclusion) -- Chapter 3: The expansion and contraction of rights: through the eyes of Justice Marshall (life experience and an understanding of human consequences; Justice Marshall and the development of prisoners' rights; the diminution of constitutional rights; conclusion) -- Chapter 4. A protective constitutional vision: Justice Stevens and the Principles of Liberty (Justice Stevens's orientation toward broad rights; the centrality and importance of liberty; liberty and prisoners' rights; Justice Stevens as the foremost advocate of prisoners' rights; rejecting judicial deference and barriers to court access; conclusion) -- Chapter 5. A rejectionist constitutional vision: Justice Thomas and originalist arguments (Justice Thomas's interpretive approach; Justice Thomas's initial application of originalism to corrections; Justice Thomas's new approach to prisoners' rights cases; other rights behind bars; the implications of Justice Thomas's approach; an historical foundation for Justice Thomas's historical Aaproach?; conclusion -- Chapter 6. The pragmatic middle and its consequences: the influence of Justice O'Connor (Justice O'Connor, court composition, and the influential center seat; impact of conservative centrist; the importance of the Turner Test; the Turner Test's illusory protection; Justice O'Connor's effort to guide the use of her creation; creeping standards and the use of force; conclusion) -- Chapter 7: Strategic interaction: persuasion and accommodation in opinion writing (Estelle v. Gamble (1976) and the eighth amendment; Houchins v. KQED (1978) and the "lost" majority; conclusion) -- Chapter 8. Redefinition of precedent: the influence of Justice Scalia (prisoners' rights doctrines as fertile ground for judicial creativity; a study in contrasts: Thurgood Marshall and Antonin Scalia; the eighth amendment and conditions of confinement; prisoners' right of access to the courts; Marshall and the creation of opportunity; Scalia and the exercise of creativity; conclusion) -- Chapter 9. Reaction and retrenchment (free exercise of religion; Prison Litigation Reform Act; consequences of the PLRA; retrenchment; conclusion) -- References -- Case index -- Other courts -- Subject Index.
Summary:
"This text illuminates the decision-making processes of the US Supreme court through an examination of several prisoners' rights cases. In 1964, the Supreme Court declined to hear prisoners' claims about religious freedom. In 2014, the Supreme Court heard a case that led to the justices' unanimous endorsement of a Muslim prisoner's religious right to grow a beard despite objections from prison officials. In the fifty-year span between those two events, the Supreme Court developed the law concerning rights for imprisoned offenders. As demonstrated in this book, the factors that shape Supreme Court decision making are well-illustrated by prisoners' rights cases. This area of law illuminates competing approaches to constitutional interpretation, behind-the-scenes interacting among the justices, and the manipulation of legal precedents. External actors also affect the Supreme Court and its decisions when the president appoints new justices and Congress targets the judiciary with legislative enactments. Because of the controversial nature of prisoners' rights issues, these cases serve to illuminate the full array of influences over Supreme Court decision making."
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