Marriage between slaves .
a. was made legal in certain southern states
c. ensured they could not be separated
b. gave slaves a sense of normalcy and family life
d. encouraged slave owners to treat the slaves better

`stare decisis is a legal doctrine that obligates courts to follow historical cases when making a ruling on a similar current or future case. stare decisis ensures that cases with identical facts be approached in the same way, unless overruled by the same court or a higher court such as the us supreme court. simply put, it binds courts to follow legal precedents set by previous decisions.

stare decisis is a latin term meaning "to stand by that which is decided".