us constitution final exam

what is the ideal of liberty?

brandeis’ “right to be left alone” basis of autonomy

what terms is privacy understood in?

location and relationships

What happens in Griswold v Connecticut (1965)?

Court identifies a privacy right in the Bill of Rights

What are the facts of the Griswold v Connecticut case?

CT law bans sale of birth control, Griswold convicted and appeals

What was the decision in Griswold v Connecticut?

7:2 decision - that a state law banning contraceptives violated the constitutional right to privacy

What was Douglas’ reasoning for Griswold v Connecticut?

right of privacy contained in “penumbras and emanations” from various clauses in Bill of Rights and this privacy right extends to marriage relationship

What was Black’s dissent for Griswold v Connecticut?

agrees it is a “silly law” but court can’t just strike down laws it doesn’t like, can’t invent a privacy right

What happens in Roe v Wade (1973)?

extension of privacy right from birth control to abortion

What are the facts of Roe v Wade?

by 1970 many states have liberalized abortion while some retail more restrictive laws. Texas law from 1854 challenged by unmarried pregnant woman Jane Roe (pseudonym)

What was the decision for Roe v Wade?

7:2 decision - established a woman's constitutional right to an abortion, rooted in the Fourteenth Amendment's right to privacy, legalizing abortion nationwide but allowing states to regulate it based on pregnancy stage

What was Blackmun’s reasoning in Roe v Wade?

court frames as a middle position between absolute individual privacy right and state interference at will

What was the trimester system for Roe v Wade?

no regulation for 1-3 months, some regulations for 4-6 months and state allowed to prohibit except for life of mother from 7-9 months

What is White’s dissent in Roe v Wade?

choice between “convenience” of a pregnant woman and “continued existence” of fetus, either choice rational but not court’s role to impose on the states

What happened in Planned Parenthood v Casey (1992)?

Court reaffirms core of Roe decision

What are the facts of Planned Parenthood v Casey?

1982 PA “Abortion Control Act” places 5 restrictions on access to abortion and Planned Parenthood challenges in court

What was the decision for Planned Parenthood v Casey?

5:4 decision - the Supreme Court upheld the core right to abortion established by Roe v. Wade but replaced Roe's trimester system with an "undue burden" standard, allowing states to regulate abortion more, as long as they didn't place a "substantial obstacle"

What was O’Connor and Souter’s reasoning for Planned Parenthood v Casey?

upholds most aspects of PA law and replace trimester with viability standard and “undue burden” standard, but court does not take opportunity to overturn Roe precedent because it has proved workable and is a landmark decision that maintains public trust in court

What was Rehnquist, White, Scalia and Thomas’ dissent for Planned Parenthood v Casey?

Roe was wrongly decided and should be overturned

What are the five conditions for Planned Parenthood v Casey?

Women must give “informed consent” and wait 24 hour period, a minor must have informed consent of a parent, married women must notify their husbands, a defined “medical emergency” would excuse non-compliance, and strict reporting requirements for abortion facilities

What is the context of Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Org (2022)?

thirty years since Casey abortion legislation at federal and state level

What is the federal context of Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Org?

late-term or “partial birth” abortion act of 2003

What is the state context of Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Org?

efforts to prohibit abortion both prior and post-viability

What was the Supreme Court context of Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Org?

changing composition, by 2022 a solid majority opposed Roe

What did the 2018 Mississippi law at the heart of the Dobbs case ban?

Abortion after 15 weeks, except for medical emergency and severe fetal abnormality

What was the key constitutional question in Dobbs?

Whether any prohibitions on pre-viability abortions are unconstitutional

What was the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs?

6:3 decision to deny a constitutional right to abortion, overturning Roe and Casey, returning the issue to the states

What was the main rationale of Justice Alito’s majority opinion in Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Org?

Abortion is a “profound moral question” that must be left to the people and their representatives; the historical record shows abortion was never understood as a fundamental constitutional right

What was Justice Kavanaugh’s position in his concurring opinion regarding other precedents in Dobbs?

He argued there was no linkage to other precedents involving contraception, marriage, and sexuality

What did Justice Thomas argue in this concurring opinion about Dobbs?

He insisted substantive due process is wrong and any decisions based on it (like cases on contraception and same-sex marriage) should be overturned

What “more moderate course” did Chief Justice Roberts propose in his concurrence about Dobbs?

To strike down the Casey viability standard (upholding the MS law) but not deny entirely a constitutional right to abortion in more limited cases

Which Justices authored the dissenting opinion for Dobbs?

