Erwin Chemerinsky

Presumed Guilty reveals how the Supreme Court allows the perpetuation of racist policing by presuming that suspects, especially people of color, are guilty.

Presumed Guilty

A primer on recognizing the power and promise of the Preamble and the Constitution during this conservative assault on our founding text “Over the course of American history, there have been great gains in individual freedom and enormous advances in equality for racial minorities, women, and gays and lesbians, though obviously much remains to be done. Now we are at a moment with a president who is not committed to these values and face the reality of a Supreme Court that will likely be more hostile to them for the foreseeable future.” --From the Preface Worried about what a super conservative majority on the Supreme Court means for the future of civil liberties? From gun control to reproductive health, a conservative court will reshape the lives of all Americans for decades to come. The time to develop and defend a progressive vision of the U.S. Constitution that protects the rights of all people is now. University of California Berkeley Dean and respected legal scholar Erwin Chemerinsky expertly exposes how conservatives are using the Constitution to advance their own agenda that favors business over consumers and employees, and government power over individual rights. But exposure is not enough. Progressives have spent too much of the last forty-five years trying to preserve the legacy of the Warren Court’s most important rulings and reacting to the Republican-dominated Supreme Courts by criticizing their erosion of rights—but have not yet developed a progressive vision for the Constitution itself. Yet, if we just look to the promise of the Preamble—liberty and justice for all—and take seriously its vision, a progressive reading of the Constitution can lead us forward as we continue our fight ensuring democratic rule, effective government, justice, liberty, and equality. Includes the Complete Constitution and Amendments of the United States of America

A Progressive Reading of the Constitution for the Twenty-First Century

We the People

The Dangerous Fallacy of Originalism

Worse Than Nothing

No Democracy Lasts Forever argues that the Constitution has become a threat to American democracy and must be dramatically changed or replaced if secession is to be avoided.

No Democracy Lasts Forever: How the Constitution Threatens the United States

Most Americans share the perception that the Supreme Court is objective, but Erwin Chemerinsky, one of the country's leading constitutional lawyers, shows that this is nonsense and always has been. The Court is made up of fallible individuals who base decisions on their own biases. Today, the Roberts Court is promoting a conservative agenda under the guise of following a neutral methodology, but notorious decisions, such as Bush vs. Gore and United Citizens, are hardly recent exceptions. This devastating book details, case by case, how the Court has largely failed throughout American history at its most important tasks and at the most important times. Only someone of Chemerinsky's stature and breadth of knowledge could take on this controversial topic. Powerfully arguing for term limits for justices and a reassessment of the institution as a whole. The Case Against the Supreme Court is a timely and important book that will be widely read and cited for decades to come.

The case against the Supreme Court

CONSTITUTIONAL LAW: Principles and Policies continues to serve as an incomparably clear introduction to both doctrine and policy in its Third Edition. This highly successful student treatise offers distinct advantages: thorough treatment of all areas of constitutional law covered in both beginning and advanced courses direct, unambiguous identification of the issues takes a neutral approach that examines all sides of constitutional law debates presents both the doctrines And The underlying policy issues of the law, unlike many other texts which emphasize one or the other flexible organization allows the chapters to be used in any order For the Third Edition, The author: updates the entire text, with new material introduced throughout pays special attention to developments between editions, particularly in regard to presidential power in the war on terrorism, The many decisions concerning state sovereign immunity, The controversial rulings concerning the takings clause, The important decisions concerning affirmative action by colleges and universities, and significant developments concerning the Establishment Clause (such as the approval of vouchers And The Ten Commandments decisions) covers the most recent and significant cases, among them Hamdi v. Rumsfeld (executive power to detain enemy combatants), Nevada Department of Human Resources v. Hibbs and Tennessee v. Lane (sovereign immunity), Gonzales v. Raich (Congressiquest;s ability to prohibit possession and cultivation of marijuana for medicinal purposes), City of New London, Connecticut v. Kelo (takings clause), Grutter v. Bollinger and Gratz v. Bollinger (equal protection), Lawrence v. Texas (sexual privacy), and Zelman v. Simmons-Harris (vouchers)

Principles and Policies

Constitutional Law

Howard Gillman

Can free speech coexist with an inclusive campus environment?

