Showing 1 – 20 of 20 results.
Curated
Assessing the Consequences of Politicized Confirmation Processes, 2005-2006 (ICPSR 31841)
Released/updated on: 2011-10-13
Geographic coverage: United States
Time period: 2005-05-16--2005-07-19, 2006-01-19--2006-02-13, 2006-05-24--2006-06-21
The data collection represents a loose collaboration between Georgetown University's Center for Democracy and Civil Society (CDACS) and the European Social Survey (ESS). These data contain responses from three separate interviews referred to as Wave One (t1), Wave Two (t2), and Wave Three (t3). Wave One data are from the United States Citizenship, Involvement, Democracy (CID) Survey, and consisted of in-person interviews with a representative sample of 1,001 Americans. The CID survey is a study of American civic engagement, social capital, and democracy in comparative perspective, and it provides perspective on citizen participation in both the public and private realms. The CID survey is integrated with several elements of a module from the 2002 version of the ESS, which was administered in 22 European countries. In addition to the replicated questions from the ESS, the CID survey includes questions related to the themes of social capital, activities in formal clubs and organizations, informal social networks and activities, personal networks (strong and weak ties), the composition and diversity of ties and associations, trust (in other people, the community, institutions, and politicians), local democracy and participation, democratic values, political citizenship, social citizenship, views on immigration and diversity, political identifications, ideology, mobilization and action, and tolerance (concerning views and attitudes, least-likes groups, and racial stereotypes). Wave Two data was collected during the Alito Confirmation Process through re-interviews via telephone of 335 respondents who had completed the 2005 (Wave One) survey. Wave Three data was obtained after the Alito Confirmation Process, comprising re-interviews via telephone of 259 individuals who particpated in Wave Two. Both Wave Two and Wave Three included questions regarding respondents' political affiliations, views on politics and social issues, and trust in groups of people and institutions. In addition the survey queried respondents concerning their knowledge and opinion of the United States Supreme Court and Congress, Supreme Court judges, the confirmation of Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court, as well as advertisements about the process, and their opinion on the rulings of the Supreme Court. Demographic variables include: Wave One - age, gender, race, marital status, religious affilitation and participation, highest level of education (respondent and respondent's partner), employment status (respondent and respondent's partner), income, nationality, and citizenship; Wave Two - has no demographic variables; Wave Three - age, gender, race, and religious affiliation and participation. Also included are attributes of the interviewer and interviewer observations.
Curated
Simple Crosstabs
CBS News/60 Minutes/Vanity Fair National Poll, August #2, 2012 (ICPSR 34634)
Released/updated on: 2013-06-06
Geographic coverage: United States
This poll, the second of two fielded August 2012, is part of a continuing series of monthly surveys that solicits public opinion on a range of political and social issues. Respondents were asked how well Barack Obama was handling the presidency on issues such as foreign policy, the economy, the war in Afghanistan, and the performance of Congress. Data were collected on voter enthusiasm for the 2012 election, intentions to vote, as well as current opinions on specific election issues. Several questions were asked about the state of the nation today and respondent feelings about the future. Participants were also asked for their opinions on the favorability of the vice-presidential candidates Joe Biden and Paul Ryan, their ability to be an effective president, and whether Paul Ryan would influence their voting preference for Mitt Romney. Opinions were collected on the direction that each presidential candidate would take the nation, and which candidate would do a better job handling issues such as economy and unemployment, Medicare, and helping middle class Americans. Furthermore, participants were queried about their own opinions on election issues such as abortion, Congressman Todd Akin's statements on abortion, the Tea Party movement, and health care. Additional topics included family financial improvements over the past four years, expectations for television coverage of the two parties, the Supreme Court decision that allowed unlimited funds spent on political advertising, and whether celebrities' public support of a candidate would influence voting choice. Demographic information includes sex, age, race, marital status, education level, household income, employment status, religious preference, type of residential area (e.g., urban or rural), political party affiliation, political philosophy, voting behavior, whether respondents were registered to vote, and whether respondents thought of themselves as born-again Christians.
