Chapter 3

Question 1

Full Faith and Credit Clause

Answer 1

Requires states to respect the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other state.

Question 2

Bill of Rights

Answer 2

The first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution, guaranteeing certain fundamental rights and protections.

Question 3

Selective Incorporation

Answer 3

The process by which the Supreme Court has applied portions of the Bill of Rights to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment.

Question 4

Free Exercise Clause

Answer 4

The section of the First Amendment that protects religious beliefs and practices.

Question 5

Cantwell v. Connecticut (1940)

Answer 5

Jahova Witnesses wanted to go door to door and connecticut wanted to ban that- federal protection of religious freedom
A case that incorporated the Free Exercise Clause to the states.

Question 6

Establishment Clause

Answer 6

Prohibits the government from establishing an official religion or unduly favoring one religion over another.

Question 7

Engel v. Vitale (1962)

Answer 7

A case that ruled school-sponsored prayer in public schools unconstitutional.

NY school that prayed aloud before each day

Question 8

Wallace v. Jaffree (1985)

Answer 8

A case that found silent prayer in public schools unconstitutional.

Alabama called for moment of silent prayer before school

Question 9

Freedom of Expression

Answer 9

The right to express one’s ideas and opinions

Question 10

Schenck v. United States (1919)

Answer 10

Charles Schenck was charged under the Espionage Act for mailing printed circulars critical of the military draft.

Supreme Court upheld Schenck’s conviction and ruled that the Espionage Act did not conflict with the First Amendment.

A case that established the “clear and present danger” test.

Question 11

Bradenburg v. Ohio (1969)

Answer 11

A case in which the Court held that an Ohio criminal syndicalism law violated a Ku Klux Klan’s First Amendment rights.

The Court’s opinion held that the Ohio law violated Brandenburg’s right to free speech.

Question 12

New York Times v. United States (1971)

Answer 12

Nixon Administration attempted to prevent the New York Times and Washington Post from publishing materials belonging to a classified Defense Department study regarding the history of United States activities in Vietnam.

the Court held that the government did not overcome the “heavy presumption against” prior restraint of the press in this case

Question 13

US v. O’Brien (1968)

Answer 13

David O’Brien burned his draft card at a Boston courthouse. He said he was expressing his opposition to war. He was convicted under a federal law that made the destruction or mutilation of drafts card a crime.

Court held that the First Amendment does not void a law against burning draft cards

Question 14

Tinker v. Des Moines School District

Answer 14

students, including Christopher Eckhardt, were suspended for wearing black armbands to protest the Vietnam War. They sued the school for violating their First Amendment rights.

The Supreme Court ruled in their favor, stating students retain free speech rights in school as long as it doesn’t cause disruption.

Question 15

Cohen v. California (1971)

Answer 15

A 19-year-old department store worker expressed his opposition to the Vietnam War by wearing a jacket emblazoned with “FUCK THE DRAFT. STOP THE WAR” He got arrested

the Court reasoned that the expletive, while provocative, was not directed toward anyone; besides, there was no evidence that people in substantial numbers would be provoked into some kind of physical action by the words on his jacket.

Question 16

Texas v. Johnson (1989)

Answer 16

Gregory Lee Johnson burned an American flag as a means of protest against Reagan administration policies.

the Court held that Johnson’s burning of a flag was protected expression under the First Amendment

Question 17

Morse v. Frederick (2005)

Answer 17

a student, Joseph Frederick, displayed a banner reading “Bong Hits 4 Jesus” during a school-supervised event. The principal, Deborah Morse, suspended him, arguing the banner promoted illegal drug use. Frederick sued, claiming his First Amendment rights were violated.

The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the school, deciding that schools can restrict student speech that promotes illegal drug use, even if it occurs off school grounds during a school event.

Question 18

De Jonge v. Oregon (1937)

Answer 18

Dirk De Jonge was arrested for speaking at a peaceful Communist Party meeting, which authorities claimed violated Oregon’s criminal syndicalism law. De Jonge argued that his rights to free speech and assembly were violated.

