NCJ Number
126416
Editor(s)
J J DiIulio Jr
Date Published
1990
Length
350 pages
Annotation
These 12 papers examine the causes and consequences of judicial intervention in the correctional system and recommend ways that judges can act in the future to improve prison and jail conditions at a reasonable human and financial cost.
Abstract
The discussions are directed to criminal justice personnel, elected officials, prisoners' rights activists, scholars, and other citizens concerned with the role of the judiciary in corrections. The contributors include political scientists, sociologists, legal scholars, justice professionals, and attorneys. The analyses consider the controversy regarding the relative merits of judicial activism and judicial restraint, the findings of the literature regarding judicial intervention, and the causes and results of judicial intervention in the cases of Ruiz v. Estelle and Guthrie v. Evans. Additional papers focus on court intervention in New York City jails, the impact of court decisions on the administration of Rahway State prison, judicial intervention in the West Virginia case of Crain v. Brodenkircher, and the impacts of recent appointments to the Federal judiciary. Tables, chapter reference notes, and index