Free Speech on Campus

Over the last few decades, the Supreme Court and the federal appellate courts have undergone a dramatic shift to the right, the result of a determined effort by right-wing lawmakers and presidents to reinterpret the Constitution by reshaping the judiciary. Conservative activist justices have narrowed the scope of the Constitution, denying its protections to millions of Americans, exactly as the lawmakers who appointed and confirmed these jurists intended. Basic long-standing principles of constitutional law have been overturned by the Rehnquist and Roberts courts. As distinguished law professor and constitutional expert Erwin Chemerinsky demonstrates in this invaluable book, these changes affect the lives of every American. As a result of political pressure from conservatives and a series of Supreme Court decisions, our public schools are increasingly separate and unequal, to the great disadvantage of poor and minority students. Right-wing politicians and justices are dismantling the wall separating church and state, allowing ever greater government support for religion. With the blessing of the Supreme Court, absurdly harsh sentences are being handed down to criminal defendants, such as life sentences for shoplifting and other petty offenses. Even in death penalty cases, defendants are being denied the right to competent counsel at trial, and as a result innocent people have been convicted and sentenced to death. Right-wing politicians complain that government is too big and intrusive while at the same time they are only too happy to insert the government into the most intimate aspects of the private lives of citizens when doing so conforms to conservative morality. Conservative activist judges say that the Constitution gives people an inherent right to own firearms but not to make their own medical decisions. In some states it is easier to buy an assault rifle than to obtain an abortion. Nowhere has the conservative assault on the Constitution been more visible or more successful than in redefining the role of the president. From Richard Nixon to George W. Bush, conservatives have sought to significantly increase presidential power. The result in recent years has been unprecedented abuses, including indefinite detentions, illegal surveillance, and torture of innocent people. Finally, access to the courts is being restricted by new rulings that deny legal protections to ordinary Americans. Fewer lawsuits alleging discrimination in employment are heard; fewer people are able to sue corporations or governments for injuries they have suffered; and even when these cases do go to trial, new restrictions limit damages that plaintiffs can collect. The first step in reclaiming the protections of the Constitution, says Chemerinsky, is to recognize that right-wing justices are imposing their personal prejudices, not making neutral decisions about the scope of the Constitution, as they claim, or following the "original meaning" of the Constitution. Only then do we stand a chance of reclaiming our constitutional liberties from a rigid ideological campaign that has transformed our courts and our laws. Only then can we return to a constitutional law that advances freedom and equality.

The Conservative Assault on the Constitution

In Federal Jurisdiction, Seventh Edition, luminary author Erwin Chemerinsky unpacks the black letter law and underlying policy issues of his subject with the clarity and penetrating insight for which he is renowned. An accessible and thorough exposition of the laws, issues, and policies that determine the jurisdiction of federal courts— students know they can rely on Federal Jurisdiction to inform and enrich their understanding of the cases and materials covered in this course. FEDERAL JURISDICTION, SEVENTH EDITION features: Comprehensive coverage that includes historical background, contemporary themes, and a lucid three-part organization of topics Illuminating descriptions and analyses of doctrine and policy Readable prose that explains current law, identifies unresolved issues, and examines competing policy considerations An even-handed treatment that considers multiple perspectives Updated throughout, the SEVENTH EDITION includes: Recent developments in standing, nonArticle III courts, sovereign immunity, Section 1983, Bevins liability, and habeas corpus New cases Clapper v. Amnesty International Susan B. Anthony List v. Driehaus Zivotofsky v. Clinton Wellness International Network Ltd. v. Sharif Lane v. Franks Minneci v. Pollard Sprint Communications, Inc. v. Jacobs

Aspen Treatise for Federal Jurisdiction

Both historically and in the present, the Supreme Court has largely been a failure In this devastating book, Erwin Chemerinsky—“one of the shining lights of legal academia” (The New York Times)—shows how, case by case, for over two centuries, the hallowed Court has been far more likely to uphold government abuses of power than to stop them. Drawing on a wealth of rulings, some famous, others little known, he reviews the Supreme Court’s historic failures in key areas, including the refusal to protect minorities, the upholding of gender discrimination, and the neglect of the Constitution in times of crisis, from World War I through 9/11. No one is better suited to make this case than Chemerinsky. He has studied, taught, and practiced constitutional law for thirty years and has argued before the Supreme Court. With passion and eloquence, Chemerinsky advocates reforms that could make the system work better, and he challenges us to think more critically about the nature of the Court and the fallible men and women who sit on it.

