What is the Incorporation Doctrine and Why Should We Care What John Roberts Thinks of It



Author Susan Shelley is available to explain in clear and colorful language exactly what the Senate Judiciary Committee is talking about when it asks John Roberts his view of the "Incorporation Doctrine."

Shelley is the author of "How the First Amendment Came to Protect Topless Dancing: A History of the Incorporation of the Bill of Rights into the Fourteenth Amendment, Why It's a Problem, and How to Fix It."

This readable and eye-opening essay was published as an appendix to Shelley's 2002 novel, "The 37th Amendment," which tells the story of a man caught up in a murder trial in 2056 Los Angeles, forty years after the 37th Amendment has removed the guarantee of "due process of law" from the U.S. Constitution.

"How the First Amendment Came to Protect Topless Dancing" reveals the startling fact that the framers of the Constitution intended the protections in the Bill of Rights to apply only against intrusion by the federal government, not the state governments. It wasn't until 1925 that the U.S. Supreme Court began to rule that certain rights were so fundamental to the concept of due process of law that they must apply to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment, which bars any state from denying due process of law to any person. This interpretation of the Constitution is known as the "Incorporation Doctrine."

By deciding which rights are "fundamental," and to what extent the states must respect them, the Supreme Court controls national policy on issues from abortion to panhandling to police searches to jury selection.

"How the First Amendment Came to Protect Topless Dancing" can be read online in its entirety at http://www.ExtremeInk.com/appendix.htm or at http://www.The37thAmendment.com.

For more information and commentary from Susan Shelley, including column-length essays on the Incorporation Doctrine, privacy rights and related issues, visit http://www.SusanShelley.com or http://www.AmericaWantsToKnow.com.

For more information, a review copy, or to schedule an interview:
Susan Shelley
818-386-9552
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What is the Incorporation Doctrine and Why Should We Care What John Roberts Thinks of It