Chapter 9: The Bill of Rights and Other Amendments Flashcards
Define and describe the bill of rights
Bill of rights - a statement of an individual citizen’s legal privileges
>cannot be take away by civil government
>concept comes from English Bill constitutional history, where feudal contract between king and subjects limited king’s powers and increased subjects’ privileges
Describe what amendments 2 through 8 consist
> consist of long-standing civil and legal rights of individual citizens recognized in both English and US common law
Describe what 1st Amendment consist of
> has legal guarantees of freedom of religion, of speech, of the press, of assembly, and of petition, is almost uniquely American
many American colonists came to New World specifically to find religious freedom and supported War for Independence to secure this liberty so US Bill of Rights and particularly, 1st Amendment was no accident
Describe the background of the Bill of Rights
> 3 documents that formed historical background to our Bill of Rights: Massachusetts Body of Liberties (1641); English Bill of Rights (1689); and Virginia Declaration of Rights (1776)
James Madison won ratification by incorporating plea for bill of rights along with Constitution
Describe the correlation between rights and responsibilities
> our rights are due to Bible and Christian religion upon culture and are dependent upon corresponding duties
“For every right, there is a corresponding responsibility; for every privilege, there is a corresponding duty.”
List the rights guaranteed in the First Amendment
> First Amendment’s 2 statements on religion: (1) Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion. (2) Congress shall not prohibit the free exercise of religion.
Freedom of speech
Freedom of the press
Freedom of assembly and redress of grievances
Describe the “establishment clause”
> “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion”
means that Congress may not establish state church or give legal preference to any church or denomination
to ensure that church and state be institutionally separate and not legally tied together
In court case Lemon v. Kurtzman (1971), Supreme Court gave 3 criteria in deciding establishment clause cases: (1) law must have secular purpose, (2) law’s primary effect must be neutral toward religion, and (3) law must not foster excessive entanglement of government with religion
Give the 3 great purposes the Framers of the Bill of Rights intended in the “establishment of religion” and “free exercise” clause
> (1) to prevent establishment of national religion or state church or denomination preferred legal status
(2) to safeguard right to freedom of religion and liberty of conscience against invasion by federal government
(3) to permit individual states to deal with religious establishments or institutions as they saw fit without federal interference
Describe the “free exercise clause”
> other part of 1st Amendment pertaining to religion
guarantees liberty of conscience, but also to protect right of individual to worship God according to dictates of his own conscience and to practice his religion freely
is limited by common standards of decency (example: Reynolds v. United States case (1879) ruled that Mormon practice of polygamy was not constitutionally protected by “free exercise clause” of 1st Amendment because it violated common standards of decency, morality, and public order)
Describe what the 2nd Amendment consists of
> right to keep and bear arms
What 2 dominant ideas does the 2nd Amendment contain?
> (1) militias are necessary to security of a free state
>(2) the right to keep and bear arms cannot be infringed (violated)
Describe the modern interpretation of the 2nd Amendment
> 1920s and into 1930s, much organized crime in US related to traffic of illegal liquor. Cities like Chicago and New York, “gangsters” sported machine guns in public view. This spurred efforts to control possession of firearms.
In 1993, Congress passed Brady Law restricting sale of handguns by requiring a waiting period for purchase of handgun
Describe what the 3rd Amendment consists of
> soldiers cannot be quartered in any house without the consent of the home owner
affirmed the property rights of US citizens
Describe what the 4th Amendment consists of
> no unreasonable searches and seizures without a warrant
warrant - written statement issues by a judge which gives law officer legal right to search for particular thing in a specific place
this freedom from unreasonable search and seizure reaffirms right to own and to control private property
also gives lawful way to obtain evidence in cases involving criminal activities
What does 5th Amendment consist of
> nobody has to answer to a capital, or otherwise infamous, crime, unless on presentment or indictment of Grand Jury, except in cases arising in land or naval forces, or in Militia, when in actual service in time of War, or public danger
capital crime - crime so serious that it is punishable by death
felony - serious crime other than capital crime
court martial - special military courts where members of US Armed Forces are tried for crimes
US Court of Military Appeals - where a serviceman found guilty in a court-martial can appeal the verdict to
eminent domain - right of civil government to take over person’s land or other private property for public use
Describe what 6th Amendment consists of
> in all criminal prosecutions, accused gets right to speedy and public trial by unbiased jury of State and district that crime was committed, and
to be informed of nature and cause of accusation, and
to be confronted with witnesses against him, and
to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and
to have Assistance of Counsel for his defence
summons - requiremnt to appear in court
what does 7th Amendment consist of
> In Suits at common law, where value in controversy shall exceed $20
right of trial by jury preserved
no fact tried by a jury, shall be reexamined in any Court of US, than according to rules of common law
What does 8th Amendment consist of
> no excessive bail or fines
no cruel and unusual punishment inflicted
bail - sum of money that person accused of crime deposits with court in order to be temporarily released from jail
Describe the Furman v. Georgia case
> Supreme Court ruled that implementation of capital punishment by several states was arbitrary and that it constituted “cruel and unusual punishment
thus declared death penalty unconstitutional
Describe Gregg v. Georgia case
> Supreme Court ruled that “punishment of death does not invariably violate the Constitution.”
Describe what the 9th Amendment consists of
> enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people
What does the 10th Amendment consist of
> powers not delegated to US by Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people
What does the 11th Amendment consist of
> deals with lawsuits filed against states in federal court
what does 12th Amendment consist of
> provided for separate ballots for President and Vice President
