NCJ Number
113643
Date Published
1988
Length
32 pages
Annotation
Following an assessment of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court's use of social science research in District Attorney for the Suffolk District v. Watson (1980), this paper provides a checklist to help courts avoid serious errors in their use of social science research.
Abstract
In 'Watson' the court found that Massachusetts could not separate racial discrimination from its imposition of the death penalty, and implicitly it concluded that no U.S. jurisdiction could use a capital punishment statute so as to avoid racial discrimination. Given the relatively indelible and highly symbolic character of the decision, the justices could have been expected to evaluate the relevant social science materials, but they failed to explore a variety of approaches and sources which could have helped them avoid a number of pitfalls, for example, use with regard to the holding, constitutionality of governmental action, or possibility of judicial compromise. An operational checklist might list concerns on the use of appellate courts and the existence of social science analyses that might impact the court's holding. 11 notes, 30 references.