Citation

McCall M. Justice Syst. J. 2011; 32(2): 123-142.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2011, National Center for State Courts)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

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Abstract

Recent research finds elected state court justices are constrained from implementing policy preferences by electoral necessity; however, the research lacks a consideration of how judges' perceptions of issue salience might also restrict judicial voting choice. I examine the voting behavior of state supreme court justices in cases where juveniles are tried as adults decided before and after the Columbine incident and find elected justices show an increase in conservative voting after Columbine. The results suggest that the ability of retention methods to structure judicial behavior is partially a function of issue salience.

Language: en