SCOTUS Index Cards

Alexa Rincon Lozada Period 5

Marbury v Madison 1803

Essential Facts: William Marbury sued James Madison for failing to deliver his judicial commission.

Constitutional Holding: Established judicial review, allowing the Supreme Court to declare laws unconstitutional.

Relevant Amendment/Article: Article III

Selective Incorporation Case: No

McCulloch v Maryland 1819

Essential Facts: Maryland taxed the Second Bank of the United States; McCulloch, the bank’s cashier, refused to pay.

Constitutional Holding: Congress has implied powers under the Necessary and Proper Clause; states cannot tax federal institutions.

Relevant Amendment/Article: Article I, Section 8 (Necessary and Proper Clause), Supremacy Clause

Selective Incorporation Case: No

Schenck v United States 1919

Essential Facts: Schenck distributed anti-draft leaflets during WWI and was convicted under the Espionage Act.

Constitutional Holding: Speech can be restricted if it poses a “clear and present danger.”

Relevant Amendment/Article: 1st Amendment (Freedom of Speech)

Selective Incorporation Case: No

Brown v Board of Education 1954

Essential Facts: African American students were denied admission to white public schools.

Constitutional Holding: “Separate but equal” is unconstitutional; racial segregation in schools violates equal protection.

Relevant Amendment/Article: 14th Amendment (Equal Protection Clause)

Selective Incorporation Case: No

Baker v Carr 1962

Essential Facts: Charles Baker claimed Tennessee’s legislative districts were unequally populated.

Constitutional Holding: Federal courts can review redistricting issues; established “one person, one vote.”

Relevant Amendment/Article: 14th Amendment (Equal Protection Clause)

Selective Incorporation Case: No

Engel v Vitale 1962

Essential Facts: A New York public school led students in a voluntary prayer.

Constitutional Holding: School-sponsored prayer violates the Establishment Clause.

Relevant Amendment/Article: 1st Amendment (Establishment Clause)

Selective Incorporation Case: Yes

Gideon v Wainwright 1963

Essential Facts: Clarence Gideon was denied a court-appointed lawyer during his felony trial.

Constitutional Holding: The right to counsel is fundamental and applies to state courts.

Relevant Amendment/Article: 6th Amendment (Right to Counsel), 14th Amendment (Due Process Clause)

Selective Incorporation Case: Yes

Tinker v Des Moines Independent Community School District 1969

Essential Facts: Students were suspended for wearing black armbands to protest the Vietnam War.

Constitutional Holding: Symbolic student speech is protected unless it causes a substantial disruption.

Relevant Amendment/Article: 1st Amendment (Freedom of Speech)

Selective Incorporation Case: Yes

New York Times Co. v United States 1971

Essential Facts: The Nixon administration tried to prevent publication of the Pentagon Papers.

Constitutional Holding: Government cannot exercise prior restraint on the press unless it endangers national security.

Relevant Amendment/Article: 1st Amendment (Freedom of the Press)

Selective Incorporation Case: Yes

Wisconsin v Yoder 1972

Essential Facts: Amish parents refused to send their children to school past 8th grade for religious reasons.

Constitutional Holding: Free Exercise Clause outweighs state compulsory education laws in this case.

Relevant Amendment/Article: 1st Amendment (Free Exercise Clause)

Selective Incorporation Case: Yes

Shaw v Reno 1993

Essential Facts: North Carolina created a bizarrely shaped, majority-minority congressional district.

Constitutional Holding: Racial gerrymandering violates the Equal Protection Clause.

Relevant Amendment/Article: 14th Amendment (Equal Protection Clause)

Selective Incorporation Case: No

United States v Lopez 1995

Essential facts of the case: A student was charged with violating the federal Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990.

Constitutional Holding: Congress exceeded its power under the Commerce Clause when it made possession of a gun in a school zone a federal crime.

Relevant Amendment/Article: Commerce Clause (Article I)

Is it a Selective Incorporation Case?: No

McDonald v Chicago 2010

Essential Facts: Chicago’s handgun ban was challenged for violating the Second Amendment.

Constitutional Holding: The Second Amendment applies to the states through the 14th Amendment.

Relevant Amendment/Article: 2nd Amendment, 14th Amendment (Due Process Clause)

Selective Incorporation Case: Yes

Citizens United v Federal Election Commission 2010

Essential facts of the case: A case challenging the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act's restrictions on corporate-funded political broadcasts.

Constitutional Holding: Political spending by corporations, associations, and labor unions is a form of protected speech under the First Amendment.

Relevant Amendment/Article: First Amendment (Freedom of Speech)

Is it a Selective Incorporation Case?: No