Required Court Cases

Baker v. Carr (1962)

Challenged:challenged Tennessee's state legislative apportionment, arguing that the existing districts violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment

Precedent:legislative apportionment (the drawing of district lines for elections) is a justiciable issue, meaning federal courts can hear cases about it

Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

Key issue:Is state sponsored segregation legal?

Precedent:State-sanctioned segregation of public schools was a violation of the 14th amendment (equal protection clause) and was therefore unconstitutional, overturned separate but equal

Citizens United v. Federal Elections Commission (2010)

Precedent:laws restricting the political spending of corporation

Engel v. Vitale (1962

Precedent-school-sponsored prayer violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment

Gideon v. Wainwright (1963

Article in question- 6th amendment, right to counsel

Precedent-the Sixth Amendment's right to counsel applies to state criminal trials

Marbury v. Madison (1803)

Info: The case stemmed from a dispute over a judicial commission that was not delivered before the new president, Thomas Jefferson,took office, leading to a legal battle between William Marbury and James Madison. 

Precedent- established the principle of judicial review

McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)

Info:The case arose when Maryland tried to tax the Baltimore branch of the Second Bank of the United States, which had been chartered by Congress. Maryland argued that Congress lacked the authority to create a national bank, as it wasn't explicitly mentioned in the Constitution

Precedent- Congress has implied powers beyond those explicitly listed in the Constitution, specifically through the Necessary and Proper Clause

McDonald v. Chicago (2010)

Info:The case arose from a challenge to Chicago's handgun ban, which prohibited the registration and possession of handguns

Precedent- the Second Amendment, which guarantees the right to keep and bear arms, applies to state and local governments through the Fourteenth Amendment's Due Process Clause

New York Times Co. v. United States (1919)

Info:The case stemmed from the Nixon administration's attempt to block the publication of the "Pentagon Papers," a classified study detailing the government's involvement in the Vietnam War.

Precedent- defended the First Amendment right of free press against prior restraint by the government

Schenck v. United States (1919)

Info:Charles Schenck, a member of the Socialist Party, distributed leaflets urging men to resist the draft during World War I. He was arrested and convicted under the Espionage Act of 1917, which criminalized obstructing military recruitmen

Precedent- established the "clear and present danger" test for restricting free speech

Shaw v. Reno (1993)

Article in question:Did the unusual shape of the district and its perceived basis on race violate the Fourteenth Amendment's Equal Protection Clause

Precedent-established that race cannot be the predominant factor in drawing congressional districts

Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District (1969)

Info:A group of students in Des Moines, Iowa, wore black armbands to school to protest the Vietnam War. The school district suspended them, and the students sued, arguing their First Amendment rights were violated

Precedent- students retain their First Amendment rights within public schools

United States v. Lopez (1995)

Article in question:Whether Congress's authority under the Commerce Clause extended to regulating gun possession in school zones.

Precedent-the Supreme Court limited the federal government's power under the Commerce Clause, particularly regarding local activities like gun possession in school zones

Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972)

Info:Amish parents, Jonas Yoder, Wallace Miller, and Adin Yutzy, were prosecuted for refusing to send their children to public school after the 8th grade, as required by Wisconsin law

precedent-individual religious interests, specifically under the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment, can outweigh a state's interest in compulsory education