Free Speech & Due Process Test

District of Columbia v. Heller (2008)

the Second Amendment protects an individual's right to possess firearms for lawfully established purposes, such as self-defense within the home, independent of service in a militia.

due process

government cannot deprive individuals of life, liberty, or property arbitrarily or unfairl

Fourteenth Amendment (1868)

established birthright citizenship, ensuring equal protection under the law for all citizens, including formerly enslaved people, while prohibiting states from depriving any person of life, liberty, or property without due process

just compensation clause

requires the government to pay property owners fair market value when taking private property for public use via eminent domain.

McDonald v. Chicago (2010)

incorporated the Second Amendment right to bear arms, ruling that it applies to state and local governments through the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause.

selective incorporation

a constitutional doctrine whereby the Supreme Court applies specific protections of the Bill of Rights to the states on a case-by-case basis

exclusionary rule

a legal principle prohibiting the use of evidence obtained through illegal searches or seizures (violating the Fourth Amendment) in criminal trials

5th Amendment (1791)

guarantees five key rights: protection against self-incrimination, double jeopardy, and unlawful property seizure, along with the right to a grand jury and due process of law

4th Amendment (1791)

protects individuals against "unreasonable searches and seizures" by the government

Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)

unanimously established the right to court-appointed counsel for indigent defendants in state felony cases

Mapp v. Ohio (1961)

the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that under the 4th and 14th Constitutional amendments, illegally seized evidence could not be used in a state criminal trial.

metadata

a set of data that describes and gives information about other data.

Miranda v. Arizona (1966)

a landmark Supreme Court case that established procedural safeguards for suspects in custodial interrogation, requiring police to inform them of their Fifth Amendment rights against self-incrimination.

New Jersey v. TLO (1985)

a landmark Supreme Court case establishing that public school officials need only "reasonable suspicion"—not "probable cause" or a warrant—to search students.

procedural due process

a legal doctrine requiring government officials to follow fair, established procedures

public safety exception

a legal doctrine allowing law enforcement to question suspects in custody without reading Miranda rights when an immediate threat exists to the public or police officers.

search and seizure

a legal procedure, primarily governed by the Fourth Amendment in the U.S., where law enforcement examines and takes persons or property as evidence of a crime.

6th Amendment (1791)

guarantees essential rights to individuals accused of crimes in criminal prosecutions

USA Freedom Act (2015)

a landmark US law signed on June 2, 2015, that ended the National Security Agency’s (NSA) bulk collection of Americans' phone records

Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (2022)

The ruling eliminated the constitutional right to abortion, overturning both Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992).

Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)

a landmark Supreme Court case that established a constitutional right to privacy, striking down a Connecticut law prohibiting contraception for married couples.

Hyde Amendment (1976)

a legislative provision prohibiting federal funds—primarily Medicaid—from being used to pay for abortions, except in cases of rape, incest, or when the pregnant person's life is in danger.

right to privacy

the fundamental human right to be "left alone," controlling the sharing of personal information, thoughts, and physical space without unjustified interference from governments, corporations, or individuals.

Roe v. Wade (1973)

a landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion nationwide, ruling that the Fourteenth Amendment's right to privacy protects a pregnant person's liberty to choose to have an abortion.

substantive due process

a legal doctrine under the U.S. Constitution's Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments that protects fundamental, unenumerated rights from government interference, regardless of the procedures followed

clear and present danger

a legal standard established by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1919 (Schenck v. United States) to determine when speech can be restricted under the First Amendment.

Miller v. California (1973)

a landmark Supreme Court case that redefined obscenity, ruling that obscene material is not protected by the First Amendment.

obscene speech

a narrow category of expression that is not protected by the First Amendment in the U.S. because it is considered deeply offensive, lewd, or disgusting according to contemporary community standards

Schneck v. United States (1919)

a landmark Supreme Court case that unanimously upheld the conviction of socialists distributing leaflets opposing the WWI draft, ruling that the First Amendment does not protect speech that creates a "clear and present danger" of inciting illegal action.

symbolic speech

First Amendment protections to nonverbal actions

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

Background: students wear black armbands in school to protest Vietnam War

Ruling: students win; schools must prove that conduct would materially or substantially disrupt the school’s operation

pure speech

communication of ideas through spoken or written words

symbolic speech

nonverbal, non-written forms of communication that convey a message through actions or objects

speech plus action

assembly, time, place, and manner restrictions, must be content nuetral

Gitlow v. New York

Background: A man, left wing socialist was indicted for violating NY’s criminal anarchy law by publishing and distributing subversive documents

Ruling: 1st Amendment applies to the states; first incorporation case in history

Barron v. Balitmore (1833)

Bill of Rights ONLY applies to federal gov.

