What exactly is a Continental Issue??

Question

Supreme Court Case Project
I'm doing it on Thompson v. Oklahoma :]

Answer 1

In a 1988 case, Thompson vs. Oklahoma, the court noted that other nations that share our Anglo-American heritage and the leading members of the Western Europe community opposed the death penalty for a person less than 16 years old at the time of the offense. I must interject that almost all of those countries also opposed the death penalty when a person was more than 16 years old at the time of the offense, but never mind.

The opinion pointed out that the confrontation clause was designed precisely to prevent a procedure considered trustworthy by continental European nations and others that followed the civil law tradition.

http://www.ngowatch.org/articles.php?id=215

Answer 2

What state are on the continent or to some that are touching one another. I consider the 48 to continintal and alaska plus hawii to not be.