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McCulloch v. Maryland
Case: A state decided to pass a law that imposed taxes on the Second Bank of the United States
McCulloch v. Maryland
Part of constitution: Did Congress have the implied power to create a bank? And secondly, could states tax a federal entity/bank?
McCulloch v. Maryland
Precedent: Congress has the ability to create a bank due to the necessary and proper clause. Congress also concluded based on the Supremacy Clause that because the national laws were superior to state laws, the states were not allowed to tax the federal government.
McCulloch v. Maryland
Ruling: Against the state of Maryland
McCulloch v. Maryland
Year: 1819
United States v. Lopez
Case: A Texas high school senior took a concealed weapon into a school. Federal charges were filed because of his violation of the Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990 that prohibited this due to the commerce clause.
United States v. Lopez
Part of constitution: Did the Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990 exceeded the power allowed by the clause?
United States v. Lopez
Precedent: The commerce clause did not grant Congress limitless power. This case introduced a new phase of federalism that recognized the importance of state sovereignty and local control.
United States v. Lopez
Ruling: The law was considered unconstitutional since having a gun in the school zone did not substantially affect interstate commerce, which is a clear provision in the commerce clause.
United States v. Lopez
Year: 1995
Engle v. Vitale
Case: The New York Board of Regents had authorized that at the beginning of each day, a short but voluntary prayer would be recited. Several organizations filed suit against the Board of Regents, claiming that the prayer violated the Constitution.
Engle v. Vitale
Part of constitution: Did holding an optional non-denomination prayer violate the establishment clause?
Engle v. Vitale
Precedent:School sponsorship of religious activities is a violation of first amendment
Engle v. Vitale
Ruling: States could not hold prayers in public school even if it was voluntary and even if the prayer did not adhere to a specific religion. Because the act of prayer was considered a religious activity, having it occur in a public school (which is funded by the government) would go against the establishment clause of the first amendment.
Engle v. Vitale
Year: 1962
Wisconsin v. Yoder
Case: Amish parents, refused to send their children to school after the 8th grade. In accordance with their religion, they did not agree with high school attendance. They were later charged under a state law that required students to attend school until age 16.
Wisconsin v. Yoder
Part of constitution: By requiring Amish parents to send their children to school, without a faith exception, did it violate the parents' rights to freely exercise their religion?
Wisconsin v. Yoder
Precedent: An individual’s interest in the free exercise of religion was more powerful than a federal interest in sending children to school beyond the eighth grade
Wisconsin v. Yoder
Ruling: The court held that the requirement to send children to school beyond the eighth grade was unconstitutional.
Wisconsin v. Yoder
Year: 1972
Tinker v. Des Moines
Case: A group of students decided to wear black armbands in order to protest the Vietnam War despite warnings from school administration. After wearing the armbands to school, they were sent home. The students decided to sue their school district for violating the freedom of expression.
Tinker v. Des Moines
Part of constitution: Did the prohibition against wearing these armbands (and in general - symbolic protest) violate the freedom of speech clause of the First Amendment?
Tinker v. Des Moines
Precedent: Students still have free speech rights at school, and in order to justify the suppression of speech, the speech must substantially interfere with school operations
Tinker v. Des Moines
Ruling: Students’ right of symbolic speech is protected if it doesn’t interfere with school operations
Tinker v. Des Moines
Year: 1969
New York Time Co v. United States
Case: The Nixon Administration tried to prevent the publishing of material that belonged to a Defense Department study about US intervention in Vietnam. President Nixon stated that it was necessary to national security to prohibit it before publication, also known as prior restraint.
New York Time Co v. United States
Part of constitution: Did the prior restrain that the Nixon administration’s count as constitutional and if preventing the publication of “classified material” was a violation of the First Amendment’s freedom of the press.
New York Time Co v. United States
Precedent: That there is a “heavy presumption against prior restraint” even for national security purposes
New York Time Co v. United States
Ruling: The Supreme Court, in this case, bolstered the freedom of the press guaranteed by the First Amendment
New York Time Co v. United States
Year: 1971
Schenck v. United States
Case: During World War I, a pair of socialists distributed leaflets that stated the draft violated the 13th Amendment - which prohibits involuntary servitude. The leaflet wanted people to disobey the draft. They were charged with violating the Espionage Act of 1917. They appealed on the grounds of the First Amendment.
Schenck v. United States
Part of constitution: Did the Espionage Act violate the First Amendment and was it an appropriate way that Congress exercised its wartime authority?
Schenck v. United States
Ruling: The Espionage Act did not violate the First Amendment and it was an appropriate exercise of Congress’ wartime authority.
