AP US Gov Court Cases

marbury v. madison

-President Adams appointed several Federalist judges at the very end of his term and could only officially deliver some in time

-One of the incomplete commissions was for Marbury, but anti-Federalist Thomas Jefferson didn’t allow his secretary, Madison, to deliver the appointment

-Marbury went to the Supreme Court to demand the commission be sent because he felt he had a right to it

-The court ruled that he had a right to the commission, but that they didn’t have the authority to demand it be sent

-The Supreme Court had the right to send the commission under the Judiciary Act, but the Judiciary Act was declared unconstitutional since the constitution says that the Supreme Court only has original jurisdiction over disputes between two or more states, the US and a state, or foreign ministers

-Established judicial review

mcculloch v. maryland

-Maryland tried to tax a federal bank branch in Baltimore, Maryland because they thought federal banks were too powerful over state banks

-The bank teller of the federal bank, McCulloch, refused to pay the tax

-The Supreme Court ruled that the government had a right to establish banks as an implied power and that states could not tax the banks according to the supremacy clause

schenck v. us

-A secretary of the socialist party, Schenck, mailed out papers to 15,000 draftees telling them to resist the WWI draft through petitioning

-Schenck was charged with violating the Espionage Act by obstructing recruitment and causing insubordination in the armed forces

-Schenck argued he was using his freedom of speech under the 1st amendment

-Ruled that during a time of emergency like wartime, speech that creates immediate danger is not protected under the 1st amendment

brown v. board of education

-Oliver Brown and 12 other parents sued the local board of education because their children were forced to attend a black school farther from home

-It was argued that separate facilities was inherently unequal because it made black children feel inferior

-It was ruled that segregated public schools were inherently unequal and unconstitutional

baker v. carr

-To ensure proper representation, the Tennessee state constitution required legislative districts to be redrawn every 10 years

-The districts had not been redrawn for over 60 years despite urban areas becoming more populated, causing rural areas to be over-representated

-Mayor Baker of Millington, Tennessee sued the Secretary of State of Tennessee for violating the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th amendment

-It was originally argued that the case was centered around a “political question” and should not be decided by courts, but the Supreme Court argued it was a straightforward question about state law violating the constitution, so it can be decided

-The court established a six-part test to determine when “political questions” should and should not be brought to court

-Courts can review state legislative apportionments and intervene when the equal protection clause is violated

engel v. vitale

-A prayer was approved to be said everyday at a New York school by the Board of Regents

-A group of parents and Engel argued that this violated the establishment clause of the First Amendment, which states that the government can’t establish a religion

-The school board argued that the prayer was optional and nondenominational, so it was fine

-It was ruled that public schools can’t have state-composed prayers and that it didn’t matter whether they were voluntary or nondenominational

gideon v. wainwright

-Gideon was charged with breaking and entering into a Bay County pool room with intent to commit petty larceny

-At his trial, Gideon couldn’t afford an attorney and argued to the judge that he should be provided one, but the judge refused because he wasn’t being threatened with the death penalty

-Gideon lost his case and got a 5-year sentence as he had to represent himself

-In prison, Gideon educated himself further and sent petitions to Florida and Federal Supreme Courts and was accepted by the Federal Supreme Court

-It was ruled that, under the 6th amendment, the right to counsel also applies to state courts

Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District

-Tinker students were suspended for wearing black armbands in protest of the Vietnam War, which was previously banned by their school

-The parents of the students sued the school for violating their freedom of speech

-It was ruled that the armbands weren’t disruptive and were therefore an acceptable form of protest

-Established the “Tinker standard”, allowing school officials to limit student speech only when it was disruptive to the educational environment

NYT co. v. us

-The Pentagon Papers (detailed US involvement in the Vietnam War) were leaked to the NYT and were then published by them

-Nixon’s administration sued the NYT and argued that the publication violated the Espionage Act and threatened national security

-It was ruled that that the government didn’t have proper justification to censor the NYT because the publication didn’t prove substantial danger

-The government has a heavy limit on its ability to censor the press

wisconsin v. yoder

-Amish parents in Green County, Wisconsin refused to send their children beyond 8th grade as they felt it violated their religion

-The parents were fined as the state argued that universal education was crucial for preparing citizens for life

-It was ruled that the fine was a violation of the first amendment’s free exercise clause

-Religious freedom outweighs state-mandated education beyond 8th grade

shaw v. reno

-North Carolina was authorized to create another Congressional seat, which caused them to redistrict

-They drew a map with only one majority-black district

-The Department of Justice denied the map and argued it violated the Voting Rights Act of 1965 without at least 2 majority-black districts

-North Carolina made a revised map with 2 majority-black districts, but residents sued the state claiming that the redistricting was intended to segregate voters based on race and violated the equal protections clause of the 14th amendment

-Since the district shapes were so odd, they ruled in favor of the white voters and said that race can’t be the predominant factor when redistricting even if it's designed to increase minority representation

us v. lopez

-Lopez brought a concealed gun to his high school and was charged with violating the federal Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990

-Lopez appealed his sentence by arguing that the act exceeded Congress’ authority under the commerce clause since possession of the gun was not an interstate commercial activity

-Lopez claimed he could only be regulated by his state, not federally

-Ruled that the act was unconstitutional and that the gun possession was only a criminal act

-limited Congress's power under the Commerce Clause

Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission

-Citizens United, a conservative non-profit, produced a documentary about Hilary Clinton who was a Senator and presidential candidate during that time

-They wanted to air and run ads on the film within the 30 days of the 2008 primary election, but were prohibited by the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act

-This act prohibited corporations and unions from using general treasury funds for independent ads related to candidates within a specific timeframe of an election

-Citizens United argued that this violated the 1st amendment’s freedom of speech

-Ruled that the government can’t restrict independent political expenditures by corporations or unions just because they aren’t individuals under the 1st amendment’s freedom of speech, encouraging super PACS

mcdonald v. chicago

-McDonald, a 76-year-old resident, was restricted from buying a gun for protection from his neighborhood by the city

-McDonald and others argued that the 14th amendment’s due process clause (can’t deprive individuals of life, liberty, or property) made the 2nd amendment’s right to bear arms applicable to states and local governments

-Ruled in favor of McDonald claiming that the right to bear arms applied to state/local governments