Required court cases (Unit 3)

Question 1

Which case: In 1816, the Second Bank of the United States was chartered; soon after, in 1818, however, (state) decided to pass a law that imposed taxes on the bank. James (last name), who served as a cashier at the Baltimore branch of the Second Bank, decided not to pay the tax. The state court had ruled that the Bank was unconstitutional, to begin with, and that the federal government did not have the authority to charter a bank

Answer 1

McCulloch v. Maryland

Question 2

McCulloch v. Maryland Outcome

Answer 2

Through the Necessary and proper clause, congress can create a bank, And through the supremacy clause that states are not allowed to tax a federal bank.

Question 3

Which case: Alfonzo (last name) was a Texas high school senior who took a concealed weapon inside his school. Federal charges were soon imposed because of his violation of the Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990. The act stated that individuals could not possess firearms within school zones based on the premise of the Commerce Clause.

Answer 3

United States v. Lopez (1995)

Question 4

United States v. Lopez (1995) outcome

Answer 4

In the ruling, the law was considered unconstitutional since having a gun in the school zone did not substantially affect interstate commerce

Question 5

Which case: The New York Board of Regents had authorized that at the beginning of each day, a short but voluntary prayer would be recited. Several organizations filed suit against the Board of Regents, claiming that the prayer violated the Constitution. The New York Court of Appeals dismissed their arguments.

Answer 5

Engel v. Vitale (1962)

Question 6

Engel v. Vitale (1962) outcome

Answer 6

The court held that states could not hold prayers in public schools EVEN IF it was voluntary and EVEN IF the prayer did not adhere to a specific religion.

Question 7

Which case: Jonas (last name), as well as other Amish parents, refused to send their children to school after the 8th grade. In accordance with their religion, they did not agree with high school attendance. They were later charged under a (state) law that required students to attend school until age 16.

Answer 7

Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972)

Question 8

Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972) outcome

Answer 8

The court held that the requirement to send children to school beyond the eighth grade was unconstitutional.

Question 9

Which case: A group of students decided to wear black armbands in order to protest the Vietnam War. Mary Beth (last name) and Christopher Eckhardt decided that they would wear their armbands to school despite warnings from school administration. After wearing the armbands to school, they were sent home. The students decided to sue their school district for violating the freedom of expression.

Answer 9

Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District (1969)

Question 10

Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District (1969) outcome

Answer 10

The Supreme Court held that students still have free speech rights at school, and in order to justify the suppression of speech, the speech must substantially interfere with school operations

Question 11

Which case: This case, also known as the Pentagon Papers case had to do with the First Amendment. The Nixon Administration tried to prevent the (publishing company) from publishing material that belonged to a Defense Department study about US intervention in Vietnam. President Nixon stated that it was necessary to national security to prohibit it before publication, also known as prior restraint.

Answer 11

New York Times Co v. United States (1971)

Question 12

New York Times Co v. United States (1971) outcome

Answer 12

The Supreme Court, in this case, bolstered the freedom of the press guaranteed by the First Amendment. In a 6-3 vote, the Court established that there was a “heavy presumption against prior restraint” even for national security purposes.

Question 13

Which case: During World War I, a pair of socialists, including Charles (last name) distributed leaflets that stated the draft violated the 13th Amendment - which prohibits involuntary servitude. The leaflet wanted people to disobey the draft. Charles was charged with violating the Espionage Act of 1917. They appealed on the grounds of the First Amendment.

Answer 13

Schenck v. United States (1919)

Question 14

Schenck v. United States (1919) outcome

Answer 14

The Supreme Court held that the Espionage Act did not violate the First Amendment and it was an appropriate exercise of Congress’ wartime authority.

Question 15

Which case: Clarence Earl (last name) was charged in Florida state court on a felony - breaking and entering charge. During his trial, Clarence requested that he receive a court-appointed lawyer; however, in accordance with Florida State law, an indigent defendant could only have an attorney be appointed in capital crimes/cases. Clarence then filed a habeas corpus suit, stating that the court’s decision violated his rights to be represented.

