In this book Salmon Shomade probes three extraordinary episodes in state supreme courts, analyzing their impact on those courts and their implications for explanation of judicial behavior. Taking a careful and creative approach, Shomade provides valuable insights on decision making in appellate courts.

Lawrence Baum, The Ohio State University

"Like Martin Shapiro before him, Shomade convincingly argues that political scientists must broaden their focus beyond the U.S. Supreme Court and include state courts if we truly want to understand courts as political institutions and test dominant models. Other scholars have studied increasingly contested judicial races as a facet of political realignment, but Shomade takes the inquiry deeper to the institution itself, exposing the significant racial and gender dimensions of political and interpersonal conflict, offering a rare intersectional approach to law and courts." - Sally Kenney, Tulane University

Sally Kenney, Tulane University