AP Gov Ch 4 Semia Sims Flashcards
The Crown v. Zenger (1735)
Legal case in the colony of New York that is considered a precursor to free press provisions in the Constitution. The case did reflect a difference between British authorities and colonists with regard to press freedoms
civil liberties
The personal guarantees and freedoms that the government cannot abridge by law, constitution, or judicial interpretation
civil rights
The government-protected rights of individuals against arbitrary or discriminatory treatment by governments or individuals
Bill of Rights
The first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution, which largely guarantee specific rights and liberties
Ninth Amendment
Part of the Bill of Rights that makes it clear that enumerating rights in the Constitution or Bill of Rights does not mean that others do not exist
Tenth Amendment
The final part of the Bill of Rights that defines the basic principle of American federalism in stating that the powers not delegated to the national government are reserved to the states or to the people
Fourteenth Amendment
One of three major amendments enacted after the Civil War, extending ¨equal protection of the law¨ to all citizen
due process clause
Clause contained in the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments; over the ears, it has been construed to guarantee a variety of rights to individuals
substantive due process
Judicial interpretation of the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments´ due process clauses. Protects citizens from arbitrary or unjust state or federal laws
sedition laws
Laws that make it illegal to speak or write any political criticism that threaten to diminish respect for the government, its laws, or public officials. State sedition laws were overturned as a result of the 1925 Gitlow Supreme Court decision 65
Gitlow v. New York (1925)
A Supreme Court case that extended the First Amendment´s protections of freedom of speech and of the press to the state government
incorporation doctrine
An interpretation of the Constitution holding that the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment requires state and local governments to guarantee the rights stated in the Bill of Right
selective incorporation
A judicial doctrine whereby most, but not all, protections found in the Bill of Rights are made applicable to the states vie the Fourteenth Amendment
fundamental freedoms
Those rights defined by the Court as essential to order , liberty, and justice and therefore entitled to the highest standard of review
Warren Court
The period in Supreme Court history during which Earl Warren served as Chief Justice (1953-1969), noted for its many rulings expanding civil liberties and civil rights
Earl Warren
The fourteenth Chief Justice of the United States who served from 1953 to 1969 and the Court through an important liberal phase; previously a Republican governor and vice presidential nominee
First Amendment
Part of the Bill of Riclghts that imposes a number of restrictions on the federal government with respect to civil liberties, including freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition
establishment clause
The first clause of the First Amendment ; it directs the national government not to sanction an official religion
free exercise
The second clause of the First Amendment; it prohibits the U.S. government from interfering with a citizen´s right to practice his or her religion
Lemon test
The three-part test enunciated in Lemon v. Kurtzman is used to assess whether a law violates the Establishment Clause. The “Establishment Clause” was intended to prevent any governmental endorsement or support of religion.
prior restraint
Constitutional doctrine that prevents the government from prohibiting speech or publication before the fact; generally held to be in violation of the First Amendment
Alien and Sedition Acts
Laws passes in 1798 that allowed the imprisonment and deportation of aliens considered dangerous and criminalized false statements against the government
abolitionist
A supporter, especially in the early nineteenth century, of an end to the institution of slavery
Abraham Lincoln
Sixteenth president of the United States, the first elected Republican president, who served from 1861-1865.
Espionage Act
A 1917 law that prohibited urging resistance to the draft or distributing anti-war leaflets; by the Supreme Court in Schenck v U.S.