Curated
CBS News Monthly Poll #1, July 2005 (ICPSR 4396)
Released/updated on: 2007-01-31
Geographic coverage: United States
This poll, conducted July 13-14, 2005, is part of a continuing series of monthly surveys that solicit public opinion on the presidency and on a range of other political and social issues. Respondents were asked to give their opinions of how President George W. Bush was handling the presidency and issues such as foreign policy and Social Security. Respondents were asked to voice their concerns about what they viewed as the most important problem facing the country, and to give their opinions of the condition of the national economy and how well Congress was doing its job. A series of questions addressed the success of the war against terrorism and the war in Iraq, whether the the United States would be successful, whether troops should be withdrawn, whether the Iraq war was a part of the war on terrorism, and the likelihood of another terrorist attack against the United States. The survey included questions on whether the federal government had done enough to increase safety since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Respondents were also asked for their opinions on abortion and embryonic stem cell research. Several questions focused on the United States Supreme Court, Supreme Court Justices, the Supreme Court decision, Roe v. Wade, and whether Supreme Court justices should take public opinion and their own personal views into account when deciding cases. Demographic variables include sex, age, race, religious affiliation, frequency of religious service attendance, education level, household income, marital status, political party affiliation, political philosophy, voter registration status, for whom the respondent voted in the 2004 presidential election, whether there were children in the household, and whether there were teens in the household.
Curated
CBS News Monthly Poll #2, July 2005 (ICPSR 4397)
Released/updated on: 2007-01-24
Geographic coverage: United States
This poll, conducted July 29-August 2, 2005, is part of a continuing series of monthly surveys that solicit public opinion on the presidency and on a range of other political and social issues. Respondents were asked to give their opinions of the way President George W. Bush was handling the presidency and issues such as foreign policy and Social Security. They were also asked to voice their concerns about what they viewed as the most important problem facing the country, to give their opinions of the condition of the national economy and the Republicans and Democrats in the United States Congress, and to rate how well Congress was doing its job. A series of questions addressed the success of the war against terrorism and the war in Iraq, whether the result of the war with Iraq was worth the costs, whether it was a part of the war on terrorism, the likelihood of another terrorist attack against the United States, and whether Saddam Hussein was personally involved in the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Several questions focused on the United States Supreme Court, Supreme Court Justice nominee John Roberts, the Supreme Court decision, Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion, how important it was that the Senate understood Roberts' position on abortion before voting on his confirmation, and whether Supreme Court justices should take public opinion and their own personal views into account when deciding cases. Views were also sought on White House Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove and the recent investigation into the disclosure of the identity of an undercover Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) agent to news reporters, whether someone in the Bush Administration was responsible, and whether the leak was a mistake or part of a wider effort to discredit critics of the Bush Administration. Additional topics focused on immigration, NASA and the Space Shuttle, the death penalty, same-sex marriage, abortion, physician-assisted suicide, how often respondents watched network television news programs, and whether they felt that Democrats and Republicans shared their values and goals. Demographic variables include sex, age, race, religious affiliation, frequency of religious service attendance, education level, household income, marital status, political party affiliation, political philosophy, voter registration status, for whom the respondent voted in the 2004 presidential election, whether there were children in the household, whether a member of the household was currently in college, and whether the respondent or a family member was serving in the United States armed forces.
Curated
Simple Crosstabs
CBS News National Poll, March #2, 2013 (ICPSR 34996)
Released/updated on: 2014-04-02
Geographic coverage: United States
This poll, second of three fielded March 2013, is part of a continuing series of monthly surveys that solicits public opinion on a range of political and social issues. Respondents were asked how Barack Obama was handling the presidency, the economy, federal budget deficit, taxes, and foreign policy. Opinions were also collected on Obama's relationship with Israel, respondents' attention to the violence in Syria, and whether North Korea and Iran were threats to the United States. Further questions asked whether respondents approve of the way Congress and the Supreme Court were handling their jobs, and whether they had favorable opinions of the Republican and Democratic parties. Respondents were also asked their opinions on gun control laws, the health care law enacted in 2010, and same-sex marriage/relationships. A variety of questions addressed the condition of the national economy, the budget sequestration, the job market, the stock market, and the federal budget deficit. Demographic information includes sex, age, race, gun ownership, voter registration status, marital status, number of children in the household, education level, household income, religious preference, type of residential area (e.g., urban or rural), political party affiliation, political philosophy, and whether respondents thought of themselves as born-again Christians.
