Civil Rights and Liberties Ch. 4 (01.20.2021) Flashcards
court orders in which a judge requires authorities to prove they are holding a prisoner lawfully and that the prisoner is to be freed if the government’s case does not persuade the judge; rights imply that prisoners have a right to know what charges are being made against them
habeas corpus
law that makes an act punishable as a crime even if the action was legal at the time it was committed
ex post facto law
bill of attainder
a law declaring an act illegal without a judicial trial
amendment 1
Part of the Bill of Rights that imposes a number of restrictions on the federal government with respect to civil liberties, including freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition.
amendment 2
A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.
amendment 4
Part of the Bill of Rights that reads: “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”
amendment 5
Part of the Bill of Rights that imposes a number of restrictions on the federal government with respect to the rights of persons suspected of committing a crime. It provides for indictment by a grand jury and protection against self-incrimination, and prevents the national government from denying a person life, liberty, or property without the due process of law. It also prevents the national government from taking property without just compensation.
amendment 6
Part of the Bill of Rights that sets out the basic requirements of procedural due process for federal courts to follow in criminal trials. These include speedy and public trials, impartial juries, trials in the state where the crime was committed, notice of the charges, the right to confront and obtain favorable witnesses, and the right to counsel.
amendment 8
Part of the Bill of Rights that states: “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.”
14th amendment
due process clause - defends against state/local gov’t, citizenship, rights, privileges and immunities, equal protection
establishment clause vs exercise clause
the establishment clause is prohibiting the sanctioning of an official religion; the exercise clause is prohibiting interference with a citizen’s right to practice his or her religion
lemon test
Three-part test created by the Supreme Court for examining the constitutionality of religious establishment issues.
3 parts of the lemon test
A Law Must…
Have a secular legislative purpose
Not have the primary effect of either advancing or inhibiting religion
Not result in an “excessive government entanglement” with religion
prior restraint
Constitutional doctrine that prevents the government from prohibiting speech or publication before the fact; generally held to be in violation of the First Amendment.
clear & present danger
Test articulated by the Supreme Court in Schenck v. U.S. (1919) to draw the line between protected and unprotected speech; the Court looks to see “whether the words used” could “create a clear and present danger that they will bring about substantive evils” that Congress seeks “to prevent.”
obscenity
definition: (of the portrayal or description of sexual matters) offensive or disgusting by accepted standards of morality and decency.
the roth test decided that it was not constitutionally protected and the miller test provided states greater freedom in prosecuting alleged vendors of “obscene” material
libel
False WRITTEN statement that defames a person’s character.
slander
Untrue SPOKEN statements that defame the character of a person.
symbolic speech
Symbols, signs, and other methods of expression generally considered to be protected by the First Amendment.
direct incitement test
Test articulated by the Supreme Court in Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969) holding that the First Amendment protects advocacy of illegal action unless imminent lawless action is intended and likely to occur.
miller test
Obscene only if all three are satisfied:
Would average person, applying contemporary community standards would find the work as a whole, appealing to prurient interests (having or encouraging excessive sexual interest in sexual matters)
Does the work depict or describe in a patently offensive way, social conduct or excretory functions specifically defined state law
Whether the work, taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value.
roth test
“whether to the average person, applying contemporary community standards, the dominant theme of the material taken as a whole appeals to the prurient interests
what was the intent of the bill of rights?
- to limit the powers of the nat’l gov’t and 2. protect rights and spell them out
civil liberties
Personal guarantees & freedoms that the gov’t cannot abridge by law, constitution, or judicial interpretation
civil rights
Provide freedom from arbitrary (not based on reason) or discriminatory treatment by gov’t or individuals
Exclusionary rule
Judicially created rule that prohibits police from using illegally seized evidence at trial.
Who has power to regulate abortions?
state governments can regulate abortions on the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd trimester
Fundamental freedoms
those rights defined by the Court as essential to order, liberty, and justice and therefore entitled to the highest standard of review
Litmus Test
a decisively indicative test - a question asked of a potential candidate for high office, the answer to which would determine whether the nominating official would proceed with the appointment or nomination.
Explain what incorporation doctrine and selective incorporation are & how they work. (Include Gitlow, 14th Amendment)
incorporation doctrine = an interpretation of the constitution holding that the due process clause of the FOURTEENTH AMENDMENT requires state and local gov’ts to guarantee BOR, selective incorporation = where most, but not all, protections in the BOR are applicable to the states via the 14th Amendment. GITLOW V NY, with its finding that states could not abridge free speech protections, was the first to clearly articulate the incorporation doctrine
