CRJU 3111: American Courts

From the structure of the Supreme Court to its proceedings, this completely up-to-date encyclopedia presents the cornerstone of the American justice system. More than 500 A-to-Z entries - written by leading academics and lawyers - offer a comprehensive review of critical cases, issues, biographies, and topics important to understanding the Supreme Court.

Several encyclopedias overview the contemporary system of criminal justice in America, but full understanding of current social problems and contemporary strategies to deal with them can come only with clear appreciation of the historical underpinnings of those problems. Thus, this five-volume work surveys the history and philosophy of crime, punishment, and criminal justice institutions in America from colonial times to the present. It covers the whole of the criminal justice system, from crimes, law enforcement and policing, to courts, corrections and human services. Among other things, this encyclopedia: explicates philosophical foundations underpinning our system of justice; charts changing patterns in criminal activity and subsequent effects on legal responses; identifies major periods in the development of our system of criminal justice; and explores in the first four volumes - supplemented by a fifth volume containing annotated primary documents - evolving debates and conflicts on how best to address issues of crime and punishment. Its signed entries in the first four volumes--supplemented by a fifth volume containing annotated primary documents--provide the historical context for students to better understand contemporary criminological debates and the contemporary shape of the U.S. system of law and justice.

Biographical Encyclopedia of the Supreme Court includes signed essays profiling the men and women who have served and are serving on the U.S. Supreme Court.