Curated
Simple Crosstabs
CBS News/New York Times National Poll, July #1, 2012 (ICPSR 34617)
Released/updated on: 2013-05-14
Geographic coverage: United States
This poll, fielded July 2012, and the first of two, is part of a continuing series of monthly surveys that solicits public opinion on a range of political and social issues. Respondents were asked whether they approved of the way Barack Obama was handling his job as president, foreign policy, the economy, and health care. Respondents were also asked about the condition of the economy and whether things in the country were on the right track. Additional questions addressed the respondent's overall opinions of Mitt Romney and Barack Obama and their views. Multiple questions addressed respondents' opinions of both Barack Obama's and Mitt Romney's economic policies and whether their policies will favor the rich versus the poor. Additional questions asked respondents which candidate they thought would do a better job handling a variety of issues and how important these issues will be in deciding how they will vote for president. Further questions asked respondents if they were willing to have reduced local government services, such as schools and fire and police departments, if it meant paying less in taxes. Other topics include the Supreme Court, financial institutions, same-sex marriage, crime, and tax cuts. Demographic variables include sex, age, race, education level, household income, social class, employment status, religious preference and participation, type of residential area (e.g., urban or rural), whether respondents thought of themselves as born-again Christians, marital status, household composition, political party affiliation, political philosophy, voter registration status, voting behavior, and the number of phones in their household.
Curated
CBS News/Vanity Fair Monthly Poll #2, January 2010 (ICPSR 31563)
Released/updated on: 2011-07-28
Geographic coverage: United States
This poll, fielded January 29-31, 2010, is part of a continuing series of monthly surveys that solicits public opinion on the presidency and on a range of other political and social issues. Respondents were asked which major issue they would address if they were president, whether they agreed or disagreed with United States Supreme Court rule that allowed corporations to spend as much money as they wish on political campaigns, how they were doing financially compared to the past six months, whether they could name the other country that makes up the island of Hispaniola other than Haiti, and whether they thought that network television had generally gotten better or worse in recent years. Respondents were queried on what they missed most about being a child, what was their biggest Internet-related worry, whether they or someone in the household had made any contributions or donations to assist the victims of the earthquake in Haiti, whether they have contributed or donated to any other charities in the past year, whether they donate to charities because they feel they should do it or because they want to help those in need, whether they would like to donate more to charities, whether they mostly donate to charities and organizations in the United States or around the world, and whether they think that people have a moral responsibility to give what they can to help those in need. Respondents were also asked whether they had any siblings, how close they were to their siblings, how close they were with their siblings when they were growing up, whether they were equally close with every siblings or had some siblings that they were closer with, whether they had ever completely stopped talking with a sibling and how long it lasted, whether they ever felt competitive with their siblings and how often, whether their parents treated all the children equally or had favorites, and how often they see their siblings in person. Information was collected on which president the respondent admired most, whether they thought that the founding fathers would be pleased with the way America turned out if they came back to the present day, whether they had taken or planned on taking a winter vacation trip, whether they would marry their current spouse if they had to do it all over again, whether they believed in love at first sight, and what they thought was the most important ingredient for a successful romantic relationship. Finally, respondents were asked whether they believed that there is intelligent life on other planets, whether they believed there is non-intelligent life, such as microbes and bacteria, that exist somewhere in the universe, and whether they thought that we will have conclusive scientific proof of life elsewhere in the universe within the next twenty years. Demographic information includes sex, age, race, marital status, education level, household income, religious preference, type of residential area (e.g., urban or rural), political party affiliation, political philosophy, and voter registration status.
Curated
Effects of "United States vs. Leon" on Police Search Warrant Practices, 1984-1985 (ICPSR 9348)
Released/updated on: 2006-01-12
Geographic coverage: United States
This data collection examines the impact of the Supreme Court decision in "UNITED STATES VS. LEON" on police search warrant applications in seven jurisdictions. For this collection, which is one of the few data collections currently available for the study of warrant activities, data were gathered from search warrant applications filed during a three-month period before the Leon decision and three months after it. Each warrant application can be tracked through the criminal justice system to its disposition. The file contains variables on the contents of the warrant such as rank of applicant, specific area of search, offense type, material sought, basis of evidence, status of informants, and reference to good faith. Additional variables concern the results of the warrant application and include items such as materials seized, arrest made, cases charged by prosecutor, type of attorney, whether a motion to suppress the warrant was filed, outcomes of motions, appeal status, and number of arrestees.
