SCOTUS

Question 1

Marbury v. Madison (1803)

Answer 1

favored Marbury; establishes Section 13 of the Judiciary Act as unconstitutional and institutes Judicial Review

Question 2

McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)

Answer 2

favored McCulloch; the Necessary and Proper clause validated federal taxes and that the state cannot tax the federal government

Question 3

Schenck v. United States (1919)

Answer 3

favored United States; the Espionage Act did not violate the First Amendment - people’s rights are more loosely applied during times of war

Question 4

Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

Answer 4

favored Brown; “Separate but Equal” is inherently unequal and violates the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment

Question 5

Engel v. District of Vitale (1962)

Answer 5

favored Engel; the state cannot hold prayers in public schools even if it is voluntary - ‘wall of separation’ between the church and state

Question 6

Baker v. Carr (1962)

Answer 6

favored Baker; legislative apportionment (redistricting) is a justiciable issue - the 14th Amendment equal protection issues raised by Baker merited evaluation by the courts

Question 7

Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)

Answer 7

favored Gideon; the 6th and 14th Amendment guarantee that counsel applies to criminal defendants in state court protected by the Equal Protection Clause

Question 8

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

Answer 8

favored Tinker; the armbands represented “pure speech” and did not interfere with school operations

Question 9

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

Answer 9

favored New York Times Company; the government could not defend against the assertion of prior restraint the court ruled against censorship of speech

Question 10

Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972)

Answer 10

favored Yoder; the value of exercising religion freely outweighed the value of 2 years of high school

Question 11

Shaw v. Reno (1993)

Answer 11

favored Shaw; the shape of the district suggested that there was an attempt to segregate the voters by race - violating the Equal Protections Clause

Question 12

United States v. Lopez (1995)

Answer 12

favored Lopez; possession of a gun does not affect interstate commerce

Question 13

McDonald v. Chicago (2010)

Answer 13

favored McDonald; the 14th Amendment makes the 2nd Amendment’s right to bear arms applicable to the states

Question 14

Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010)

Answer 14

favored Citizens United; because of the Freedom of Speech, corporate funded political broadcasts cannot be limited; 1st Amendment