Unit 3: Civil Liberties

selective incorporation

The process by which provisions of the Bill of Rights are brought within the scope of the Fourteenth Amendment and so applied to state and local governments.

14th Amendment

no state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the US; nor shall any state deprive any person of life liberty or property without due process of the law

Prior Restraint Doctrine

it is government action that prohibits speech or other expression before it can take place; the government must reach a very high bar for this to be used without unconstitutional violation of 1st amendment freedom of press

1st Amendment

Freedom of Religion, Speech, Press, Assembly, and Petition

Protected Speech

speech that government may not prohibit or punish under the First Amendment guarantee of "freedom of speech"

Unprotected Speech

libel, slander, obscenity, and fighting words, which are not entitled to constitutional protection in all circumstances

time, place, and manner restrictions

Government regulations that place restrictions on free speech. These regulations, specifying when, where, and in what way speech is allowed, are applied when unrestricted free speech will conflict with the rights of others.

clear and present danger test

law should not punish speech unless there was a clear and present danger of producing harmful actions

direct incitement test

Test articulated by the Supreme Court that holds that advocacy of illegal action is protected by the First Amendment unless imminent lawless action is intended and likely to occur.

Free Establishment Clause

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion (1st amendment)

Free Exercise Clause

A First Amendment provision that prohibits government from interfering with the practice of religion.

2nd Amendment

Right to bear arms

Roe v. Wade

(1973) legalized abortion on the basis of a woman's (implied) right to privacy

Shenck v. US

freedom of speech is limited if there is clear and present danger

Tinker v. Des Moines

The case that ruled that students do not lose Constitutional rights when they entered the building but they can be limited if they cause a disruption

NYT v. US

The ruling made it possible for the New York Times and Washington Post newspapers to publish the then-classified Pentagon Papers without risk of government censorship or punishment.

Engle v. Vitale

Mandatory prayer in schools is a violation of the establishment clause

Wisconsin v. Yoder

individual's (Amish) interest in free expression of religion outweighs the state's interest in requiring school attendance after 8th grade

McDonald v. Chicago (2010)

The Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms for self-defense is applicable to the states

Defamation

Act of harming or ruining another's reputation; unprotected speech

libel

written defamation (unprotected); heavy burden of proof (actual malice)

slander

spoken defamation(unprotected); heavy burden of proof (actual malice)

8th Amendment

No cruel or unusual punishment