The Case Against the Supreme Court

Relied on by students, professors, and practitioners, Erwin Chemerinsky’s popular treatise clearly states the law and identifies the underlying policy issues in each area of constitutional law. Thorough coverage of the topic makes it appropriate for both beginning and advanced courses. New to the Sixth Edition: New discussion of the Preamble to the Constitution in Ch. 1 Discussion of many new cases throughout the book. Major new decisions include: Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission; Gill v. Whitford; Zivotofsky v. Kerry; Lucia v. SEC; South Dakota v. Wayfair; Fisher v. University of Texas, Austin; Obergefell v. Hodges; Whole Women’s Health v. Hellerstedt; Matal v. Tam; Williams-Yulee v. Florida State Bar; National Institute of Family and Life Advocates v. Becerra; Janus v. American Federation; Town of Greece v. Galloway; and Trinity Lutheran Church of Columbia v. Comer New materials on presidential power, immigration, and travel bans under the Trump administration, including IRAP v. Trump and Hawaii v. Trump Professors and students will benefit from: Renowned authorship Examination of black-letter law and all the myriad issues of constitutional interpretation with unrivaled thoroughness and lucidity Excellent historical overview of the creation and ratification of the Constitution, examining the existential question of why we have a constitution

Throughout American history, views on the proper relationship between the state and religion have been deeply divided. And, with recent changes in the composition of the Supreme Court, First Amendment law concerning religion is likely to change dramatically in the years ahead. In The Religion Clauses, Erwin Chemerinsky and Howard Gillman, two of America's leading constitutional scholars, begin by explaining how freedom of religion is enshrined in the First Amendment through two provisions. They defend a robust view of both clauses and work from the premise that that the establishment clause is best understood, in the words of Thomas Jefferson, as creating a wall separating church and state. After examining all the major approaches to the meaning of the Constitution's religion clauses, they contend that the best approaches are for the government to be strictly secular and for there to be no special exemptions for religious people from neutral and general laws that others must obey. In an America that is only becoming more diverse with respect to religion, this is not only the fairest approach, but the one most in tune with what the First Amendment actually prescribes. Both a pithy primer on the meaning of the religion clauses and a broad-ranging indictment of the Court's misinterpretation of them in recent years, The Religion Clauses shows how a separationist approach is most consistent with the concerns of the founders who drafted the Constitution and with the needs of a religiously pluralistic society in the 21st century.

The Case for Separating Church and State

The Religion Clauses

New York Times Book Review • Editors’ Choice An unprecedented work of civil rights and legal history, Presumed Guilty reveals how the Supreme Court has enabled racist policing and sanctioned law enforcement excesses through its decisions over the last half-century.Police are nine times more likely to kill African-American men than they are other Americans—in fact, nearly one in every thousand will die at the hands, or under the knee, of an officer. As eminent constitutional scholar Erwin Chemerinsky powerfully argues, this is no accident, but the horrific result of an elaborate body of doctrines that allow the police and, crucially, the courts to presume that suspects—especially people of color—are guilty before being charged. Today in the United States, much attention is focused on the enormous problems of police violence and racism in law enforcement. Too often, though, that attention fails to place the blame where it most belongs, on the courts, and specifically, on the Supreme Court. A “smoking gun” of civil rights research, Presumed Guilty presents a groundbreaking, decades-long history of judicial failure in America, revealing how the Supreme Court has enabled racist practices, including profiling and intimidation, and legitimated gross law enforcement excesses that disproportionately affect people of color. For the greater part of its existence, Chemerinsky shows, deference to and empowerment of the police have been the modi operandi of the Supreme Court. From its conception in the late eighteenth century until the Warren Court in 1953, the Supreme Court rarely ruled against the police, and then only when police conduct was truly shocking. Animating seminal cases and justices from the Court’s history, Chemerinsky—who has himself litigated cases dealing with police misconduct for decades—shows how the Court has time and again refused to impose constitutional checks on police, all the while deliberately gutting remedies Americans might use to challenge police misconduct. Finally, in an unprecedented series of landmark rulings in the mid-1950s and 1960s, the pro-defendant Warren Court imposed significant constitutional limits on policing. Yet as Chemerinsky demonstrates, the Warren Court was but a brief historical aberration, a fleeting liberal era that ultimately concluded with Nixon’s presidency and the ascendance of conservative and “originalist” justices, whose rulings—in Terry v. Ohio (1968), City of Los Angeles v. Lyons (1983), and Whren v. United States (1996), among other cases—have sanctioned stop-and-frisks, limited suits to reform police departments, and even abetted the use of lethal chokeholds. Written with a lawyer’s knowledge and experience, Presumed Guilty definitively proves that an approach to policing that continues to exalt “Dirty Harry” can be transformed only by a robust court system committed to civil rights. In the tradition of Richard Rothstein’s The Color of Law, Presumed Guilty is a necessary intervention into the roiling national debates over racial inequality and reform, creating a history where none was before—and promising to transform our understanding of the systems that enable police brutality.