Answer 15

Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)

Question 16

Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)

Answer 16

The holding was that the Sixth Amendment’s right to counsel applies to state court defendants via the Fourteenth Amendment.

Question 17

Which case: Norma McCorvey (Jane) wanted an abortion but could not legally have one in the state of Texas, because of a state law that prohibited abortions except in cases where the mother’s life was in danger. She questioned the legality of this law.

Answer 17

Roe v. Wade (1973) (overturned)

Question 18

Roe v. Wade (1973)

Answer 18

The Supreme Court held that a woman’s right to an abortion fell within the right of privacy that was clarified in Griswold v. Connecticut, and therefore was protected by the Fourteenth Amendment.

Question 19

Which case: (state) passed a handgun ban law, and several suits were filed against the city challenging the ban after another case (District of Columbia v. Heller). In that case, the Court had held that a DC handgun ban violated the Second Amendment. There, since the law was enacted by the federal government, the Second Amendment was applicable.

Answer 19

McDonald v. Chicago (2010)

Question 20

McDonald v. Chicago (2010) outcome

Answer 20

In its decision, the Court stated that the handgun ban was unconstitutional in a 5-4 decision.

Question 21

Which case: This is one of the most famous cases in US history. Relating to the racial segregation of schools, African American students had been denied admittance to public schools because of these segregation laws, and many argued that this was in violation of the Constitution.

Answer 21

Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

Question 22

Brown v. Board of Education (1954) outcome

Answer 22

The Court held that “separate but equal is inherently unequal,” and therefore racial segregation of public schools is unconstitutional.

Question 23

Which case: The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 had previously banned corporations from independent political spending and direct contributions to campaigns or political parties. In 2008, (group) was not allowed to show an anti-Hillary Clinton movie.

Answer 23

Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010)

Question 24

Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010) outcome

Answer 24

The holding, in this case, was that corporations should be considered people and therefore their funding of “independent political expenditures cannot be limited.” This is considered a form of political speech

Question 25

Which case: Charles (last name) stated that an old law (1901) that detailed the apportionment for Tennessee’s General Assembly had been ignored, and stated that reapportionment did not take into account the significant change that the state had gone through.

Answer 25

Baker v. Carr (1962)

Question 26

Baker v. Carr (1962) outcome

Answer 26

The chief justice and the Court concluded that because of the Fourteenth Amendment issues (through equal protection) that the case seemed to address, the Supreme Court did have the authority to hear this case.

Question 27

Which case: Several North Carolina residents challenged a proposed, unusually shaped district. They believed that the only purpose of the district was that it would definitely elect African-American representatives.

Answer 27

Shaw v. Reno (1993)

Question 28

Shaw v. Reno (1993) outcome

Answer 28

The Supreme Court held, in a majority opinion authored by Sandra Day O’Connor, that because the district was shaped in such a clearly odd way, it was enough to prove that there was a very apparent effort to separate voters racially

Question 29

Which case: The 1800 election ended in a defeat for John Adams to Thomas Jefferson. Before Adams’ term ended, Congress passed the Judiciary Act of 1801 (creating new courts, adding new judges). It was an effort by John Adams to keep his own influence in federal courts even though he was leaving office (still occurs today.) His appointments to these courts, however, were not valid until the appointed judges were delivered their commissions by Jefferson’s Secretary of State.(name) was one of the judges appointed; however, his commission was not delivered.

Answer 29

Marbury v. Madison (1803)

Question 30

Marbury v. Madison (1803) outcome

Answer 30

The Court held that although legally, the commission should have been delivered, the clause of the Judiciary Act of 1789 which enabled Marbury to bring the case to court was unconstitutional. By declaring a law made by Congress unconstitutional, the practice of judicial review was established.