Curated
Expanded United States Supreme Court Judicial Database, 1946-1968 Terms (ICPSR 6557)
Released/updated on: 2005-11-04
Geographic coverage: United States
Time period: 1946-01-01--1968-01-01
This data collection is an expanded version of UNITED STATES SUPREME COURT JUDICIAL DATABASE, 1953-1996 TERMS (ICPSR 9422), encompassing all aspects of United States Supreme Court decision-making from the beginning of the Vinson Court in 1946 to the end of the Warren Court in 1968. Two major differences distinguish the expanded version of the database from the original collection: the addition of data on the decisions of the Vinson Court, and the inclusion of the conference votes of the Vinson and Warren courts. Whereas the original collection contained only the vote as reported in the UNITED STATES SUPREME COURT REPORTS, the expanded database includes all votes cast in conference. Concomitant with the expansion of the database is a shift in its basic unit of analysis. The original collection contained every case in which at least one justice wrote an opinion, and cases without opinions were excluded. This version includes every case in which the Court cast a conference vote, with and without opinions. The justices cast many more votes than they wrote opinions, and hence, the number of Warren Court records in this version increased by more than a factor of two over the original version. As in the original collection, distinct aspects of the Court's decisions are covered by six types of variables: (1) identification variables including case citation, docket number, unit of analysis, and number of records per unit of analysis, (2) background variables offering information on origin of case, source of case, reason for granting cert, parties to the case, direction of the lower court's decision, and manner in which the Court takes jurisdiction, (3) chronological variables covering date of term of court, chief justice, and natural court, (4) substantive variables including multiple legal provisions, authority for decision, issue, issue areas, and direction of decision, (5) outcome variables supplying information on form of decision, disposition of case, winning party, declaration of unconstitutionality, and multiple memorandum decisions, and (6) voting and opinion variables pertaining to the vote in the case and to the direction of the individual justices' votes.
Curated
Impact of Prisoner Litigation Reform, 1992-2000 [United States] (ICPSR 20354)
Released/updated on: 2008-04-10
Geographic coverage: United States
Time period: 1992-04-01--2000-12-01
In 1996, the United States Congress enacted two policies to regulate the use of the legal system by state prisoners. They were the Prisoner Litigation Reform Act (PLRA) and the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA). The purpose of this research project was to examine whether the PLRA and the AEDPA had their intended effects of reducing the number of Section 1983 lawsuits and habeas corpus petitions, respectively, at both the national and circuit court levels. The researchers obtained data, from the Research and Statistics Division of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts, on the number of civil rights suits and the number of habeas corpus petitions filed by state prisoners in district courts from April 1992 to December 2000. These data were organized into monthly increments. Dataset 1, Civil Rights Suits Filed, contains 105 cases, and Dataset 2, Habeas Corpus Petitions Filed, also contains 105 cases. The trends in civil rights suits filed (Dataset 1) and habeas corpus petitions filed (Dataset 2) were measured by the number of petitions filed per 10,000 state prisoners. Filing rates were measured at the level of district courts, grouped together by the circuit court that has jurisdiction over them.
Variables in Dataset 1, Civil Rights Suits Filed, include filing date and the number of civil rights suits filed per 10,000 state prisoners at the national level as well as for district courts within each of the 11 circuits and the District of Columbia. An intervention flag variable is also included. Variables in Dataset 2, Habeas Corpus Petitions Filed, include filing date and the number of habeas corpus petitions filed per 10,000 state prisoners at the national level, as well as for district courts within each of the 11 circuits and the District of Columbia. A pulse flag variable and two intervention flag variables are also included.
