ap gov chapter 4

civil liberties

personal freedoms protected for all indeviduals. typically involve restraining gov actions against indeviduals

• impose limits, civil rights impose positive obligation on gov

• BOR leaves interpretation to judcial = judicial interpretations shape civil liberties and civil rights we posses

• fundamental, constitutional guarantees that protect individuals from arbitrary government interference

extending BOR to state government

• bor made for national gov and protect against tyranny, states had own BOR

• barron v baltimore: issue of property owner could sue baltimore for recovery of his losses under 5th. marshall said bor only limited NG, didnt apply to state laws

• each state judicial interpreted things diff = diff civil rights in each state

incorperation theory

view that most protections of bor apply to state gov through 14th amendment due process clause

• 14th = protection under law, due process

establishment clause

part of 1st amendment, pohibiting the etsablishment of a church offically supported by ng. it applies to questions of state and local gov aid to religous organizations and schools, the legality of allowing/requiring school prayers and teaching of evolution

• no offical religion

free exersice clause

contrains ng from prohibiting indeviduals from practicing the religon of their choice

• in universities, let organizations be made but funding gets complicated

lemon test

• courts deciding abt funding to public aid for children in religous schools

• 1971 lemon v kurtzman ruled aid had to be for nonreligous purposes (secular), gov cant afiliate wh religion

  • 3 pt lemon test

  • 1. aid needs to be secular

  • 2. cant enhance/inhibit religion

  • 3. avoid exspressive entanglement wh religion

aguilar v felton

• 1985

• sc ruled in state programs giving educational services for students, then reversed this in 1997, violation of establishment clause

voucher

state issued credits/educational vouchers can be used to purchase education, $ follows student at any school

• low income kids can get better education but takes away $ from public schools

• sc ruled it was constituional to use taxpayer vouchers when sending kids to priv school

engel v vitale

• school board of ny reagants wanted to put prayer in public school, ppl said it violated establishment clause and sc ruled it unconstitutional becuase there shouldnt be 1 offical religion and gov cant push that

other cases

• lee v weismen: unconstituonal for a school to invite a rabi to deliver non prayer at public graudation

• epperson v arkansas: said arkansas law prohibiting teaching of evolution violated establishment clause by imposing religous beliefs on students

• rosenburg v u of virginia: ruled schools cant pick and choose funding, cant discrim against for being religous when the university didnt fund publication coasts for a christian group

• good news club v midlford centrel school: school didnt let a religous club met after hours and violated establishment cluase

• city of borned v flores: sc said congress rfra was exeeding constutional authroity

free exersicse clause

the provision of 1st amendment garenteeing the free exerise of religion

• if religous practices work against public policy/welfare gov can act

oregon v smith

• ilegal drugs used in religous context

• gov wants to overturn it

• act required all leaves of gov to acomidate religous conduct unless the gov could show a compelling reason not to + if they did regulate it not to be in the least possible way