The Supreme Court ruled in favor of De Jonge, holding that the right to peacefully assemble and discuss political issues is protected under the First Amendment, and states cannot infringe on these rights.

This case strengthened protections for free speech and peaceful assembly at the state level through the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

Question 19

Snyder v. Phelps (2011)

Answer 19

The family of deceased Marine Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder filed a lawsuit against members of the Westboro Baptist Church who picketed at his funeral. The family accused the church and its founders of defamation, invasion of privacy and the intentional infliction of emotional distress for displaying signs that said, “Thank God for dead soldiers” and “Fag troops” at Snyder’s funeral.

The Supreme Court affirmed the lower court’s decision in an opinion by Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr. The Court held that the First Amendment shields those who stage a protest at the funeral of a military service member from liability

Question 20

Obscenity

Answer 20

A category of speech that is not protected under the first amendment

Question 21

Roth v. United States

Answer 21

Roth operated a book-selling business in New York and was convicted of mailing obscene circulars and an obscene book in violation of a federal obscenity statute.

the Court held that obscenity was not “within the area of constitutionally protected speech or press.”

Question 22

Miller v. California (1973)

Answer 22

Miller, after conducting a mass mailing campaign to advertise the sale of “adult” material, was convicted of violating a California statute prohibiting the distribution of obscene material.

the Court held that obscene materials did not enjoy First Amendment protection.

Question 23

Second Amendment

Answer 23

The right to keep and bear arms

Question 24

District of Columbia v. Heller (2008)

Answer 24

the Supreme Court ruled that the Second Amendment protects an individual’s right to possess firearms, unconnected to service in a militia. The case involved a challenge to Washington, D.C.’s handgun ban and regulations requiring guns to be kept unloaded and disassembled.

The Court struck down the D.C. laws, holding that individuals have a right to keep a firearm in the home for self-defense. This was the first major case to clarify that the Second Amendment guarantees individual gun ownership rights

Question 25

McDonald v. Chicago (2010)

Answer 25

Does the Second Amendment apply to the states because it is incorporated by the Fourteenth Amendment’s Privileges and Immunities or Due Process clauses and thereby made applicable to the states?

The Supreme Court reversed the Seventh Circuit, holding that the Fourteenth Amendment makes the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms for the purpose of self-defense applicable to the states.

Question 26

Writ of Habeas Corpus

Answer 26

A legal order requiring that a person be brought before a judge to determine if their detention is lawful

Judge or magistrate must tell you what you are there for

Question 27

Ex Post Facto Laws

Answer 27

Laws that retroactively change the legal consequences of actions

Question 28

Bills of Attainder

Answer 28

Legislative acts that impose punishment without a trial

Question 29

Fourth Amendment

Answer 29

Protects against unreasonable searches and seizures

Protects people, not places

Question 30

Exclusionary Rule

Answer 30

Evidence obtained illegally cannot be used in court

Question 31

Katz v. United States (1967)

Answer 31

Acting on a suspicion that Katz was transmitting gambling information over the phone to clients in other states, Federal agents attached an eavesdropping device to the outside of a public phone booth used by Katz.

The Court ruled that Katz was entitled to Fourth Amendment protection for his conversations and that a physical intrusion into the area he occupied was unnecessary to bring the Amendment into play

Question 32

Mapp v. Ohio (1961)

Answer 32

Dollree Mapp was convicted of possessing obscene materials after an admittedly illegal police search of her home for a fugitive.

the majority brushed aside First Amendment issues and declared that all evidence obtained by searches and seizures in violation of the Fourth Amendment is inadmissible in a state court.

Question 33

Fifth Amendment

Answer 33

Protects against self-incrimination, double jeopardy, and guarantees due process.

