The Personhood Prism

Hornig Apps

About this app

What if the Supreme Court got it wrong — not on the facts, but on a premise buried so deep in the law that no one examined it?

The Personhood Prism is a free educational app that examines 24 landmark U.S. Supreme Court decisions through the lens of "weaponized personhood" — a scholarly analytical framework developed in The Execution Gap (Thomas Hornig, 2026) that argues legal outcomes are often determined by which party the law treats as a full legal person, and which party it does not.

The results are not what law school textbooks describe.

--

HOW IT WORKS

Each case comes with the official ruling, the personhood argument that the Court never heard, and the execution gap — the distance between the right that formally exists and the right that actually functions.

Then tap "Reveal the Missing Piece."

The app presents an alternative legal analysis — exploring what changes when the case is reframed through the lens of legal personhood. This is educational commentary, not a prediction or legal advice.

From Citizens United to Dred Scott. From Dobbs to Obergefell. From Hobby Lobby to the Flint Water Crisis. The framework reveals a pattern that cuts across every area of American law.

--

AI ANALYSIS ON EVERY CASE

Every case includes AI-powered analysis (Claude, by Anthropic) that goes beyond the summary. Ask any question about any case. Compare cases. Explore the theory.

"Ask me anything about this case" is not a chatbot. It is a constitutional law research tool that has already read the materials.

--

24 CASES ACROSS KEY LEGAL AREAS

Corporate Personhood · Voting Rights · Labor and Workers
Civil Rights · Free Speech · Healthcare
Housing and Environment · Criminal Justice · Women's Rights

Each case is tagged by the personhood mechanism it illustrates. Filter and search all 24 cases instantly.

--

WHO THIS IS FOR

Law students preparing for constitutional law or civil rights seminars.
Legal scholars looking for a new lens on settled doctrine.
Attorneys examining the cases that shaped their practice.
Engaged citizens who want to understand why rights that legally exist often do not function.
Anyone who has read The Execution Gap and wants to explore the case archive.

--

COMPANION TO THE BOOK

The Personhood Prism is the companion app to The Execution Gap: When Law Exists But Rights Don't Attach (Second Edition, 2026) by Thomas Hornig. The book develops the full theory of weaponized personhood across American law, international human rights law, and political philosophy. The app makes the case archive interactive.

You do not need to have read the book to use the app. The app stands on its own.

--

FREE. NO ACCOUNT. NO TRACKING.

The Personhood Prism is completely free. There is no subscription, no account required, no advertising, and no personal data collected. Download and use it immediately.

The AI analysis feature runs on standard API infrastructure. There are no hidden costs.

--

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Thomas Hornig is a professor and author of The Execution Gap: When Law Exists But Rights Don't Attach (2nd ed., 2026). The book develops the full theory of weaponized personhood. Available at executiongap.org.

--

SOURCES

All Supreme Court cases referenced in this app are matters of public record. Full official opinions are available at supremecourt.gov and through the Government Publishing Office at govinfo.gov. Case citations, holdings, and procedural histories can be verified at supreme.justia.com and courtlistener.com.

This app is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or representative of any government entity, including the U.S. Supreme Court, the federal judiciary, or any branch of government. All analysis, commentary, and educational content is the independent scholarly work of the author.

--

Visit executiongap.org to learn more.

What’s new

The Personhood Prism examines how the legal concept of personhood shapes constitutional outcomes, tracing the doctrine through landmark Supreme Court decisions.

This release brings interface refinements and stability improvements throughout the app.