State Constitutions and Criminal Justice

The new Judicial Federalism is a significant development in American law: more cases are being decided by state constitutions than ever before in history. In this book, Barry Latzer provides the most thorough treatment available of the criminal law aspects of the New Federalism. His comprehensively researched and documented analysis of the state law movement covers all fifty states over the past two decades.

Drawing from both legal and political science perspectives, Latzer examines recent court interpretations of state constitutions, specifically those pertaining to the criminally accused. He provides background on the development of the New Federalism, details the relationship between the U.S. Supreme Court and state courts, and analyzes all of the state constitutional provisions on the issues covered in the book. This is an important resource for professionals and students of criminal justice and law, and anyone concerned with the political-ideological tension between federal and state courts.

BARRY LATZER is Associate Professor of Government at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City. He teaches courses in constitutional criminal law (state and federal) and others in law and political science. He has published widely in law reviews, and his articles appeared in recent editions of Judicature and the Rutgers Law Journal. Professor Latzer's column on recent developments in state constitutional law is a regular feature in the Criminal Law Bulletin.