Curated
Judicial Mind, 1946-1969 (ICPSR 7289)
Released/updated on: 1992-02-16
Geographic coverage: United States
Time period: 1946-01-01--1969-01-01
This study employed a social-psychological approach to study how and why judicial decisions were made and to present a substantive interpretation of major post-World War II trends in the Supreme Court's policy-making on the basis of aggregate data measuring both manifest voting behavior and inferred political attitudes of the justices. Besides recording the position taken by each justice on the cases considered, several scales were constructed reflecting the ideological implications of judicial decisions. About a third of the decisions included in this study dealt with questions of political rights and civil liberties, and were used to create a political liberalism scale, with the following subcomponents: fair procedure, voting equality, political freedom, religious freedom, racial equality, and civic equality. Another third of the cases, concerned with questions of economic policy, were classified as a scale of economic liberalism, with two major components -- governmental regulation of economic activities and support for labor unions. The remaining third of the sampled decisions were used to construct minor scales: judicial activism and judicial centralization, focusing on the Supreme Court's own political role, a fiscal claims scale dealing with the financial interests of the federal government, and a nationalization scale concerned with the extent to which a justice tended to uphold the claims and interests of the national government.
Curated
Line Police Officer Knowledge of Search and Seizure Law: An Exploratory Multi-city Test in the United States, 1986-1987 (ICPSR 9981)
Released/updated on: 2006-01-12
Geographic coverage: United States
Time period: 1986-01-01--1987-01-01
This data collection was undertaken to gather information on the extent of police officers' knowledge of search and seizure law, an issue with important consequences for law enforcement. A specially-produced videotape depicting line duty situations that uniformed police officers frequently encounter was viewed by 478 line uniformed police officers from 52 randomly-selected cities in which search and seizure laws were determined to be no more restrictive than applicable United States Supreme Court decisions. Testing of the police officers occurred in all regions as established by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, except for the Pacific region (California, Oregon, and Washington), since search and seizure laws in these states are, in some instances, more restrictive than United States Supreme Court decisions. No testing occurred in cities with populations under 10,000 because of budget limitations. Fourteen questions to which the officers responded were presented in the videotape. Each police officer also completed a questionnaire that included questions on demographics, training, and work experience, covering their age, sex, race, shift worked, years of police experience, education, training on search and seizure law, effectiveness of various types of training instructors and methods, how easily they could obtain advice about search and seizure questions they encountered, and court outcomes of search and seizure cases in which they were involved. Police department representatives completed a separate questionnaire providing department characteristics and information on search and seizure training and procedures, such as the number of sworn officers, existence of general training and the number of hours required, existence of in-service search and seizure training and the number of hours and testing required, existence of policies and procedures on search and seizure, and means of advice available to officers about search and seizure questions. These data comprise Part 1. For purposes of comparison and interpretation of the police officer test scores, question responses were also obtained from other sources. Part 2 contains responses from 36 judges from states with search and seizure laws no more restrictive than the United States Supreme Court decisions, as well as responses from a demographic and work-experience questionnaire inquiring about their age, law school attendance, general judicial experience, and judicial experience and education specific to search and seizure laws. All geographic regions except New England and the Pacific were represented by the judges. Part 3, Comparison Data, contains answers to the 14 test questions only, from 15 elected district attorneys, 6 assistant district attorneys, the district attorney in another city and 11 of his assistant district attorneys, a police attorney with expertise in search and seizure law, 24 police academy trainees with no previous police work experience who were tested before search and seizure law training, a second group of 17 police academy trainees -- some with police work experience but no search and seizure law training, 55 law enforcement officer trainees from a third academy tested immediately after search and seizure training, 7 technical college students with no previous education or training on search and seizure law, and 27 university criminal justice course students, also with no search and seizure law education or training.
