Civil Liberties Flashcards
What is due process of law
Denies the government the right, without due process, to deprive people of life, liberty, and propert
What are civil liberties?
The protections the Constutution provides against the abuse of government power by, for example, censoring your speech
What is the equal protection clause?
A standard of equal treatment that must be observed by the government.
What is selective corporation?
Court cases that apply bill of rights to states
What is prior restraint?
Censorship of a publication
Qhat is the clear-and-present-danger test
Law should not punish speech unless there was a clear and present danger of producing harmful actions
What are the four forms of speech not automatically granted full constitutional protection?
Libel, obscenity, symbolic speech, and false advertising
What is a libel?
A written statement that defames the character of another person falsley
What is actual malice?
With reckless disregard for their truth or falsity or with knowledge that they were false
What is symbolic speech?
An act that conveys a political mesaage
The right of free expression, though not absolute, occupies a higher, or more preferred, position than many other constitutional rights, such as property rights. This is still a controversial rule; nonetheless, the court always approaches a restriction on expression skeptically
Preferred position
With scarcely any exceptions, the court will not tolerate a prior restraint on expression, such as censorship, even when it will allow subsequent punishment of improper expressions (such as libel)
Prior restraint
