Civil Liberties and Rights

Flashcards reviewing key concepts from a lecture on civil liberties and rights, covering topics from the Bill of Rights to contemporary issues like surveillance and terrorism.

Bill of Rights

First ten amendments in the Constitution, listing rights the federal government must protect.

Types of rights found in the Bill of Rights

Procedural Due Process rights, Substantive Rights

How do civil liberties differ from natural rights?

Civil liberties protect us from government power, while natural rights are basic freedoms we’re born with, like laws guarding your speech vs. simply having the right to speak.

Can the right to freedom of expression be limited?

Yes, if it endangers national security, wrongly damages reputations, or deprives others of their rights.

Significance of the Espionage Act of 1917 and Schenck v. United States (1919)

Set limits on free speech by creating the “clear and present danger” test, like yelling “fire” in a crowded theater isn’t protected if it causes panic.

Amendment containing due process clause relevant to state actions

Fourteenth Amendment, makes states follow fair legal procedures

Selective incorporation

Using the 14th Amendment to make parts of the Bill of Rights apply to states, like slowly adding rules to make sure every classroom follows the same fairness.

Barron v. Baltimore (1833) established

The Bill of Rights limited only the federal government, not state governments.

How did the 14th Amendment change the application of the Bill of Rights?

It made the Bill of Rights apply to states (nationalization), not just the federal government, like making district-wide rules that every school must now follow.

Significance of Gitlow v. New York (1925)

First case to apply the Bill of Rights to the states by incorporating free speech (civil liberty), like telling a school that even individual teachers must respect student rights.

Current standard for hate speech

Hate speech is protected, but not hate crimes.

Types of restrictions can the government put on free assembly

The government can limit when, where, and how people gather, like saying you can protest, but not disrupting national security or daily life.

Prior restraint

When the government tries to stop speech or publication before it happens, like stopping a newspaper from printing a story ahead of time.

Libel and whether it is protected by the First Amendment

False written info that harms someone’s reputation; it’s not protected by the First Amendment, like writing lies that ruin someone's life.

Two clauses related to freedom of religion in the First Amendment

Establishment Clause, Free-Exercise Clause

The Lemon test

A test frequently applied by the Court to determine if a law violates the Establishment Clause.

When is government interference allowed under the Free-Exercise Clause?

When religious beliefs conflict with otherwise valid law.

Right protected in Roe v. Wade (1973)

Abortion was protected as a right of privacy.

Procedural due process

The steps government must follow before punishing someone, like needing a fair trial before sending someone to prison.

Significance of District of Columbia v. Heller (2008) under the Second Amendment

The Second Amendment protects an individual right to possess a firearm.

Griswold v. Connecticut (1965) established

Right to privacy (zone of privacy), saying the government can’t interfere in personal decisions—like keeping nosy neighbors out of your house.

Exclusionary rule

Illegally obtained evidence can’t be used in court

Exceptions to the exclusionary rule

Some evidence can still be used if it was found by mistake (good faith), was going to be found anyway (inevitable discovery), or was clearly visible (plain view)

Protection that the Fifth Amendment offers against self-incrimination

You can’t be forced to confess or say something that proves you’re guilty, like having the right to stay silent when you’re arrested.

Miranda v. Arizona (1966) established

No legal interrogation until the suspect has been warned that his or her words could be used as evidence (Miranda Rights).

What rights does the Sixth Amendment guarantee?

A right to legal counsel before and during trial.

Eighth Amendment prohibits

'Cruel and unusual punishment'

Racial profiling

Targeting of individuals from minority groups by law enforcement.

Significance of Korematsu v. United States (1944)

The Court allowed the government to detain Japanese Americans during WWII for safety concerns

Rights that detainees have according to Hamdi v. Rumsfeld (2004)

Detainees have the right to due process and to challenge their Guantanamo Bay detention in U.S. courts.

What did the USA Patriot Act do?

Gave the government additional tools for combating terrorism.

Civil Liberties

Freedoms guaranteed to individuals, acting as restraints on government actions.

Civil Rights

Positive actions taken by the government to protect individuals against arbitrary or discriminatory treatment.

Incorporation Doctrine

The process by which the Supreme Court has applied portions of the Bill of Rights to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment.

Judicial Interpretation

The role of the courts, especially the Supreme Court, in interpreting the extent and limits of civil liberties.

What was established in Mapp v. Ohio (1961)?

Applied the exclusionary rule to the states, prohibiting illegally obtained evidence in court.

What was established in Roe v. Wade (1973)?

Recognized a woman's constitutional right to an abortion under the right to privacy.