Required cases (AP Gov)

Brown V Board of Education (1954)

Summary: Racial Segregation in schools argued unconstitutional

Issue: Didn’t follow “separate but equal doctrine”, violates Equal protection clause of 14th amendment

Impact: Desegregation of schools; made sup court allowed to go back on previous decisions

Citizens V. Federal Election Commission (2010)

Summary: Citizens were not allowed to show an anti- Hillary Clinton movie, as the Bipartisan Campaign Act of 2002 banned independent political spending and direct contributions to politics from corporations

Issue: Violated free speech clause (first amendment)

Impact: Led to the development of Super PACS, and for corporations to be considered people, funding to politics cannot be limited.

McCulloch V Maryland (1819)

Summary: In 1816 and 1818 when two national banks were funded and taxes were imposed on, James McCulloch did not pay the tax, state ruled the bank was unconstitutional anyway, as the federal gov. does not have authority to charter a bank

Issue: 1. Congress did not have the authority to create the bank

………2. States cannot tax a federal bank

Impact: Congress DID have the power to place the bank through implied powers and that national laws are superior to state laws.

united states v lopez (1995)

Summary: Alfonzo Lopez was a Texas high school senior who took a gun inside his school, federal charges were imposed due to the Gun- Free School zone act of 1990

Issue: Constituional issue on the commerce clause and whether or not the act exceeded the power of the clause

Impact: Laws was considered unconstitutional as it did not affect interstate commerce. States laws were protected through the tenth amendment

Engel v Vitale (1962)

Summary: Voluntary Prayer violated the constitution

Issue: the prayer was voluntary and non-denominational but Establishment Clasue states that a law could not be made respect ion an establishment of religion

Impact: states may not hold prayer in public school as it is government funded is against the establishment clause in the first amendment

Wisconsin v Yoder (1972)

Summary: Jonas Yoder (and other Amish parents) refused to send their children to school after 8th grade as it did not align with their religion, but were later charged under a wisconsin law that required students to attend school until at least 16

Issue: Free Exercise clause in the first amendment means that they are allowed to do so, but it still violates the state law for school attendance

Impact: Yoder won, as free religion overpowers school rules.

Tinker v Des Moines Independent Community School District (1969)

Summary: a group of students decide to wear black armbands in protest to the Vietnam War despite school warnings The students were sent home and sued for violation of self expression

Issue: was it or was it not a violation of the first amendment

Impact: as long as it did not majorly interfere with school operations, it should have been fine.

New York Times Co v United States (1971)

Summary: Pentagon papers case dealt with the first amendment as the Nixon Administration tried to prevent the New York Times from publishing material about US intervention in Vietnam. It was stated by Nixon that is was crucial to national security to not publish, aka, prior restraint

Issue: Publication of classified material was a violation of the first amendments freedom of the press and nixons prior restraint was deemed constitutional

Schenck v United States (1919)

Summary: Charles Schenck was convicted under the Espionage Act for distributing leaflets against the draft during World War I.

Issue: questioned whether or not the Espionage Act violated the first amendments freedom and if it was an appropriate use of Congress’s wartime authority

Impact: Congress deemed it was not in violation

Gideon V Wainwright (1963)

Summary: Clarence Earl Gideon was charged with felony breaking and entering in Florida, and after being denied a court-appointed lawyer, he filed a habeas corpus petition claiming his right to legal representation was violated.

Issue: violated the sixth amendment

Mcdonald V Chicago (2010)

Summary: After Chicago passed a handgun ban, several lawsuits challenged it based on District of Columbia v. Heller, where the Supreme Court ruled a similar federal ban violated the Second Amendment.

Issue: did the right to bear arms also apply to the states although an individual right

Impact: Court deemed the ban unconstitutional

Baker v Carr (1962)

Summary: Charles Baker argued that Tennessee had ignored a 1901 law on legislative apportionment, failing to reflect the state's significant population changes.

Issue: did the supreme court have authority to hear cases about legislative apportionment

Impact: sup court did not have authority

Shaw v Reno (1993)

Summary: NC residents proposed a district that believed it would definitely only elect African American reps

Issue: Raised the question of if it was racial gerrymandering

Impact: constitutionally challenged if race was the sole factor in the creation of the district

Marbury v madison

Summary:After losing the 1800 election to Thomas Jefferson, John Adams passed the Judiciary Act of 1801 to maintain influence by appointing new judges, but William Marbury’s commission was never delivered, leading to a legal dispute.

Issue: did the court have the authority to the delivery of commission and can a federal judge even bring the case to court

Impact: Marbury bringing the case was unconstitutional.

Points of the First Amendent Addresses (FEE RAPPS)

Free Exercise Clause

Establishment Clause

Religion

Assembly

Press

Petition the Government

Speech