Curated
Partially restricted
Multistate Analysis of Time Consumption in Capital Appeals, 1992-2002 (ICPSR 21680)
Released/updated on: 2008-03-25
Geographic coverage: North Carolina, United States, Tennessee, Kentucky, Florida, New Jersey, Washington, South Carolina, Texas, Missouri, Ohio, Georgia, Virginia, Arizona, Nevada
Time period: 1992-01-01--2002-12-31
Despite public controversy over the length of death penalty appeals, little empirical work has been done on the time allocated to the capital appeals process. The purpose of this study was to perform a multistate empirical analysis of the time expended in direct appeals of capital cases. The researchers included decisions from 14 states that they believed to be representative of the 37 states that have enforceable death penalty laws. For each of the 14 states included in the study, the researchers examined every capital case decided on direct appeal by the courts of last resort between the dates January 1, 1992, and December 31, 2002. The researchers developed a case database by examining a variety of sources. For each of the 1,676 cases in the multistate database, the research team collected time consumption data for each of the following five phases of the direct appeal process: (1) the postsentence stage, (2) the preparation stage, (3) the argument stage, (4) the decision stage, and (5) the supreme court stage. Variables include state, case characteristics, court opinion variables, dates, and time consumption variables.
Curated
Of Time and Consensual Norms in the Supreme Court (ICPSR 1142)
Released/updated on: 1998-07-28
Geographic coverage: United States
The authors argue that levels of concurrence and dissent on the United States Supreme Court are functions of "consensual norms." These norms arise from, and are influenced by, the behaviors of the individual justices, including the actions of the Chief Justices. In turn, they cause concurrences and dissents to fluctuate around a common level. If consensual norms are a substantial influence on the behavior of the Court, the long-run extent of concurrence and dissent on the Court will covary substantially, and will do so to varying degrees under different Chief Justices. To test their hypotheses, the authors used cointegration and error-correction analyses of the number of Supreme Court cases with concurring and dissenting opinions, from 1800 to 1991. Because of the dramatic increase in concurrences and dissents during the 1940s, they made use of recently-developed methods for detecting cointegrating relationships in the presence of structural breaks. Consistent with expectations, dissents and concurrences moved together over time. Thus consensual norms appeared to influence substantially both concurrences and dissents on the Court. The effects of such norms vary in the long term under different Chief Justices.
Curated
Processing and Outcome of Death Penalty Appeals After Furman v. Georgia, 1973-1995: [United States] (ICPSR 3468)
Released/updated on: 2006-03-30
Geographic coverage: United States
Time period: 1973-01-01--1995-01-01
This data collection effort was undertaken to analyze the outcomes of capital appeals in the United States between 1973 and 1995 and as a means of assessing the reliability of death penalty verdicts (also referred to herein as "capital judgments" or "death penalty judgments") imposed under modern death-sentencing procedures. Those procedures have been adopted since the decision in Furman v. Georgia in 1972. The United States Supreme Court's ruling in that case invalidated all then-existing death penalty laws, determining that the death penalty was applied in an "arbitrary and capricious" manner and violated Eighth Amendment protections against cruel and unusual punishment. Data provided in this collection include state characteristics and the outcomes of review of death verdicts by state and year at the state direct appeal, state post-conviction, federal habeas corpus, and all three stages of review (Part 1). Data were compiled from published and unpublished official and archived sources. Also provided in this collection are state and county characteristics and the outcome of review of death verdicts by county, state, and year at the state direct appeal, state post-conviction, federal habeas corpus, and all three stages of review (Part 2). After designing a systematic method for identifying official court decisions in capital appeals and state and federal post-conviction proceedings (no official or unofficial lists of those decisions existed prior to this study), the authors created three databases original to this study using information reported in those decisions. The first of the three original databases assembled as part of this project was the Direct Appeal Database (DADB) (Part 3). This database contains information on the timing and outcome of decisions on state direct appeals of capital verdicts imposed in all years during the 1973-1995 study period in which the relevant state had a valid post-Furman capital statute. The appeals in this database include all those that were identified as having been finally decided during the 1973 to 1995 period (sometimes called "the study period"). The second original database, State Post-Conviction Database (SPCDB) (Part 4), contains a list of capital verdicts that were imposed during the years between 1973 and 2000 when the relevant state had a valid post-Furman capital statute and that were finally reversed on state post-conviction review between 1973 and April 2000. The third