5A Vocab

Question 1

Writ of habeas corpus

Answer 1

A court order requiring explanation to a judge why a prisoner is being held in custody

Question 2

Ex post facto law

Answer 2

Retroactive criminal law that works to the disadvantage of a person

Question 3

Due process clause

Answer 3

Clause in the Fifth Amendment limiting the power of the national government; similar clause in the Fourteenth Amendment prohibiting state governments from depriving any person of life, liberty, or property without due process of law

Question 4

Selective incorporation

Answer 4

The process by which provisions of the bill of rights are brought within the scope of the Fourteenth Amendment and so applied to state and local governments

Question 5

Establishment clause

Answer 5

Clause in the First Amendment that states that Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion. The Supreme Court has interpreted this to forbid governmental support to any or all religions.

Question 6

Free exercise clause

Answer 6

Clause in the First Amendment that states that Congress shall make no law prohibiting the free exercise of religion

Question 7

Clear and present danger test

Answer 7

Interpretation of the First Amendment that holds that the government cannot interfere with speech unless the speech presents a clear and present danger that will lead to evil or illegal acts

Question 8

Prior restraint

Answer 8

Censorship imposed before a speech is made or a newspaper is published; usually presumed to be unconstitutional

Question 9

Unprotected speech

Answer 9

Libel, obscenity, and fighting words which are not entitled to constitutional protection in all circumstances

Question 10

Libel

Answer 10

Written defamation of another person. For public officials and public figures, the constitutional tests designed to restrict libel actions are especially rigid

Question 11

Obscenity

Answer 11

Quality or state of a work that taken as a whole appeals to a prurient interest in sex by depicting sexual conduct in a patently offensive way and that lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value

Question 12

Fighting words

Answer 12

Words that by their very nature inflict injury on those to whom they are addressed or incite them to acts of violence

Question 13

Eminent domain

Answer 13

The power of a government to take private property for public use; the U.S. Constitution gives national and states governments this power and requires them to provide just compensation for property so taken

Question 14

Due process

Answer 14

Established rules and regulations that restrain government officials

Question 15

Procedural due process

Answer 15

Constitutional requirement that governments proceed by proper methods; limits how government may exercise power

Question 16

Substantive due process

Answer 16

Constitutional requirement that governments act reasonably and that the substance of the laws themselves be fair and reasonable; limits what the government may do

Question 17

Search warrant

Answer 17

A writ issued by a magistrate that authorizes the police to search a particular place or person, specifying the place to be searched and the objects to be seized

Question 18

Exclusionary rule

Answer 18

Requirement that evidence unconstitutionally or illegally obtained be excluded from a criminal trial

Question 19

Grand jury

Answer 19

A jury of 12 to 23 persons who, in private, hear evidence presented by the government to determine whether persons shall be required to stand trial. If the jury believes there is sufficient evidence that a crime was committed, it issues an indictment.

Question 20

Petit jury

Answer 20

A jury of 6 to 12 persons that determines guilt or innocence in a civil or criminal action

Question 21

Indictment

Answer 21

A formal written statement from a grand jury charging an individual with an offense; also called a true bill

Question 22

Plea bargain

Answer 22

Agreement between a prosecutor and a defendant that the defendant will plead guilty to a lesser offense to avoid having to stand trial for more serious offense

Question 23

Double jeopardy

Answer 23

Trial or punishment for the same crime by the same government; forbidden by the Constitution

Question 24

Civil liberties

Answer 24

Protect individuals from government actions; these liberties are either explicitly identified in the Bill of Rights and the Constitution, or interpreted through the years by courts and lawmakers

Question 25

USA PATRIOT Act

Answer 25

Law created after 9/11 that was intended to help government agencies detect and prevent possible acts of terrorism, or sponsorship of terrorist groups

Question 26

USA FREEDOM Act

Answer 26

Law created in 2015 that restored in modified form several provisions of the PATRIOT Act; the act imposes new limits on the bulk collection of telecommunication metadata on U.S. citizens by American intelligence agencies, including the National Security Agency (NSA)