Presumed Guilty: How the Supreme Court Empowered the Police and Subverted Civil Rights

An unprecedented work of civil rights and legal history, Presumed Guilty reveals how the Supreme Court has enabled racist policing and sanctioned law enforcement excesses through its decisions over the last half-century.

Presumed Guilty: How the Supreme Court Empowered the Police and Fostered Racial Discrimination in the Criminal Justice System

"This work will become the defining text on progressive constitutionalism — a parallel to Thomas Picketty’s contribution but for all who care deeply about constitutional law. Beautifully written and powerfully argued, this is a masterpiece." --Lawrence Lessig, Harvard Law School, and author of Free Culture Worried about what a super conservative majority on the Supreme Court means for the future of civil liberties? From gun control to reproductive health, a conservative court will reshape the lives of all Americans for decades to come. The time to develop and defend a progressive vision of the U.S. Constitution that protects the rights of all people is now. University of California Berkeley Dean and respected legal scholar Erwin Chemerinsky expertly exposes how conservatives are using the Constitution to advance their own agenda that favors business over consumers and employees, and government power over individual rights. But exposure is not enough. Progressives have spent too much of the last forty-five years trying to preserve the legacy of the Warren Court’s most important rulings and reacting to the Republican-dominated Supreme Courts by criticizing their erosion of rights—but have not yet developed a progressive vision for the Constitution itself. Yet, if we just look to the promise of the Preamble—liberty and justice for all—and take seriously its vision, a progressive reading of the Constitution can lead us forward as we continue our fight ensuring democratic rule, effective government, justice, liberty, and equality. Includes the Complete Constitution and Amendments of the United States of America

From the same author of the highly successful Constitutional Law, Sixth Edition, a leading casebook in the field, The First Amendment by Erwin Chemerinsky provides a comprehensive and accessible review of speech and religion jurisprudence under the First Amendment (Chapters 9 and 10 of Constitutional Law, Sixth Edition). With its concise, yet comprehensive presentation, The First Amendment presents the law solely through case excerpts and the author’s own essays, which make the law more readily understood through context and background information. The text’s flexible organization accommodates a variety of course structures so that no chapter assumes that students have read preceding material. New to the Second Edition: Important new free speech cases, especially Janus v. American Federation and NIFLA v. Becerra Updated with cases through the October 2019 Term, including Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrissey-Berru and Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue Professors and student will benefit from: Concise, yet comprehensive presentation Annual case supplement Leading text by a prominent scholar Flexible organization—no chapter assumes students have read other chapters, which allows for a variety of course lengths and structures Distinctive approach using only case excerpts and author’s own essays Context and background material to make the law more readily understood

The First Amendment

A preeminent constitutional scholar offers a hard-hitting analysis of the Supreme Court over the last two hundred years Most Americans share the perception that the Supreme Court is objective, but Erwin Chemerinsky, one of the country’s leading constitutional lawyers, shows that this is nonsense and always has been. The Court is made up of fallible individuals who base decisions on their own biases. Today, the Roberts Court is promoting a conservative agenda under the guise of following a neutral methodology, but notorious decisions, such as Bush vs. Gore and Citizens United, are hardly recent exceptions. This devastating book details, case by case, how the Court has largely failed throughout American history at its most important tasks and at the most important times. Only someone of Chemerinsky’s stature and breadth of knowledge could take on this controversial topic. Powerfully arguing for term limits for justices and a reassessment of the institution as a whole, The Case Against the Supreme Court is a timely and important book that will be widely read and cited for decades to come.

Erwin Chemerinsky

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