POLITICAL INFLUENCE OVER SUPREME-COURT CRIMINAL-PROCEDURE CASES

In sharp contrast with much recent work in the area of positive politi cal economy, much of the analysis of U.S. Supreme Court decision makin g has excluded political changes as possible factors influencing Court rulings. In this essay, we analyze Supreme Court voting on criminal p rocedure cases for the years 1953-1993 and find evidence of significan t Presidential and Congressional impact on Court behavior. We argue th at this provides evidence against the conventional wisdom that the Cou rt is an autonomous decision-making body. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B. V.