Mahoney Area School District v. Brandy Levy

Ruling: Bitter Brandy won

Significance: public schools generally cannot discipline students for off-campus, online speech, protecting student free speech rights under the First Amendment.

Bethel v. Fraser

Background: Someone in their speech used a graphic sexual metaphor to promote the candidacy of his friend

Ruling: Againist the student

Significance: 1st Amendment does not violate the school’s right to promote education motive

Morse v. Frederick

Background: At school supervised event someone held up a banner w/ the message “Bong Hits 4 Jesus”

Ruling: againist students; students cannot do things that undermine school’s mission

Texas v. Johnson

Background: Someone burned an American flag

Ruling: 5-4; you can burn the American flag; protects your right to burn a flag

Schneck v. United States

Background: Someone delievered leaflets to potential draftees comparing millitary conscription to slavery

Ruling: in favor of US; can’t falsely yell fire in a crowded movie theatre; “clear and present danger” test; during wartime utterances tolerant in peacetime can be punished

Brandenburg v. Ohio

Background: Defendant charged w/ violation of a state law that forbade the advocacy of crime or violence as a means of accomplishing industrial or political reform

Ruling: againist state; Two Prong Test; does the speech incite eminent + lawless action? Speech must be likely to cause that intentionally

National Socialist Party v. Skokie Illinois

Background: Led by Frank Collin, the National Socialist Party of America (NSPA) planned to march in uniforms featuring swastikas to protest in front of Skokie’s village hall, following being blocked in other areas

Significance: affirmed that the First Amendment protects the right to free speech and assembly, even for hateful or offensive groups

RAV v. St. Paul

Background: In June 1990, a teenager and others burned a homemade cross in the yard of a Black family in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Signficance: The Supreme Court decided, 9-0, that the ordinance was unconstitutional.

Virginia v. Black

you can burn cross on your own property

Barnes v. Glen Theatre

Background: Theatre in Indiana sought to have their dancers perform completely nude.

Decision: The Court held that nude dancing is "expressive conduct" protected by the First Amendment, but only marginally so, placing it within the outer perimeters of the First Amendment.

Chaplinsky v. New Hampshire

established the "fighting words" doctrine, ruling that speech which inflicts injury or tends to incite an immediate breach of the peace is not protected by the First Amendment

Snyder v. Phelps (2011)

Can you ban people from protesting at a funeral? No

Wisconcin v. Mitchell

Can states impose harsher sentences on criminals who choose their victims on a basis of race, religion, or other personal characteristics? Yes

Elonis v. US

Background: Someone put up death threats againist other people

Ruling: If someone only actually intends to do it then only it is unconstitutional

Olmstead v. The United States

Background: Federal agents tapped the phone lines of someone suspected of importing illegal liquor

Ruling: SCOTUS upheld conviction, no physical intrusion and nothing tangible was seized, no 4th Amendment violation

Katz v. United States

Background: A man was convicted of sending betting information across state lines; based on police wiretaps of a public phone booth

Ruling: in favor of the man; 4th Amendment applies when person has reasonable expectation of privacy

Mapp v. Ohio

Background: Someone has obscene material, evidence obtained illegally

Ruling: illegal evidence —> inadmissable in court; Matt v. Ohio first time incorporates 4th Amendment

Terry v. Ohio

The police may stop and frisk you if justified by your behavior + context

Kyllo v. United States

thermal imaging device search unreasonable w/o warrent

Riley v. California

Can a person’s cell phone be searched w/o warrent? No, unamious vote, unless someone in danger

New Jersey v. TLO

Do teachers need probable cause to search students in school?

• School officials are parents during the school day (en loco parentis)

• reasonable suspicion that you’ve broken law or school rule

Vernonia School District v. Acton, BOE of Pottawatomie County v. Earls, Safford Unified School District v. Redding,

establishing that school districts can conduct searches—such as drug testing or, in specific scenarios, personal searches—without traditional warrants or probable cause, prioritizing school safety over individual student privacy