Justices Sotomayor, Kagan, and Breyer

What were the two main arguments of the dissent for Dobbs?

abortion is about women’s autonomy, liberty and equality, and that original intent is problematic because the 14th amendment framers did not believe in women’s equality

When did Gay Rights become an issue in courts?

1990’s with sodomy laws and marriage

What did Lawrence v Texas (2003) do?

first time court strikes down a state sodomy law

What were the facts about the Lawrence v Texas case?

Texas law bans “deviate sexual intercourse” between same sex individuals. Two Texas men arrested after police search a home to investigate a “weapon’s disturbance”

What’s the constitutional question for Lawrence v Texas?

do sodomy laws violate privacy rights?

What was the decision for Lawrence v Texas?

6:3 decision - striking down the law and affirming that private, consensual intimate conduct between adults is a fundamental liberty protected by the Constitution

What was Kennedy’s reasoning for Lawrence v Texas?

reaffirms privacy right but unlike Bowers (1986) extends to homosexual relations / appeals to legacy of Casey decision (1992) which articulated fundamental rights in terms of dignity and autonomy / explicitly invokes the Living Constitution

Scalia’s dissent for Lawrence v Texas stated what?

undemocratic judicial elite pushing “so-called homosexual agenda”

What did Obergefell v Hodges (2015) do?

privacy rights extend to same sex marriage

What was the constitutional question around Obergefell v Hodges?

Is there a fundamental right to marry protected by 14th amendment and are current definitions of marriage unconstitutional?

What were the facts for Obergefell v Hodges?

1996 defense of marriage act allows states to refuse to recognize same sex marriages from other states. 2003 MA supreme court strikes down that state’s definition of marriage as one man and one woman. series of same sex couples from other states challenge definition of marriage

What was the decision for Obergefell v Hodges?

5:4 decision - the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Fourteenth Amendment requires all states to license and recognize same-sex marriages, establishing marriage equality nationwide by finding the right to marry is a fundamental liberty protected by the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses

What was Kennedy’s reasoning in Obergefell v Hodges?

right to marry part of personal choice and individual autonomy and marriage a keystone of social order. using the Living Constitution means idea of freedom has changed / cannot wait for states to recognize a fundamental right

What was Roberts, Scalia, and Thomas dissent for Obergefell?

attack judicial activism - let states decide through democratic process

What reasoning did Kennedy use in Obergefell?

Living Constitution

Which justice wrote the majority opinion in both Lawrence and Obergefell?

Justice Anthony Kennedy

What did Defense of Marriage Act 1996 allow states to do?

Refuse to recognize same-sex marriages from other states

Which earlier sodomy law case did Lawrence v Texas overturn?

Bowers v Hardwick (1986)

Which case did Kennedy reference in Lawrence for its concept of dignity and autonomy?

Planned Parenthood v Casey

Which case challenged gender discrimination in military benefits?

Craig v Boren (1976)

Which 1982 case delt with single-sex admissions at a state university?

Mississippi University for Women v Hogan

Which 1996 case required the Virginia Military Institute to admit women?

United States v Virginia

What are the two religion clauses of the First Amendment?

Establishment Clause and Free Exercise Clause

Which historical figure wrote “letter on toleration,” influencing american religious liberty debates?

john locke

which 1786 viginia law was inspired by thomas jefferson’s idea of a “wall of separation”?

the Virginia bill for religious liberty

in Everson v Board of Education (1947), what did the law allow school boards to do?

reimburse parents for transportation costs to parochial schools

How did the Supreme Court rule in Everson v Board of Education?

5:4 decision - The Amendment was meant to prevent establishing a national religion, not to deny public welfare benefits to believers or non-believers

What was Everson v Board of Education all about?

Court upholds wall of separation between church and state

What was Black’s reasoning for Everson v Board?

1st amendment does not mean either believers or non-believers should be disadvantages from benefits of public welfare. Black argues framers meant 1st amendment to prevent establishing a national religion, not punish religious institutions. NJ law intention is public safety not to establish religion

What was Jackson and Rutledge’s dissents argue for Everson v Board?

emphasize sectarian character of parochial schools and affirm strict meaning of “wall of separation”

What happened in Wallace v Jaffree (1985)?

Court strikes down moment of silence school prayer

What test did the Court use in Wallace v Jaffree to evaluate the law?

The Lemon Test

What is the Lemon Test?

statute must have a secular legislative purpose, primary effect must neither advance not inhibit religion, statue must not foster “excessive government entanglement with religion”

How did the Supreme Court rule in Wallace v Jaffree?

