Incorporation

Question 1

Barron v. Baltimore (1833)

Answer 1

Barron made clear that (for the moment) the Bill of Rights only applied to actions of the federal government.

Question 2

Slaughter-House Cases (1873)

Answer 2

Summary: These cases were a false start toward extending the Bill of Rights protections to actions of state and local governments.

Majority: The purpose of the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments (the Reconstruction Amendments) was to protect former slaves, only. The Amendments should be interpreted narrowly to as to offer protection only to reach that goal.

Case Facts: The Louisiana legislature had given a monopoly and fixed fees in the livestock slaughtering business for New Orleans to the Crescent City Livestock Landing and Slaughter-House Company. Several butchers sued - they argued state law impermissibly violated their right to practice their trade.

Question 3

The Privileges and Immunities Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment

Answer 3

The use of this clause as a basis for applying the Bill of Rights to state/local governments was basically squashed in the Slaughter-House Cases. Only once since the adoption of the Fourteenth Am. has this clause been successfully used - it’s basically a dead area of law.

Question 4

The Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment

Answer 4

This clause is the gold - following Incorporation, which happened in a string of cases, the DPC of the Fourteenth Am. now bars states from denying certain fundamental rights protected by the Bill of Rights.