Encyclopedia of Abortion in the United States - Hardcover

Louis J. Palmer Jr.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0786413867 ISBN 13: 9780786413867

Publisher: McFarland & Company, 2002

Synopsis

Prior to the 1973 United States Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion in the nation, the issue of abortion was not a headline news item. The decision in Roe dramatically altered this situation and made the controversial issue one of the most explosive confronting the United States. This encyclopedia traces the history of abortion from the founding of the nation to the present day. Arranged alphabetically, the entries address the political, legal, social, religious and medical issues associated with abortion. Included are entries that summarize every opinion rendered by the United States Supreme Court on the issue of abortion up to the year 2002, the majority of abortion laws in each state and many of the thousands of abortion organizations that have developed since 1973. Abortion violence and demonstrations, and the laws designed to combat such protests, embryonic cloning, embryo/fetal stem cell research, assisted reproductive technology, and surrogacy, major birth defects and sexual diseases that impact the abortion decision are examples of topics that are covered.

About this title

About the Author:

Louis J. Palmer, Jr., is an attorney for the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals. He is also the author of Encyclopedia of Capital Punishment in the United States (2001), Organ Transplants from Executed Prisoners (1999) and The Death Penalty (1998). He lives in Pocatalico, West Virginia.

From Booklist:

The history of abortion in the U.S. has been written in the courtroom, beginning with the landmark case of Roe v. Wade in 1973. This A-Z encyclopedia covers every Supreme Court opinion since that date. Legal coverage also includes the majority of abortion laws in each state.

Entries for the Supreme Court cases are meticulously thorough. Complete citations are given along with all the case specifics such as date argued, date decided, concurring and dissenting opinions, and names of counsels. The background of each case is provided, as is significant text of the majority opinion. Every Supreme Court justice who rendered an opinion in an abortion case also has an entry giving a brief biographical sketch of the justice and comments on the pertinent case(s). Voting records of the justices are included.

State law summaries begin with a brief overview of the state's legislative history regarding abortion, followed by text of the current state code. Additional coverage includes short paragraphs summarizing the philosophy and purpose of many pro-choice and pro-life organizations. The position of religious denominations appears in an entry entitled Religion and abortion. Abortion-related medical terms are covered, but details are brief. Examples of these terms are the various methods of abortion and contraception and genetic disorders.

Supplementary statistical information accompanies some entries, but there is no main entry for statistics such as appear in Abortion: A Reference Handbook (2d ed., ABC-CLIO, 1996). The alphabetical index of names and entry headings does not make information retrieval easy; a subject index would have been more useful. Despite these problems the strong legal focus and currency of information make the encyclopedia a useful resource for public and academic libraries. Because of the focus on the period since Roe v. Wade, researchers will need to turn to sources such as Encyclopedia of Birth Control (ABC-CLIO, 2001) for historical perspective. RBB
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About this edition

• Publisher: McFarland & Company
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0786413867
• ISBN 13: 9780786413867
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 428