Human Body on Trial: A Handbook with Cases, Laws, and Documents (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9781576073490)

A thorough exploration of an individual's right to bodily autonomy versus the state's power to regulate and control the bodies of its citizens.

The Human Body on Trial asks the basic question: Who's in charge of your body--you or the authorities? Four narrative chapters examine key constitutional questions addressed by the U.S. Supreme Court over the past century concerning the power of the state to regulate the human body, placing the issues in historical context and examining the contemporary legal and medical knowledge that informed each decision.

The book focuses on individual cases, such as Jacobson v. Massachusetts (compulsory vaccination), Buck v. Bell (forced sterilization), and Roe v. Wade (abortion), and discusses such controversial issues as AIDS testing and physician-assisted suicide. A special reference section includes court decisions and other primary documents.

Author: Lynne Curry
ISBN-10: 1576073491
ISBN-13: 9781576073490
Publisher: ABC-CLIO
Language: English
Published: 11/05/2002
Pages: 252
Format: Hardcover
Weight: 1.11lbs
Size: 9.35h x 6.29w x 0.99d

Review Citation(s):
Booklist 03/15/2003 pg. 1346
American Reference Bks Annual 01/01/2003 pg. 259