NCJ Number
116291
Journal
Washington University Law Quarterly Volume: 66 Issue: 1 Dated: (1988) Pages: 11-32
Date Published
1988
Length
22 pages
Annotation
This analysis of the United States Supreme Court in relation to issues involving the police suggests that the Warren Court and the Burger Court had important differences, although they were not the liberal-conservative differences that were usually supposed.
Abstract
The discussion also argues that there have been two Warren Courts and three distinct Burger Courts, that the Warren Court was not particularly radical, and that the Burger Court was hardly conservative. However, the confusing mix of liberal and conservative results does not reflect the crucial changes in emphasis, tone, and articulated goals. These changes are shown through analyses of decisions regarding the use of deadly force by police officers, police interrogations of suspects, confessions, the exclusionary rule, expectations of privacy, testing for illegal drugs or AIDS, and police brutality. The analysis concludes that the future of individual liberties in the United States depends on reinvigorating the system of vigorous checks and balances built into our Bill of Rights and on the willingness of judges to be aware of the realities behind the abstractions of legal doctrine. 85 footnotes.