Justice Vs. Law: Courts and Politics in American Society

While the power of the courts directly affects our lives, as have the Roe v. Wade and Brown v. Board of Education decisions, the authors contend that, contrary to our concept of the courts as ``arbiters of competing moral claims,'' their task is not to embody justice but to define public policy under the law. Among other cases in this clear exposition of a highly complex subject, McDowell ( Equity and the Constitution ) and Hickok ( Constitutionalism v. Congress ) cite the three-year-long judicial procedures in DeShaney v. Winnebago County , a case filed in 1988 involving a boy rendered brain-dead by an abusive father. Before the Supreme Court, the mother claimed $1 million in damages, charging Wisconsin social workers with negligence as ``a constitutional deprivation under the Due Process Clause of the 14th Amendment.'' She lost. The authors also review politicization of the selection and confirmation of justices, from conservative to activist, including the Bork controversy, and speculate on the future of the present court, along with the ``brokering'' nature of the present Congress. (Oct.)