civil rights court cases

Question 1

Barron v Baltimore

Answer 1

5th Amendment.
Barron’s property was taken without compensation.
Denied selective incorporation.

Question 2

Gitlow v New York

Answer 2

1st and 14th Amendments.
Gitlow advocated against WW1. Gitlow was not protected as it is war time, but selective incorporation was established.

Question 3

Engel v. Vitale

Answer 3

1st Amendment: Establishment Clause.
New York public schools required daily prayers. This had too much entanglement of the church and state. Extended 1st Amendment religious aspects to states.

Question 4

Wisconsin v. Yoder

Answer 4

1st: Free Exercise Clause. Yoder was a member of an Amish group, so didn’t want children to go to school outside the community. Parents can restrict education on the basis of religion.

Question 5

Lemon v. Kurtzman

Answer 5

1st Amendment, Establishment Clause.
Taxpayer money funded secular aspects of religious schools.
Lemon Test: test for permissible government involvement.
-Must be for a secular purpose.
-Can’t endorse or prohibit a faith
-Not foster excessive entanglement of government and religion.

Question 6

Schenck v. US

Answer 6

1st Amendment: free speech.
Schenck was a socialist spreading anti-WW1 draft pamphlets.
Free speech can be regulated if it is a “clear and present danger.”

Question 7

Chaplinsky v. New Hampshire

Answer 7

1st Amendment
freedom of speech
Chaplinsky said threatening words when arrested.
“Fighting words” are not protected under free speech.

Question 8

Brandenburg v. Ohio

Answer 8

1st Amendment
KKK members advocate for assembling and marching to the Capitol.
This established the “incitement test”. If what you are saying is inciting violent action, then free speech can be regulated. In this case, though, it was allowed, as no one would actually take him seriously and overthrow the federal government.

Question 9

Tinker v. Des Moines (1969)

Answer 9

1st Amendment
freedom of speech
Students decided to wear black armbands to indicate beliefs of the Vietnam War. The school preemptively prohibited this, citing it would be a disruption to the school environment.
This showed that free speech applied to symbolic speech. It also established that students do not leave their constitutional rights at the school door.

Question 10

Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier

Answer 10

1st Amendment
Tried to print papers about pregnant teens. They sent the papers to the principal to check, and those articles were pulled out.
In this case, prior restraint by the principal is a valid action, as students have limited free speech.

Question 11

DeJonge v. Oregon

Answer 11

1st Amendment
freedom to assemble
Communists assembled, policies were violent in nature.
This protected the right to assemble and influenced the decision of Brandenburg v. Ohio.

Question 12

United States vs. Lopez (1995)

Answer 12

2nd Amendment + Commerce Clause
Lopez took a gun to school. The federal government took over the case, and charged him with the commerce clause, citing that selling the gun would have an impact on the economy.
Lopez won the case, as this application of the commerce clause was too broad.

Question 13

McDonald v. Chicago (2010)

Answer 13

2nd Amendment
There was a law against having a handgun. This was after the DC v. Heller case.
Considering people were allowed to bear arms in DC, despite there previously being a law against it, it made sense to extend this right to the states.

Question 14

D.C. v. Heller (2008)

Answer 14

2nd Amendment
There was a law against prohibiting handguns.
It was decided that this conflicted with the 2nd amendment right to protect oneself. Heller won the case, and handguns can now be kept by individuals in DC.

Question 15

Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)

Answer 15

1st, 3rd, 4th, and 9th
Previous law banning contraceptives.
This protected the couple’s rights to privacy and the use of contraceptives.

Question 16

Roe v. Wade (1973)

Answer 16

14th
due process
Texas laws criminalized abortion.
This protected abortion. It is a woman’s body, so it is her choice what she does.

Question 17

Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (2022)

Answer 17

This repealed Roe v. Wade, making abortion longer protected by the federal government, but rather a choice of the states. constitution doesn’t protect abortion

Question 18

New Jersey v. TLO (1985)

Answer 18

4th
Government must have a warrant to search your home. However, in school, while there is a protection against unreasonable search and seizure, students can be searched if there is reasonable suspicion.
Probable cause is just reason to search a student.
exclusionary rule

Question 19

Mapp v. Ohio (1961)

Answer 19

1st + 4th
Mapp was illegally searched. Obscene materials were found.
The materials wouldn’t hold up in court due to the illegal nature of the search.

Question 20

Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)

Answer 20

6th Amendment
Due Process
Right to legal representation (an attorney). incorporated the 6th amendment at the state level, using the 14th amendment as the reason.

Question 21

Miranda v. Arizona (1966)

Answer 21

5th Amendment
Miranda self-incriminated. It was argued that this information can’t be used in court.
This established the Miranda Rights, to protect individuals from self-incrimination.

Question 22

Gregg v. Georgia (1976)

Answer 22

14th Amendment

The death penalty is constitutional. Cruel and unusual death depends on the killing method.

Question 23

Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

Answer 23

14th Amendment
Equal protection

This desegregated schools.

Question 24

Regents of the University of California v. Bakke (1978)

Answer 24

14th Amendment
Equal protection

This protected affirmative action.

Question 25

Obergefell v. Hodges (2015)

Answer 25

14th Amendment
Equal protection

protected same sex marriage