Chapter 4 Vocabulary

Question 1

Civil liberties

Answer 1

Basic political freedoms that protect citizens from governmental abuses of power. (page 112)

Question 2

Civil War Amendments

Answer 2

The Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments to the Constitution, which abolished slavery and granted civil liberties and voting rights to freed slaves after the Civil War. (page 118)

Question 3

Due process clause

Answer 3

Part of the Fourteenth Amendment that forbids states from denying ‘‘life, liberty, or property’’ to any person without due process of law. (A nearly identical clause in the Fifth Amendment applies only to the national government.) (page 119)

Question 4

Selective incorporation

Answer 4

The process through which the civil liberties granted in the Bill of Rights were applied to the states on a case-by-case basis through the Fourteenth Amendment. (page 120)

Question 5

Strict scrutiny

Answer 5

The highest level of scrutiny the courts use when determining whether a law is constitutional. To pass this test, the law or policy must be shown to serve a ‘‘compelling state interest’’ or goal, it must be narrowly tailored to achieve that goal, and it must be the least restrictive means of achieving the goal. (page 122)

Question 6

Intermediate scrutiny

Answer 6

The middle level of scrutiny the courts use when determining whether a law is constitutional. To pass this test, the law or policy must further an important government interest in a way that is ‘‘substantially related’’ to that interest. That is, the law must use means that are a close fit to the government’s goal and substantially broader than is necessary to accomplish that goal. (page 122)

Question 7

Clear and present danger test

Answer 7

Established in Schenk v. United States, this test allows the government to restrict certain types of speech deemed dangerous. (page 123)

Question 8

Direct incitement test

Answer 8

Established in Brandenberg v. Ohio, this test protects threatening speech under the First Amendment unless that speech aims to and is likely to cause imminent ‘‘lawless action.’’ (page 124)

Question 9

Symbolic speech

Answer 9

Nonverbal expression, such as the use of signs or symbols. It benefits from many of the same constitutional protections as verbal speech. (page 125)

Question 10

Hate speech

Answer 10

Expression that is offensive or abusive, particularly in terms of race, gender, or sexual orientation. It is currently protected under the First Amendment. (page 126)

Question 11

Prior restraint

Answer 11

A limit on freedom of the press that allows the government to prohibit the media from publishing certain materials. (page 128)

Question 12

Gag order

Answer 12

An aspect of prior restraint that allows the government to prohibit the media from publishing anything related to an ongoing trial. (page 128)

Question 13

Fighting words

Answer 13

Forms of expression that ‘‘by their very utterance’’ can incite violence. These can be regulated by the government but are often difficult to define. (page 129)

Question 14

Slander and libel

Answer 14

Spoken false statements (slander) and written false statements (libel) that damage a person’s reputation. Both can be regulated by the government but are often difficult to distinguish from permissible speech. (page 130)

Question 15

Commercial speech

Answer 15

Public expression with the aim of making a profit. It has received greater protection under the First Amendment in recent years but remains less protected than political speech. (page 130)

Question 16

Miller test

Answer 16

Established in Miller v. California, the Supreme Court uses this three-part test to determine whether speech meets the criteria for obscenity. If so, it can be restricted by the government. (page 131)

Question 17

Establishment clause

Answer 17

Part of the First Amendment that states ‘‘Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion,’’ which has been interpreted to mean that Congress cannot sponsor or favor any religion. (page 132)

Question 18

Free exercise clause

Answer 18

Part of the First Amendment that states Congress cannot prohibit or interfere with the practice of religion. (page 132)

Question 19

Lemon test

Answer 19

The Supreme Court uses this test, established in Lemon v. Kurtzman, to determine whether a practice violates the First Amendment’s establishment clause. (page 134)

Question 20

Due process rights

Answer 20

The idea that laws and legal proceedings must be fair. The Constitution guarantees that the government cannot take away a person’s ‘‘life, liberty, or property, without due process of law.’’ Other specific due process rights are found in the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth Amendments, such as protection from self-incrimination and freedom from illegal searches. (page 139)

Question 21

Exclusionary rule

Answer 21

The principle that illegally or unconstitutionally acquired evidence cannot be used in a criminal trial. (page 142)

Question 22

Miranda rights

Answer 22

The list of civil liberties described in the Fifth Amendment that must be read to a suspect before anything the suspect says can be used in a trial. (page 146)

Question 23

Double jeopardy

Answer 23

Being tried twice for the same crime. This is prevented by the Fifth Amendment. (page 146)

Question 24

Privacy rights

Answer 24

Liberties protected by several amendments in the Bill of Rights that shield certain personal aspects of citizens’ lives from governmental interference, such as the Fourth Amendment’s protection against unreasonable searches and seizures. (page 151)

Question 25

Substantive due process doctrine

Answer 25

One interpretation of the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment; in this view the Supreme Court has the power to overturn laws that infringe on individual liberties. (page 153)