The Age of Ideology

John Schwarzmantel is a lecturer in politics at the University of Leeds in England.

"An extremely important contribution to our understanding of the importance of habeas corpus in American law and in American history. Freedman explains and places in their proper context a series of historically important cases, dating from the earliest history of the country to the present and demonstrates the way racial and ethnic prejudice have had, and continue to have, a corrosive effect on our criminal justice process. In an age when Congress has sought to constrict the use and value of habeas corpus, Freedman reminds us why it is vital to a free society, and a fair society, to provide more, not less, access to the 'Great Writ.&8217;" -Paul Finkelman, Chapman Distinguished Professor, University of Tulsa College of Law "Freedman's lively prose and careful analysis of early debates and research into the politics, passions and history of the times give us a new picture of the background to habeas corpus as we know it now." -"New York Law Journal", "Habeas Corpus is a trustworthy account by a distinguished legal historian. It serves both scholars who wish to revisit the underpinnings of habeas corpus as well as beginners seeking to understand what this process has meant to our system." -"Legal Times", "Legal analysis at its best." -Austin Sarat, William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Jurisprudence and Political Science, Amherst College "Provides a fresh analysis of classic Supreme Court opinions by John Marshall, Oliver Wendell Holmes, and Felix Frankfurter. Freedman investigates background materials that illuminate the Court's assessment of its decisions, and introduces and explores historical materials that have only recently become available. . . . He builds an impressive argument that severe limits on federal court jurisdiction can be instituted today only by departing fundamentally from the past. Freedman's treatment of this admittedly complex subject is readily accessible to nonspecialists. This fine new book will be of interest and value to anyone seriously concerned with the function of federal courts in modern American society." -Larry Yackle, Professor of Law, Boston University School of Law