Habeas corpus, known as the Great Writ of Liberty, is a judicial order that requires government officials to produce a prisoner in court, persuade an independent judge of the correctness of their claimed factual and legal justifications for the individual’s imprisonment, or else release the captive. Frequently the officials resist being called to account. Much of the history of the rule of law, including the history being made today, has emerged from the resulting clashes. This book, heavily based on primary sources from the colonial period and the early national period and significant researc ... More

Habeas corpus, known as the Great Writ of Liberty, is a judicial order that requires government officials to produce a prisoner in court, persuade an independent judge of the correctness of their claimed factual and legal justifications for the individual’s imprisonment, or else release the captive. Frequently the officials resist being called to account. Much of the history of the rule of law, including the history being made today, has emerged from the resulting clashes. This book, heavily based on primary sources from the colonial period and the early national period and significant research in the New Hampshire State Archives, seeks to illuminate the past and draw lessons for the present. It expands the definition of habeas corpus from a formal one to a functional one; traces the role of the writ as one element in an overall system for restraining government power; and explains how understanding the writ as an instrument for the enforcement of checks and balances illuminates a range of current issues including the struggle against terrorism and detentions at Guantanamo Bay, curbing domestic violence, the requirements for Brexit, and many others.