Chapter 4 And 5 Government Vocab

Front 1

the legal constitutional protections against government; although they are formally set down in the Bill of Rights, the courts, police, and legislatures define their meaning

Back 1

civil liberties

Front 2

the first 10 amendments to the US Constitution, which define such basic liberties as freedom of religion, speech, and press and guarantee defendants’ rights

Back 2

Bill of Rights

Front 3

the constitutional amendment that establishes the four great liberties: freedom of the press, of speech, of religion, and of assembly

Back 3

First Amendment

Front 4

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.”

Back 4

Fourteenth Amendment

Front 5

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

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incorporation doctrine

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part of the First Amendment stating that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.”

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establishment clause

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a First Amendment provision that prohibits government from interfering with the practice of religion

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free exercise clause

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a government preventing material from being published; this is a common method of limiting the press in some nations, but is usually unconstitutional in the United States, according to the First Amendment and as confirmed in the 1931 Supreme Court case of Near v. Minnesota

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prior restraint

Front 9

the publication of false or malicious statements that damages someone’s reputation

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libel

Front 10

nonverbal communication, such as burning a flag or wearing an armband; the Supreme Court has accorded some protection under the First Amendment

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symbolic speech

Front 11

communication in the form of advertising; it can be restricted more than other types of speech but has been receiving increased protection from the Supreme Court

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commercial communication

Front 12

the situation occurring when the police have reason to believe that a person should be arrested; in making the arrest, the police are allowed legally to search for and seize incriminating evidence

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probable cause

Front 13

obtaining evidence in a haphazard or random manner, a practice prohibited by the Fourth Amendment; probable cause and/or a search warrant are required for a legal and proper search for and seizure of incriminating evidence

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unreasonable searches and seizures

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a written authorization from a court specifying the area to be searched and what the police are searching for; the Fourth Amendment requires one to prevent unreasonable searches and seizures

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search warrant

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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 searches and seizures

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exclusionary rule

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the 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

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Fifth Amendment

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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 this

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self-incrimination

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the constitutional amendment designed to protect individuals accused of crimes; it includes the right to counsel, and the right to a speedy and public trial

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Sixth Amendment

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an actual bargain struck between the defendants’ 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

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plea bargaining

Front 20

the constitutional amendment that forbids cruel and unusual punishment, although it does not define this phrase; through the Fourteenth Amendment, this Bill of Rights provision applies to the states

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Eighth Amendment

Front 21

court sentences prohibited by the Eighth Amendment; although the Supreme Court has ruled that mandatory death sentences for certain offenses are unconstitutional, it has not held that the death penalty itself constitutes cruel and unusual punishment

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cruel and unusual punishment

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the right to a private personal life free from the intrusion of government

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right to privacy

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policies designed to protect people against arbitrary or discriminatory treatment by government officials or individuals

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civil rights

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part of the Fourteenth Amendment emphasizing that the laws must provide equivalent “protection” to all people

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equal protection of the laws

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the constitutional amendment ratified after the Civil War that forbade slavery and involuntary servitude

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Thirteenth Amendment

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a law passed in 1990 that requires employers and public facilities to make “reasonable accommodations” for people with disabilities and prohibits discrimination against these individuals in employment

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Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990

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the law that made racial discrimination against any group in hotels, motels, and restaurants illegal and forbade many forms of job discrimination

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Civil Rights Act of 1964

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the legal right to vote, extended to African American by the Fifteenth Amendment, to women by the Nineteenth Amendment, and to people over the age of 18 by the Twenty-sixth Amendment

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suffrage

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nstitutional amendment adopted in 1870 to extend suffrage to African Americans

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Fifthteenth Amendment

Front 30

small taxes, levied on the right to vote, that often fell due at a time of year when poor African-American sharecroppers had the least cash on hand; this method was used by most Southern states to exclude African Americans from voting registers; declared void by the Twenty-fourth Amendment

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poll taxes

Front 31

one of the means used to discourage African-Americans voting that permitted political parties in the heavily Democratic South to exclude African-Americans from primary elections, thus depriving them of a voice in the real contests; the Supreme Court declared this unconstitutional in 1944

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White Primary

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the constitutional amendment passed in 1964 that declared all poll taxes void in federal elections

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Twenty Fourth Amendment

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a law designed to help end formal and informal barriers to African-American suffrage; under the law, hundreds of thousands of African-Americans were registered and the number of African-American elected officials increased dramatically

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Voting Rights Act of 1965

Front 34

the constitutional amendment adopted in 1920 that guarantees women the right to vote

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Nineteenth Amendment

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constitutional amendment originally introduced in Congress in 1923 and passed in Congress in 1972, stating that “equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex”; despite public support, the amendment failed to acquire the necessary support from three-fourths of the state legislatures

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Equal Rights Amendment

Front 36

the issue raised when women who hold traditionally female jobs are paid less than men for working jobs requiring comparable skill

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comparable worth