POL-111 Civil Rights & Liberties

civil liberties

individual freedoms that place limits on government power

civil rights

government power expected to secure additional rights for the public

Griswold v. Connecticut

1965 court case that challenged Connecticut’s ability to make contraceptives and the distribution of information about them illegal; SC held that a number of rights listed in Amendments 1, 3, 4, & 5 create a “zone of privacy” in which lie marriage and decision to use contraception; opened door to other claims regarding the right to privacy

penumbras

emanate from rights (ex: right to privacy emanates from 1st, 3rd, 4th, and 5th amendments)

14th Amendment Equal Protections Clause

1. strict scrutiny (race, ethnicity, alienage)

2. heightened scrutiny (women/sex gender)

3. rationally basis test (everything else)

Dred Scott v. Sanford

(1857) was a slave brought to a free state, Scott brought case to court that since he was brought to a state where slavery was illegal, he should be freed

SC ruled against him; slaves weren’t citizens, can’t bring cases to SC, no legal protections

The founder’s opposition to prior restraint showed their commitment to ___.

freedom of press/speech

Selective Incorporation Doctrine

Bill of Rights rights apply to states on a case-by-case basis; Chicago, Burlington, Quincy Railroad v. City of Chicago (1897)