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68 Cards in this Set

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civil liberties
the legal constitutional protections against government. Although our civil liberties are formally set down in the Bill of Rights, the courts, police, and legislatures define their meaning
Bill of Rights
The first 10 amendments to the Constitution, which define such basic liberties as freedom of religion, speech, and press and guarantee defendants' rights
First Amendment
The constitutional amendment that establishes four great liberties: freedom of the press, of speech, of religion, and of assembly
Barron v. Baltimore
The 1833 Supreme Court decision holding that the Bill of Rights restrained only the national government, not the states and cities
Gitlow v. New York
The 1925 Supreme Court decision holding that freedoms of press and speech are "fundamental personal rights and liberties protected by the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment from impairment by the states" as well as by the federal government. Set the precedent for incorporation and overturned the decision in Barron v. Baltimore
Fourteenth Amendment
The constitutional amendment adopted after the Civil War that states, "No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."
due process clause
Part of the Fourteenth Amendment guaranteeing that persons cannot be deprived of life, liberty, or property by the United States or state governments without due process of law
incorporation doctrine
the legal concept under which the Supreme Court has nationalized the Bill of Rights by making most of its provisions applicable to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment
civil liberties
the legal constitutional protections against government. Although our civil liberties are formally set down in the Bill of Rights, the courts, police, and legislatures define their meaning
Bill of Rights
The first 10 amendments to the Constitution, which define such basic liberties as freedom of religion, speech, and press and guarantee defendants' rights
First Amendment
The constitutional amendment that establishes four great liberties: freedom of the press, of speech, of religion, and of assembly
Barron v. Baltimore
The 1833 Supreme Court decision holding that the Bill of Rights restrained only the national government, not the states and cities
Gitlow v. New York
The 1925 Supreme Court decision holding that freedoms of press and speech are "fundamental personal rights and liberties protected by the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment from impairment by the states" as well as by the federal government. Set the precedent for incorporation and overturned the decision in Barron v. Baltimore
Fourteenth Amendment
The constitutional amendment adopted after the Civil War that states, "No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."
due process clause
Part of the Fourteenth Amendment guaranteeing that persons cannot be deprived of life, liberty, or property by the United States or state governments without due process of law
incorporation doctrine
the legal concept under which the Supreme Court has nationalized the Bill of Rights by making most of its provisions applicable to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment
establishment clause
Part of the First Amendment stating that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion."
free exercise clause
A First Amendment provision that prohibits government from interfering with the practice of religion
Lemon v. Kurtzman
The 1971 Supreme Court decision that established that aid to church-related schools must 1. have a secular legislative purpose; 2. have a primary effect that neither advances nor inhibits religion; and 3. not foster excessive government entanglement with religion
Engel v. Vitale
The 1962 Supreme Court decision holding that state officials violated the First Amendment when they wrote a prayer to be recited by New York's schoolchildren
School District of Abington Township Pennsylvania v. Schempp
A 1963 Supreme Court decision holding that a Pennsylvania law requiring Bible reading in schools violated the establishment clause of the First Amendment
prior restraint
A government preventing material from being published (censorship). Unconstitutional according to the First Amendment and as confirmed in the 1931 Supreme Court case of Near v. Minnesota
Schenck v. United States
A 1919 decision upholding the conviction of a socialist who had urged young men to resist the draft during World War I. Justice Holmes declared that government can limit speech if the speech provokes a "clear and present danger" of substantive evils
shield laws
laws that protect reporters from having to reveal information or their sources to the court
Branzburg v. Hayes
A 1972 decision in which the Supreme Court ruled that in the absence of shield laws, the right of a fair trial preempts the reporter's right to protect sources
Zurcher v. Stanford Daily
A 1978 Supreme Court decision holding that a proper search warrant could be applied to a newspaper as well as to anyone else without necessarily violating the First Amendment rights to freedom of the press
Roth v. United States
A 1957 Supreme Court decision ruling that "obscenity is not within the area of constitutionally protected speech or press."
Miller v. California
A 1973 decision under the Burger Court that avoided defining obscenity by holding that community standards be used to determine whether material is obscene in terms of appealing to a "prurient interest," and being "patently offensive," and lacking in value
libel
The publication of false or malicious statements that damage someone's reputation
slander
spoken defamation
New York Times v. Sullivan
Decided in 1964, this case established the guidelines for determining whether public officials and public figures could win damage suits for libel. To do so, individuals must prove that the defamatory statements were made with "actual malice" and reckless disregard for the truth
Texas v. Johnson
A 1989 case in which the Supreme Court struck down a law banning the burning of the American flag on the grounds that such action was symbolic speech protected by the First Amendment
symbolic speech
Nonverbal communication, such as burning a flag or wearing an armband. Some symbolic speech has been acknowledged by the Supreme Court to be protected by the First Amendment
commercial speech
Communication in the form of advertising. It can be restricted more than many other types of speech by has been receiving increased protection from the Supreme Court
freedom of assembly
Within reasonable limits--time place, and manner restrictions--freedom of assembly includes the rights to parade, picket, and protest
NAACP v. Alabama
The Supreme Court protected the right to assemble peaceably in this 1958 case when it decided the NAACP did not have to reveal its membership list and thus subject its members to harrassment
Roth v. United States
A 1957 Supreme Court decision ruling that "obscenity is not within the area of constitutionally protected speech or press."