Question 34

Sixth Amendment

Answer 34

Guarantees the right to a fair trial, including the right to counsel

Question 35

Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)

Answer 35

Gideon was charged in Florida state court with felony breaking and entering. When he appeared in court without a lawyer, Gideon requested that the court appoint one for him. According to Florida state law, however, an attorney may only be appointed to an indigent defendant in capital cases, so the trial court did not appoint one.

the Court held that it was consistent with the Constitution to require state courts to appoint attorneys for defendants who could not afford to retain counsel on their own.

Question 36

Eighth Amendment

Answer 36

Protects against cruel and unusual punishment

Question 37

Right to Privacy

Answer 37

Though not explicitly mentioned in the Constitution, the Supreme Court has recognized privacy rights.

Question 38

Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)

Answer 38

Connecticut passed a law that banned the use of any drug, medical device, or other instrument in furthering contraception. A gynecologist at the Yale School of Medicine, C. Lee Buxton, opened a birth control clinic in New Haven in conjunction with Estelle Griswold, who was the head of Planned Parenthood in Connecticut.

the Court ruled that the Constitution did in fact protect the right of marital privacy against state restrictions on contraception

Question 39

Roe v. Wade

Answer 39

A case that established a woman’s right to choose an abortion, with a viability and trimester framework.

Trimester Formula: A framework used by the Court in Roe to regulate abortion rights.

Question 40

Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (2022)

Answer 40

A case that overturned Roe v. Wade, giving states more authority over abortion regulations.

Question 41

Dred Scott v. Stanford (1857)

Answer 41

Scott filed suit in Missouri court for his freedom, claiming that his residence in free territory made him a free man. After losing, Scott brought a new suit in federal court.

The majority held that “a negro, whose ancestors were imported into [the U.S.], and sold as slaves,” whether enslaved or free, could not be an American citizen and therefore did not have standing to sue in federal court.

Question 42

Thirteenth Amendment

Answer 42

Abolished slavery

Question 43

Fourteenth Amendment

Answer 43

Includes the Equal Protection Clause and Due Process Clause, which protect civil rights.

Question 44

Equal Protection Clause

Answer 44

Requires states to provide equal protection under the law to all people

Question 45

Due Process Clause

Answer 45

Prohibits states from depriving any person of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.

Question 46

Fifteenth Amendment

Answer 46

Prohibits denying the right to vote based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude

Question 47

Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)

Answer 47

the Supreme Court upheld racial segregation laws under the “separate but equal” doctrine. The case stemmed from Homer Plessy, who was arrested for sitting in a “whites-only” railroad car in Louisiana, challenging segregation as unconstitutional.

The Court ruled that segregation was lawful as long as the separate facilities for Black and white people were equal. This decision legalized racial segregation and led to decades of discrimination, particularly in the South.

Question 48

Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

Answer 48

the Supreme Court ruled that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional, overturning the “separate but equal” doctrine established in Plessy v. Ferguson. The case was brought by Oliver Brown, whose daughter was denied entry to a white school in Kansas.

The Court unanimously held that “separate educational facilities are inherently unequal,” and segregation violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. This landmark decision was a major step in the civil rights movement and led to the desegregation of schools across the U.S.

Question 49

De Jure Segregation

Answer 49

Segregation that exists by law

Question 50

De Facto Segregation

Answer 50

Segregation that exists in practice, though not required by law

Question 51

Affirmative Action

Answer 51

Policies that take factors like race or gender into account to benefit underrepresented groups

Question 52

Nineteenth Amendment

Answer 52

Granted women the right to vote

Question 53

Equal Rights Amendment

Answer 53

A proposed amendment aimed at guaranteeing equal rights for all Americans regardless of sex (not ratified).

Question 54

Obergefell v. Hodges (2015)

Answer 54

Groups of same-sex couples sued their relevant state agencies in Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky, and Tennessee to challenge the constitutionality of those states’ bans on same-sex marriage or refusal to recognize legal same-sex marriages that occurred in jurisdictions that provided for such marriages

The Court held that the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment guarantees the right to marry as one of the fundamental liberties it protects, and that analysis applies to same-sex couples in the same manner as it does to opposite-sex couples