original database, Habeas Corpus Database (HCDB) (Part 5), contains information on all decisions of initial (non-successive) capital federal habeas corpus cases between 1973 and 1995 that finally reviewed capital verdicts imposed during the years 1973 to 1995 when the relevant state had a valid post-Furman capital statute. Part 1 variables include state and state population, population density, death sentence year, year the state enacted a valid post-Furman capital statute, total homicides, number of African-Americans in the state population, number of white and African-American homicide victims, number of prison inmates, number of FBI Index Crimes, number of civil, criminal, and felony court cases awaiting decision, number of death verdicts, number of Black defendants sentenced to death, rate of white victims of homicides for which defendants were sentenced to death per 100 white homicide victims, percentage of death row inmates sentenced to death for offenses against at least one white victim, number of death verdicts reviewed, awaiting review, and granted relief at all three states of review, number of welfare recipients and welfare expenditures, direct expenditures on the court system, party-adjusted judicial ideology index, political pressure index, and several other created variables. Part 2 provides this same state-level information and also provides similar variables at the county level. Court expenditure and welfare data are not provided in Part 2, however. Part 3 provides data on each capital direct appeal decision, including state, FIPS state and county code for trial court county, year of death verdict, year of decision, whether the verdict was affirmed or reversed, and year of first fully valid post-Furman statute. The date and citation for rehearing in the state system and on certiorari to the United States Supreme Court are provided in some cases. For reversals in Part 4 information was collected about state of death verdict, FIPS state and county code for trial court county, year of death verdict, date of relief, basis for reversal, stage of trial and aspect of verdict (guilty of aggravated capital murder, death sentence) affected by reversal, outcome on retrial, and citation. Part 5 variables include state, FIPS state and county codes for trial court county, year of death verdict, defendant's history of alcohol or drug abuse, whether the defendant was intoxicated at the time of the crime, whether the defense attorney was from in-state, whether the defendant was connected to the community where the crime occurred, whether the victim had a high standing in the community, sex of the victim, whether the defendant had a prior record, whether a state evidentiary hearing was held, number of claims for final federal decision, whether a majority of the judges voting to reverse were appointed by Republican presidents, aggravating and mitigating circumstances, whether habeas corpus relief was granted, what claims for habeas corpus relief were presented, and the outcome on each claim that was presented. Part 5 also includes citations to the direct appeal decision, the state post-conviction decision (last state decision on merits), the judicial decision at the pre-penultimate federal stage, the decision at the penultimate federal stage, and the final federal decision.
Curated
Search and Seizure Data, 1963 (ICPSR 7539)
Released/updated on: 1992-02-16
Time period: 1960-01-01--1963-01-01
This data collection contains information gathered about search and seizure policies and practices in a 1963 survey administered to one police chief, prosecutor, trial court judge, defense attorney, and American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) official in each of the 50 states. Respondents answered questions about the practices of various criminal justice decision-makers in the handling of search and seizure evidence since the 1961 Supreme Court decision requiring all states to exclude illegally seized evidence from courtroom proceedings. Questions were also asked concerning the knowledge and values of the respondents, and the use of civil and legal action to deter illegal searches. The file also contains non-survey demographic data about the characteristics of each state.
Curated
Supreme Court Certiorari Study, 1947-1956 (ICPSR 7611)
Released/updated on: 1992-02-16
Geographic coverage: United States
Time period: 1947-01-01--1956-01-01
This collection provides data on votes cast in conference by 15 Supreme Court justices on petitions to the court for certiorari during the period 1947-1956. The data were collected from the Harold Burton Papers at the Library of Congress. The file contains a complete enumeration of the court's decisions on the petitions to grant or deny plenary review under its certiorari or appellate jurisdiction for the 1951 term and the 1955 term. A one-third sample of cases is included for the other eight terms during the period. For each petition for certiorari, the data file contains (1) the volume, page, and docket number in the SUPREME COURT REPORTER, (2) the court action on the petition, (3) the docket type (appellate or miscellaneous), and (4) the vote made by each of the 15 justices (e.g., grant or deny the petition, absent from voting, or pass). The 15 justices whose votes were collected are Harold Burton, Wiley Rutledge, Robert H. Jackson, Frank Murphy, William O. Douglas, Felix Frankfurter, Stanley Reed, Hugo Black, Fred Vinson, Sherman Minton, Tom Clark, Earl Warren, John Harlan, William J. Brennan, and Charles E. Whittaker.
