Vocabulary List 4:

Question 1

Define: The constitutional and other legal protections against government actions.

Answer 1

civil liberties

Question 2

Define: The first 10 amendments to the U.S.
Constitution, which defines such basic liberties as freedom of religion, speech,
and press and guarantee defendants’ rights.

Answer 2

Bill of Rights

Question 3

Define: The constitutional amendment that establishes the four great liberties: freedom of the press, of speech, of religion, and of assembly.

Answer 3

First Amendment

Question 4

Define: The constitutional amendment adopted after the Civil War that declares “No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge
the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life,
liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”

Answer 4

Fourteenth Amendment

Question 5

Define: Part of the Fourteenth Amendment guaranteeing that persons cannot be
deprived of life, liberty, or property by the United States or state governments without due process of law.

Answer 5

due process clause

Question 6

Define: The legal concept under which the Supreme Court has nationalized the
Bill of Rights by making most of its provisions applicable to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment.

Answer 6

incorporation doctrine

Question 7

Define: Part of the First Amendment stating that “Congress shall make no law
respecting an establishment of religion.”

Answer 7

establishment clause

Question 8

Define: A First Amendment provision that prohibits government from interfering
with the practice of religion.

Answer 8

free exercise clause

Question 9

Define: Government actions preventing material from being published.

Answer 9

prior resistant

Question 10

Define: The publication of false and malicious statements that damage someone’s reputation.

Answer 10

libel

Question 11

Define: Nonverbal communication, such as
burning a flag or wearing an armband.

Answer 11

symbolic speech

Question 12

Define: Communication in the form of advertising, which can be restricted more than many other types of speech.

Answer 12

commercial speech

Question 13

Define: The situation in which the police have reasonable grounds to believe that a
person should be arrested.

Answer 13

probable cause

Question 14

Define: Obtaining evidence in a haphazard or random manner, a practice prohibited by the Fourth Amendment.

Answer 14

unreasonable searches and seizures

Question 15

Define: A written authorization from a court
specifying the area to be searched and what the police are searching for.

Answer 15

search warrant

Question 16

Define: The rule that evidence cannot be introduced into a trial if it was not constitutionally obtained.

Answer 16

exclusionary rule

Question 17

Define: A constitutional amendment designed
to protect the rights of persons accused of crimes, including protection against
double jeopardy, self incrimination, and punishment without due process of law.

Answer 17

Fifth Amendment

Question 18

Define: The situation occurring when an individual accused of a crime is compelled to be a witness against himself or herself in court.

Answer 18

self-incrimination

Question 19

Define: A constitutional amendment designed to protect individuals accused of
crimes.

Answer 19

Sixth Amendment

Question 20

Define: A bargain struck between the defendant’s lawyer and the prosecutor
to the effect that the defendant will plead guilty to a lesser crime (or fewer crimes) in exchange for the state’s promise not to prosecute the defendant for a more serious (or additional) crime.

Answer 20

plea bargaining

Question 21

Define: The constitutional amendment that forbids cruel and unusual punishment.

Answer 21

Eighth Amendment

Question 22

Define: Court sentences prohibited by the Eighth Amendment.

Answer 22

cruel and unusual punishment

Question 23

Define: The right to a private personal life free from the intrusion of government.

Answer 23

right to privacy