State Action And The Role Of The Courts Flashcards
What kinds of action trigger constitutional protection?
The Constitution generally protects against wrongful conduct by the government, not private parties (except the 13th/slavery). In other words, STATE ACTION IS NECESSARY in order to trigger constitutional protections. A private person’s conduct must constitute state action in order for protections to apply. For example, state action may exist in cases of private parties carrying out traditional governmental functions or significant state involvement in the activities.
What are traditional government functions?
State action is found when a private person carries on activities that are traditionally performed exclusively by the state, such as running primary elections or governing a ‘company town.’
NO: a shopping center that is open to the public does not assume or exercise municipal functions and therefor is not treated as a state actor.
NO: Merely providing a product or service that the government COULD provide
YES: the use of peremptory challenges, even by private litigants, constitute state action because the selection of jurors is a traditional state function and because the judge (i.e. the government) plays a significant role in the process.
State action may also exist if there is significant state involvement. What qualifies as significant state involvement?
State action may also exist if there are sufficient mutual contracts between the conduct of a private party and the government, which is a question of the degree of involvement. There is no specific test, but there are guidelines:
The state must act affirmatively to facilitate, encourage, and authorize the activity.
YES: the actions of a private party and the government are so intertwined that a mutual benefit results, such as if the parties are involved in a join venture.
NO: Mere licensing or regulation of a private party
YES: the state has sanctioned the violative act, even when the state explicitly prohibits behavior that violates a person’s civil rights.
Are states required to make discrimination illegal?
NO: States are constitutionally forbidden from facilitating or authorizing discrimination, but they are not required to make discrimination illegal.
Examples of insignificant state involvement:
- Businesses that the gov’t substantially regulates or to which the gov’t grans a monopoly
- Nursing homes that accept Medicaid, schools that receive government funds but that are operated by a private corporation
- Congressional grants of a corporate charter.