Curated
Survey Study of 43 Supreme Court Common Law Judges on the Use of Foreign Law in Constitutional Rights Cases (ICPSR 29121)
Released/updated on: 2010-08-31
Geographic coverage: New Zealand, Canada, United States, Ireland, United Kingdom, South Africa, Israel, Australia, Global, India
Time period: 2005-12-01--2006-04-01
This is a survey study of 43 judges from the British House of Lords, the Caribbean Court of Justice, the High Court of Australia, and the Supreme Courts of Ireland, India, Israel, South Africa, Canada, New Zealand, and the United States on the use of foreign law in constitutional rights cases. As the focus of attempts to both explain and justify the use of foreign law in constitutional discourse, the attitudes of apex judges are clearly at issue. The study aims to shed light on how common law judges view foreign law as a source of argument in constitutional rights matters, and how they "see" transnational sources. The data provide the basis for preliminary testing of globalist theory (associated with Anne-Marie Slaughter, Vicki Jackson and Chris McCrudden). More generally, they lend a practical insight to jurisprudential debates invoking the nature of judicial reasoning in appellate courts. We find that the conception of judges citing foreign law as a source of persuasive authority is of limited application. Citational opportunism and the aspiration to membership of an emerging international "guild" appear to be equally important strands in judicial attitudes towards foreign law. We argue that their presence is at odds with Ronald Dworkin's theory of legal objectivity, and revealed in a manner meeting his own methodological standard for attitudinal research.
Curated
United States Supreme Court Judicial Database, 1953-1997 Terms (ICPSR 9422)
Released/updated on: 2005-11-04
Geographic coverage: United States
Time period: 1953-01-01--1997-01-01
This data collection encompasses all aspects of United States Supreme Court decision-making from the beginning of the Warren Court in 1953 to the completion of the most recent term of the Rehnquist Court. In this collection, distinct aspects of the Court's decisions are covered by six types of variables: (1) identification variables including citations and docket numbers, (2) background variables offering information on how the Court took jurisdiction, origin and source of case, and the reason the Court granted cert, (3) chronological variables covering date of decision, Court term, and natural court, (4) substantive variables including legal provisions, issues, and direction of decision, (5) outcome variables supplying information on disposition of case, winning party, formal alteration of precedent, and declaration of unconstitutionality, and (6) voting and opinion variables pertaining to how individual justices voted, their opinions and interagreements, and the direction of their votes.
Curated
United States Supreme Court Judicial Database, Phase II: 1953-1993 (ICPSR 6987)
Released/updated on: 2006-03-30
Geographic coverage: United States
Time period: 1953-01-01--1993-01-01
The purpose of this data collection was to record information about the cases, litigants, amicus participants, and the opinions decided by the Supreme Court under the tenure of Chief Justices Earl Warren (1953-1969) and Warren Burger (1969-1986) and others through 1993. The approach of this study was to proceed deductively, rather than seek to infer values of a particular group of justices. This method allows the investigation of value conflicts that are not litigated, as well as the value conflicts represented in Supreme Court opinions. Opinions are coded on the basis of their literal content, and the data are organized around the opinions. There are eight types of opinions. Within each type, up to six topics are coded, and within each topic, up to two values are coded. There are three integrated parts to this study, each of which can be linked to the other files by specific variables. Part 1, Supreme Court Database, contains basic case attributes from UNITED STATES SUPREME COURT JUDICIAL DATABASE, 1953-1993 TERMS (ICPSR 9422) and the opinions given in the cases. Part 2, Briefs, gives information on the filers and co-filers for cases in which amicus curie briefs were filed. Part 3, Groups, lists the litigants' names. The distinct aspects of the Court's decisions are covered by six types of variables in Part 1: (1) identification variables including case citation, docket number, unit of analysis, and number of records per unit of analysis, (2) background variables offering information on origin of case, source of case, reason for granting cert, parties to the case, direction of the lower court's decision, and manner in which the Court takes jurisdiction, (3) chronological variables covering date of term of court, chief justice, and natural court, (4) substantive variables including multiple legal provisions, authority for decision, issue, issue areas, and direction of decision, (5) outcome variables supplying information on form of decision, disposition of case, winning party, declaration of unconstitutionality, and multiple memorandum decisions, and (6) voting and opinion variables pertaining to the vote in the case and to the direction of the individual justices' votes.