Habeas corpus

In English Common Law habeas corpus is the name of several writs which may be issued by a judge ordering a prisoner to be brought before the court. More commonly, the name refers to a specific writ known in full as habeas corpus ad subjiciendum, a prerogative writ ordering that a prisoner be brought to the court so it can be determined whether or not he is being imprisoned lawfully.

Historical Background

• A.H. Carpenter. "Habeas Corpus in the Colonies." The American Historical Review. Vol. 8., No. 1 (October 1902), pages 18-27.
• Louis Fisher. 2003. Nazi Saboteurs on Trial: A Military Tribunal and American Law. University Press of Kansas. ISBN 0700612386.
• Michael Dobbs. 2004. Saboteurs: The Nazi Raid on America. Vintage. ISBN 1400030420.
• Peter Irons. 1999. A People's History of the Supreme Court. Viking. ISBN 0670870064. Political context for Ex Parte Milligan explained on Pp. 186-189.
• Helen A. Nutting. "The Most Wholesome Law--The Habeas Corpus Act of 1679." The American Historical Review. Vol. 65., No. 3 (April 1960), pages 527-543.