Miller v. California
A 1973 decision under the Burger Court that avoided defining obscenity by holding that community standards be used to determine whether material is obscene in terms of appealing to a "prurient interest," and being "patently offensive," and lacking in value
libel
The publication of false or malicious statements that damage someone's reputation
slander
spoken defamation
New York Times v. Sullivan
Decided in 1964, this case established the guidelines for determining whether public officials and public figures could win damage suits for libel. To do so, individuals must prove that the defamatory statements were made with "actual malice" and reckless disregard for the truth
Texas v. Johnson
A 1989 case in which the Supreme Court struck down a law banning the burning of the American flag on the grounds that such action was symbolic speech protected by the First Amendment
symbolic speech
Nonverbal communication, such as burning a flag or wearing an armband. Some symbolic speech has been acknowledged by the Supreme Court to be protected by the First Amendment
commercial speech
Communication in the form of advertising. It can be restricted more than many other types of speech by has been receiving increased protection from the Supreme Court
freedom of assembly
Within reasonable limits--time place, and manner restrictions--freedom of assembly includes the rights to parade, picket, and protest
NAACP v. Alabama
The Supreme Court protected the right to assemble peaceably in this 1958 case when it decided the NAACP did not have to reveal its membership list and thus subject its members to harrassment
probable cause
the situation occurring when the police have reason to believe that a person should be arrested. In making the arrest, police are allowed legally to search for and seize incriminating evidence
unreasonable searches and seizures
obtaining evidence in a haphazard or random manner, a practice prohibited by the Fourth Amendment. Probable cause/a search warrant are required for a legal and proper search for and seizure of incriminating evidence
search warrant
a written authorization from a court specifying the area to be searched and what the police are searching for (to prvent the abuse of police power)
exclusionary rule
the rule that evidence, no matter how incriminating, cannot be introduced into a trial if it was not constitutionally obtained. The rule prohibits use of evidence obtained through unreasonable search and seizure.
Mapp v. Ohio
The 1961 Supreme Court decision ruling that the Fourth Amendment's protection against unreasonable searches and seizures must be extended to the states as well as to the federal government
Fifth Amendment
A constitutional amendment designed to protect the rights of persons accused of crimes, including protection against double jeopardy, self-incrimination, and punishment without due process of law
self-incrimination
the situation occurring when an individual accused of a crime is compelled to be a witness against himself or herself in court. The Fifth Amendment forbids self-incrimination
Miranda v. Arizona
The 1966 Supreme Court decision that sets guidelines for police questioning of accused persons to protect them against self-incrimination and to protect their right to counsel
Sixth Amendment
A constitutional amendment designed to protect individuals accused of crimes. It includes the right to counsel, the right to confront witnesses, and the right to a speedy and public trial
Powell v. Alabama
In 1932, the Supreme Court ordered the states to provide an attorney for poor defendants accused of a capital crime
Gideon v. Wainwright
The 1963 Supreme Court decision holding that anyone accused of a felony where imprisonment may be imposed, however poor he or she might be, has a right to a lawyer
plea bargaining
a bargain struck between the defendant's lawyer and the prosecutor to the effect that the defendant will plead guilty to a lesser crime (or fewer crimes) in exchange for the state's promise not to prosecute the defendant for a more serious (or additional) crime
Hamdan v. Rumsfeld
in 2006 the Supreme Court held that the procedures President Bush had approved for trying prisoners at Guantanamo Bay lacked congressional authorization and violated both the Uniform Code of Military Justice and the Geneva Conventions, and the Constitution did not empower the president to establish judicial procedures on his own
Eighth Amendment
forbids cruel and unusual punishment
Furman v. Georgia
the Court overturned Georgia's capital punishment law because use of the death penalty appeared arbitrary
Gregg v. Georgia
The 1976 Supreme Court decision that upheld the constitutionality of the death penalty, stating, "It is an extreme sanction, suitable to the most extreme of crimes." The court did not, therefore, believe that the death sentence constitutes cruel and unusual punishment
right to privacy
the right to a private personal life free from the intrusion of government
Griswold v. Connecticut
1965 decision ruling that a law forbidding attempts to prevent contraception was illegal because it violated the Constitution of unstated liberties implied by the stated rights, such as privacy
penumbras
"shadows;" unstated liberties implied by the explicitly stated rights (e.g protecting a right to privacy)
Roe v. Wade
(9th Amendment: Right to Privacy-abortion) The 1973 Supreme Court decision holding that a state ban on all abortions was unconstitutional. the decision forbade state control over abortions during the first trimester of pregnancy, permitted states to limit abortions to protect the mother's healthy in the second trimester, and permitted states to protect the fetus during the third trimester
Webster v. Reproductive Health Services
(9th Amendment: Right to Privacy-abortion) Narrows Roe v. Wade--States can deny public funds to institutions performing abortions or impose limitations on those institutions
Planned Parenthood v. Casey
(9th Amendment: Right to Privacy-abortion) A 1992 case in which the Supreme Court ruled that states were allowed to place reasonable limits on women's rights to have abortion as long as restrictions don't impose an "undue burden" on women (and unmarried women under 18 must have parental consent)