It struck down the Alabama law 6:3

What was Steven’s reasoning in Wallace?

1971 court determined “Lemon test” requires that laws must have a secular purpose, neither advance nor inhibit religion and must avoid government in excessive “entanglement with religion”. Steven finds no secular purpose in Alabama law

What was Rehniquis’s dissent for Wallace?

criticizes overly strict interpretation of 1st amendment - not meant to completely prevent government support of religion in non-discriminatory manner

What was the Sherbert v Verner (1963) case about?

The Free Exercise Case

In the Sherbert v Verner case, why was Adell Sherbert denied unemployment benefits?

she refused to work on her sabbath (saturday) as a seventh-day adventist

What standard did the Court apply in Sherbert v Verner for violations of religious liberty?

Strict Scrutiny

How did the Supreme Court rule in Sherbert v Verner?

It struck down South Carolina’s unemployment benefits policy with a 7:2 decision

Who were the dissenters in Everson v Board who emphasized a strict “wall of seperation”?

Justices Jackson and Rutledge

What was Brennan’s reasoning for Sherbert v Verner?

Strict Scrutiny for violations of religious liberty. Conditions on public benefits cannot inhibit free exercise and SC shows no compelling public interest to do so.

What was the Harlan dissent for Sherbert v Verner?

clear secular purpose and decision puts court in a role of examining people’s religious convictions

In Wallace v Jaffree, who wrote the dissent criticizing an overly strict interpretation of the Establishment Clause?

Justice Rehnquist

What historical group largely settled the American Colonies seeking religious freedom?

Dissenting Protestants escaping persecution

What prompted the inclusion of religious liberty in the Bill of Rights?

Anti-Federalist demands during 1787-88

For roughly how long did the Supreme Court have little to say about religious liberty cases?

The first 150 years

In Sherbert v Verner, who wrote the dissent warning against the court examining religious convictions?

justice harlan

what was the central issue in Everson v Board regarding the first amendment?

whether reimbursing parents for parochial school transportation violated the establishment clause

What precedent provided strict scrutiny for Free Exercise claims from 1963 until 1990?

Sherbert

In Yoder v Wisconsin (1972), what law did the Court strike down using strict scrutiny?

A state law requiring Amish children to attend school beyond 8th grade

What was the key outcome of Oregon v Smith (1990)?

The Court reversed the Sherbert precedent and upheld an Oregon law denying unemployment benefits

In Oregon V smith, why were Al Smith and Gal Black fired?

For failing drug tests that detected peyote used in a Native American religious ceremony

Justice Scalia’s opinion in Oregon v Smith argued that the Free Exercise Clause never meant religious beliefs excuse someone from obeying what?

A valid, generally applicable law prohibiting conduct the state can regulate

What act was passed by Congress in 1993 in response to Oregon v Smith?

The Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), which reinstated the Sherbert compelling state interest standard

In Burwell v Hobby Lobby (2014), what provision of the Affordable Care Act was at issue?

The requirement for employer-based health plans to cover contraceptives

What was the constitutional question in Burwell v Hobby Lobby?

Does the Free Exercise Clause and RFRA allow a private company to deny benefits to employees based on the religious objections of the company’s owners?

What was a key reason Justice Alito gave for applying RFRA to Hobby Lobby?

It was a family-owned, privately-held company committed to Christian principles

In Masterpiece Cakeshop, what did owner Jack Phillips refuse to do?

Design and create a wedding cake for a same-sex wedding due to his religious beliefs

What law did Charlie Craig and David Mullins allege Jack Phillips violated?

The Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act (a public accommodations law)

What was the final vote in the Supreme Court’s decision for Masterpiece Cakeshop?

7:2

According to Justice Kennedy’s opinion, why did the Colorado Civil Rights Commission violate Phillips’ free exercise rights?

It did not apply the anti-discrimination law in a manner neutral toward religion and displayed hostility toward his religious beliefs

One reason Kennedy gave for Phillip’s position was that in 2012, what was legally unsettled?

Same-sex marriage law

How did the Commission show hostility, according to the opinion? (in the Cakemaster case)

it supported bakers who refused to put anti-gay messages on cakes but was not responsive to Phillip’s religious beliefs

What does the Preamble say?

“We the People”

what was article one mostly about?

Legislative Power (Congress)

1.2-3

impeachment power

1.7

“raise revenue” bills require passage in both chambers, presentment clause: bills “presented” to the president to sign or veto

what is the presentment clause and where is it?

article 1.7, and it is bills being presented to the president to sign or veto