Schenck v. United States
Precedent: Free speech can be limited if it poses a clear and present danger and the powers of the government increase during wartime
Schenck v. United States
Year: 1919
Gideon v. Wainwright
Case: A man was charged in Florida state court on a felony - breaking and entering charge. During his trial, he requested that he receive a court-appointed lawyer; however, in accordance with Florida State law, an indigent defendant could only have an attorney be appointed in capital crimes/cases. He then filed a habeas corpus suit, stating that the court’s decision violated his rights to be represented.
Gideon v. Wainwright
Part of constitution: Does the Sixth Amendment and the right to counsel also apply to felony defendants in state court?
Gideon v. Wainwright
Precedent: The Sixth Amendment’s right to counsel applies to state court defendants via the Fourteenth Amendment
Gideon v. Wainwright
Ruling: Because the right of counsel is fundamental, it should be incorporated into the states.
Gideon v. Wainwright
Year: 1963
McDonald v. Chicago
Case: A state passed a handgun ban law, and several suits were filed against the city challenging the ban after another case (District of Columbia v. Heller). In that case, the Court had held that a DC handgun ban violated the Second Amendment. There, since the law was enacted by the federal government, the Second Amendment was applicable.
McDonald v. Chicago
Part of constitution: Does the Second Amendment and the right to bear arms also apply to states?
McDonald v. Chicago
Precedent: Because the right to self-defense was fundamental, the 2nd Amendment was incorporated to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment’s due process clause.
McDonald v. Chicago
Ruling: A state’s handgun ban was unconstitutional
McDonald v. Chicago
Year: 2010
Brown v. Board of Education
Case: Relating to the racial segregation of schools, African American students had been denied admittance to public schools because of these segregation laws, and many argued that this was in violation of the Constitution.
Brown v. Board of Education
Part of constitution: A previous case, Plessy v. Ferguson, held that segregated facilities were legal as long as the facilities were equal (called “separate but equal doctrine.”) In this case, racial segregation in public school education was argued against based on the Equal Protection Clause.
Brown v. Board of Education
Precedent: “Separate but equal is inherently unequal,” and therefore racial segregation of public schools is unconstitutional.
Brown v. Board of Education
Ruling: The segregated schools allowed by the previous Plessy case were declared unconstitutional.
Brown v. Board of Education
Year: 1954
Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission
Case: The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 had previously banned corporations from independent political spending and direct contributions to campaigns or political parties. In 2008, a group was not allowed to show an anti-Hillary Clinton movie.
Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission
Part of constitution: Did the First Amendment’s free speech clause protect political speech like funding?
Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission
Precedent: Funding is considered a form of political speech, which is protected by the free speech portion of the First Amendment.
Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission
Ruling: Corporations should be considered people and therefore their funding of “independent political expenditures cannot be limited.”
Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission
Year: 2010
Baker v. Carr
Case: Someone stated that an old law (1901) that detailed the apportionment for Tennessee’s General Assembly had been ignored, and stated that reapportionment did not take into account the significant change that the state had gone through.
Baker v. Carr
Part of constitution: Does the Supreme Court as a unit had the authority to hear cases that related to legislative apportionment?
Baker v. Carr
Precedent: The Supreme Court did have the authority to hear cases that related to legislative apportionment
Baker v. Carr
Ruling: That because of the Fourteenth Amendment issues (through equal protection) that the case seemed to address, the Supreme Court did have the authority to hear this case.
Baker v. Carr
Year: 1962
Shaw v. Reno
Case: Several North Carolina residents challenged a proposed, unusually shaped district. They believed that the only purpose of the district was that it would definitely elect African-American representatives.
Shaw v. Reno
Part of constitution: Did racial gerrymandering violate the Equal Protection Clause?
Shaw v. Reno
Precedent: Majority-minority districts can be constitutionally challenged if race was the sole factor in their creation
Shaw v. Reno
Ruling: That because the district was shaped in such a clearly odd way, it was enough to prove that there was a very apparent effort to separate voters racially.
Shaw v. Reno
Year: 1993
Marbury v. Madison
Case: John Adams conducted the midnight appointments to a bunch of judges. One of these judges wasn’t given the job because his commission was not delivered.
Marbury v. Madison
Part of constitution: Did the Court have the authority to order the delivery of commission?
Marbury v. Madison
Precedent: Judicial review
Marbury v. Madison
Ruling: Although legally, the commission should have been delivered, the clause of the Judiciary Act of 1789 which enabled Marbury to bring the case to court was unconstitutional.
Marbury v. Madison
Year: 1803
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