The one-person-one-vote doctrine solved a real constitutional problem. Before Baker v. Carr, Reynolds v. Sims, and related cases, many states used systems that systematically overrepresented rural counties and underrepresented fast-growing […]
Author: Barry Edwards
A Wealth Tax is Fool’s Gold
The appeal of a federal wealth tax is undeniable. Progressive politicians tout it as a powerful tool to combat rising inequality, promising to make the ultra-wealthy pay their “fair share” […]
Do Appellate Courts Correct Errors? They Failed the Innocence Test.
The criminal justice system’s most fundamental promise is that innocent people will not be punished. Yet decades of exoneration data show that innocent people are convicted, imprisoned, and sometimes sentenced […]
Bringing Statistical Rigor to Appellate Standards: A Framework for Judicial Clarity
The American appellate system faces a persistent problem that undermines the rule of law: the widespread confusion over which standards of review apply in different circumstances and how to implement […]
Do Appellate Courts Actually Correct Errors?
The conventional wisdom about appellate courts is straightforward: they exist to correct errors made by trial courts. This textbook description portrays appellate courts as institutional safeguards, carefully reviewing lower court […]
Justice Scalia’s Strategic Voting in Arizona v. Fulminante
Understanding how Supreme Court justices make decisions has long fascinated political scientists. While many analyses focus on the attitudinal model—the idea that justices simply vote for their preferred policy outcomes […]
Presidential Ideal Points in the Age of Trump: A Suggestion for Future Research
One of the more powerful tools in understanding American political institutions is the ideal point estimate — a statistical summary of how a political actor behaves across a set of […]
Modeling the NFL Betting Market
Looking ahead to the 2025/26 NFL season, I analyzed DraftKings betting lines to understand how point spreads and over/under totals reflect expectations about team performance. Using data from each week’s […]
Cases that Illustrate Felony-Murder Rule
Teaching a class on judicial process and politics, I located some interesting cases to illustrate the felony-murder rule. I think it’s an interesting legal doctrine and students were surprised to […]
Career Planning Advice for Students (in Simple Diagram)
As a college professor, I have had many opportunities to talk with students about their career plans. Many of these students are trying to figure out if they should go […]