Chapter 4

Question 1

civil rights

Answer 1

things concerning a more equitable and fair society

Question 2

civil liberties

Answer 2

things to inhibit government encroachment and usually to defend the bill of rights (first 10 amendments)

Question 3

Thomas Jefferson on human rights

Answer 3

took the words of John Locke, derives inalienable human rights from nature

Question 4

article 1 (section 9)

Answer 4

prohibits bills of attainders, ex post facto laws, and limits Congressional powers to suspend writ of habeas corpus

Question 5

Were the Federalists cool with the Constitution without the additional bill of rights?

Answer 5

for the most part, yes. Alexander Hamilton critiques that the Constitution doesn’t protect private lives as it regulates just political matters.

Question 6

Anti-Federalists thoughts on Constitution and bills of rights and whatnot

Answer 6

they thought that the constitution wasn’t enough to do the job but and they thought that the bill of rights was a good idea. Robert Yates aka Brutus thinks that the government will undoubtedly expand (which it did by a lot).

Question 7

Barron v. Baltimore

Answer 7

Supreme Court says that the bill of rights only applied to actions of the federal government.

Question 8

Saenz v. Roe

Answer 8

protects the right to travel from one state to another

Question 9

Sherbert v. Werner

Answer 9

states cant deny unemployment benefits who turned down the job because it required them to work on Sundays.

Question 10

McDonald v. Chicago

Answer 10

incorporated the second amendment into state law

Question 11

Near v. Minnesota

Answer 11

ruled against censorship with few exceptions

Question 12

blue law

Answer 12

a law originally created to uphold a religious or moral standard, such as a prohibition against selling alcohol on Sundays

Question 13

common-law right

Answer 13

a right of the people rooted in legal tradition and past court rulings, rather than the Constitution

Question 14

conscientious objector

Answer 14

a person who claims the right to refuse to perform military service on the grounds of freedom of thought, conscience, or religion

Question 15

establishment clause

Answer 15

the provision of the First Amendment that prohibits the government from endorsing a state-sponsored religion; interpreted as preventing government from favoring some religious beliefs over others or religion over non-religion

Question 16

exclusionary rule

Answer 16

a requirement, from Supreme Court case Mapp v. Ohio, that evidence obtained as a result of an illegal search or seizure cannot be used to try someone for a crime

Question 17

free exercise clause

Answer 17

the provision of the First Amendment that prohibits the government from regulating religious beliefs and practices

Question 18

prior restraint

Answer 18

a government action that stops someone from doing something before they are able to do it (e.g., forbidding someone to publish a book he or she plans to release)

Question 19

probable cause

Answer 19

legal standard for determining whether a search or seizure is constitutional or a crime has been committed; a lower threshold than the standard of proof needed at a criminal trial

Question 20

search warrant

Answer 20

a legal document, signed by a judge, allowing police to search and/or seize persons or property

Question 21

Sherbert test

Answer 21

a standard for deciding whether a law violates the free exercise clause; a law will be struck down unless there is a “compelling governmental interest” at stake and it accomplishes its goal by the “least restrictive means” possible

Question 22

symbolic speech

Answer 22

a form of expression that does not use writing or speech but nonetheless communicates an idea (e.g., wearing an article of clothing to show solidarity with a group)

Question 23

obscenity

Answer 23

acts or statements that are extremely offensive by contemporary standards

Question 24

double jeopardy

Answer 24

a prosecution pursued twice at the same level of government for the same criminal action

Question 25

economic liberty

Answer 25

the right of individuals to obtain, use, and trade things of value for their own benefit

Question 26

eminent domain

Answer 26

the power of government to take or use property for a public purpose after compensating its owner; also known as the takings clause of the Fifth Amendment

Question 27

Miranda warning

Answer 27

a statement by law enforcement officers informing a person arrested or subject to interrogation of his or her rights

Question 28

plea bargain

Answer 28

an agreement between the defendant and the prosecutor in which the defendant pleads guilty to the charge(s) in question or perhaps to less serious charges, in exchange for more lenient punishment than if convicted after a full trial

Question 29

self-incrimination

Answer 29

an action or statement that admits guilt or responsibility for a crime

Question 30

Patriot Act

Answer 30

a law passed by Congress in the wake of the 9/11 attacks that broadened federal powers to monitor electronic communications; the full name is the USA PATRIOT Act (Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act)

Question 31

right to privacy

Answer 31

the right to be free of government intrusion

Question 32

undue burden test

Answer 32

a means of deciding whether a law that makes it harder for women to seek abortions is constitutional