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The Washington State Constitution A Reference Guide
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Robert F. Utter, Hugh D. Spitzer
ISBN: 0-313-27464-9
ISBN-13: 978-0-313-27464-0
312 pages
Greenwood Press
Publication: 6/30/2002
List Price: $110.95 (UK Sterling Price: £76.95)
Availability: Print on demand
Media Type: Hardcover
Trim Size: 6 1/8 x 9 1/4
Subjects:
Description: Providing a useful starting point for practitioners and others interested in working with Washington's basic legal document, this original reference work describes each article and each section of the State Constitution in turn, outlining the historical background of the section, its predecessors or relatives in the U.S. or other state constitutions, and key interpretive cases. The Introduction, written by retired State Supreme Court Justice Robert F. Utter, describes the increasing interest in state constitutions during the past quarter-century and outlines how federal courts have come to rely on Washington State's constitution as an independent source of rights protections.

The article of the Constitution described at greatest length is Article I, the declaration of Rights. It contains 35 sections covering religious freedom, protection of speech and privacy, the right to bear arms, rights of the accused, a prohibition of a standing army, and many other provisions. Of the remaining 31 articles, many have their origins in other state constitutions, particularly those of western states, while a few sections are unique in their language. The paramount duty clause of the education article is an example of language that originated first in Washington, although it has cousins in other state constitutions that entrench the concept of common schools that spread throughout the nation after 1830.
Table of Contents:
  • Introduction
    The Constitutional History of Washington
    The Washington Constitution and Commentary
    Bibliography
    Index
About the Author: ROBERT F. UTTER served on the Washington State Supreme Court from 1971 to 1995, serving as Chief Justice between 1979 and 1981. Justice Utter served as a deputy prosecuting attorney, court commissioner, and on both the King County Superior Court and the Washington State Court of Appeals prior to joining the State Supreme Court. He also taught state constitutional law at the University of Puget Sound School of Law (now Seattle University School of Law).

HUGH D. SPITZER is an Affiliate Professor of Law at the University of Washington School of Law, where he teaches state constitutional law and other courses. He also practices public finance and state and local government law in Seattle with Foster Pepper & Shefelman PLLC.
LCC Class: 342
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