clear and present danger test
Test articulated by the Supreme COurt in Schenck v. U.S.(1919) to draw the line between protected and unprotected speech
direct incitement test
Test articulated by the Supreme Court in Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969) holding that the First Amendment protects advocacy of illegal action unless imminent lawless action is intended and likely to occur
New York Times Co. v. U.S. (1971)
The case in which the Supreme Court ruled that the U.S. government could not block the publication of secret Department of Defense documents illegally furnished to the Times by anti-war activists
symbolic speech
Symbols, signs, and other methods of expression generally considered to be protected by the First Amendment
hate speech
Communication that belittles a person or group on the basis of race, gender, ethnicity, or other characteristics
Occupy Wall Street
A recent social movement that promotes protests and political activism against income inequality and corporate greed
Black Lives Matter (BLM)
A recent social movement focused on direct protest and political activism against police brutality, mass incarceration, and related offenses against African Americans
libel
False written statement that defames a person´s character
slander
Untrue spoken statements that defame the character of a person
New York Times Co. v. Sullivan (1964)
Case in which the Supreme Court concluded that ¨actual malice¨ must be proven to support a finding of libel against a public figure
fighting words
Words that ¨by their very utterance inflict injury or tend to incite an immediate breach of peace.¨ Fighting words are not subject to the protections of the First Amendment
Miller v. California (1973)
Supreme Court case that created the ¨Miller test¨ to determine when sexually-explicit expression was obscene and therefore beyond the protection of the First Amendment
DeJonge v. Oregon (1937)
Supreme Court case that applied the First Amendment´s protections freedom assembly to the states
Eighteenth Amendment
A 1913 amendment that created the nationwide prohibition on alcoholic beverages; it was repealed in 1933
writ of habeas corpus
Petition requesting that a judge order authorities to prove that a prisoner is being held lawfully and that allows the prisoner to be freed if the government´ case does not persuade the judge.
ex post facto law
Law that makes an act punishable as a crime even if the action was legal at the time it was committed
bill of attainder
A law declaring an act illegal without a judicial trail
due process right
Protections drawn from the Fourth Amendment and the Bill of Rights. Due process may be procedural, ensuring fair treatment, or substantive, protecting fundamental right
Fourth Amendment
Part of the Bill of Rights that protects people from unreasonable searches and seizures of their persons, houses, papers, and effects without a warrant from a judge among other guarantees
Fifth Amendment
Part of the Bill of Rights that imposes a number of restrictions on the federal government with respect to the rights of persons suspected of committing a crime
grand jury
A group of citizens charged with determining whether enough evidence exists for a case to go to trail. Guaranteed by the Fifth Amendment
Miranda v. Arizona (1966)
A landmark Supreme Court ruling holding that the Fifth Amendment requires individuals arrested for a crime to be advised of their right to remain silent and to have counsel present
Miranda rights
Statements required of police that inform a suspect of his or her constitutional rights protected by the Fifth Amendment, including the right to an attorney provided by a court if the suspect cannot afford one
Burger Court
The period in Supreme Court history during which Warren Burger served as Chief Justice (1969-1986)
Warren E. Burger
The fifteenth Chief Justice of the United States who serves from 1969 to 1986 and who led the Court in an increasingly conservative direction
double jeopardy clause
Part of the Fifth Amendment that protects individuals from being tried twice for the same offense in the same jurisdition
exclusionary rule
Judicially created rule that prohibits police from using illegally seized evidence at trail
Sixth Amendment
Part of the Bill of Rights that sets out the basic requirements of procedural due process fro federal courts to follow in criminal trails
capital cases
Court cases in which a conviction may result in the application of the death penalty
Eighth Amendment
Part of the Bill of Rights that states; ¨Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.¨
right to privacy
The rights to be left alone; a judicially created principle encompassing a variety of individual actions protected by the penumbras cast by several constitutional amendments, including the First, Third, Fourth, Ninth, and Fourteenth Amendments
Roe v. Wade (1973)
The Supreme Court found that a woman´s right to an abortion was protected by the right to privacy that could be implied from specific guarantees found in the Bill of Rights applied to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment
Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey (1992)
The Supreme Court´s decision in this abortion case replaced the strict scrutiny standard of Roe with the less stringent undue burden standard
undue burden test
A standard set by the Supreme Court in the Casey case in 1992 that narrowed Roe v. Wade and allowed for greater regulation of abortion by the states
Whole Woman´s Health v. Hellerstedt (2016)
Supreme Court abortion ruling that struck down state law provisions in Texas as presenting an undue burden on women seeking abortions
September 11th
A terrorist plot carried out on September 11, 2001 that used hijacked civilian aircraft to attack the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon near Washington, D.C.
