AP US GOV SCOTUS CASES (and related details)

Marbury v Madison (1803)

main idea: checks and balances & separation of powers

facts: secretary of state james madison (democratic-republican) did not deliver william marbury’s (federalist) commission to prevent him from taking office as a justice of the peace of D.C.

-marbury requested SCOTUS to issue a writ of mandamus under the Judiciary Act of 1789 (“public officers”

holding: the Judiciary Act of 1789 conflicted with the US Constitution because it gave SCOTUS more authority than in Article III. SCOTUS’s original jurisdiction doesn’t apply because the dispute does not involve certain specifications, so a writ cannot be issued

reasoning: congress can’t pass legislation that supersedes the Constitution because the Supremacy Clause places the constitution above laws

-established the power of Judicial Review

writ of mandamus

a court order that directs a government official/agency to perform a specific duty that they are legally obligated to do

judiciary act of 1789

established the federal court system and provide a structure for the judiciary (Article III)

-paved the way for judicial review

-created SCOTUS, district courts, etc

-defined the jurisdiction of federal courts and powers of federal judges

supremacy clause

gives the federal government and its laws general precedence over states laws, but SCOTUS interpretations may affect when specific actions exceed this constitutional power

-Article VI

-essentially just makes the constitution and federal law reign supreme

judicial review

SCOTUS may strike down unconstitutional acts of Congress and the president

-checks executive and legislative (checks and balances)

McCulloch v Maryland (1819)

main idea: federalism

facts: congress established a national bank and maryland attempted to tax it

holding: congress may establish a national bank and states may not tax the national government

reasoning: the Necessary and Proper Clause gives congress implied powers and the Supremacy Clause asserts the federal government is super to the states when the two conflict

-states could not interfere with federal powers

necessary and proper clause

-gives congress the power to make laws related to carrying out its enumerated powers, but SCOTUS interpretations can influence the extent of these powers

-provides implied powers

-Article I

Schenck v US (1919)

main idea: freedom of speech

facts: schenck distributed leaflets opposing the military draft in WWI and was arrested for violating the Espionage Act for attempting to cause insubordination in the military and obstruct recruitment

holding: the Espionage Act did not violate the First Amendment and was an appropriate exercise of Congress’s wartime authority

reasoning: there may be time, place, and manner (war time) restrictions to speech as the 1st Amendment doesn’t protect urging unlawful conduct

-speech creating a clear and present danger is not protected by 1st Amendment

espionage act

criminalizes certain actions related to national defense such as espionage and unauthorized disclosure of classified information

-passed during WWI to protect the US war effort

-applied in Schenck v US because schenck was obstructing the drafting services

time, place, and manner restrictions

court allows speech that is usually protected to be limited under certain circumstances

-time of day

-location

-noise level

-ex: in Schenck v US, schenck tried to stop drafting during wartime which violated these regulations

clear and present danger

speech can only be limited if it presents an immediate threat or harm to public safety

US v Lopez (1995)

main idea: federalism

facts: lopez, a student, was arrested for bringing an unloaded gun to school which violates the federal Gun Free School Zones Act

holding: the federal law is unconstitutional because gun possession in school does not affect interstate commerce

reasoning: the 10th Amendment creates a federal system that protects state power

-the Commerce Clause doesn’t grant congress endless power to limit anything because they think it could possibly impact commerce

gun free school zones act

this act made it illegal to posses a firearm in a school zone

-later deemed unconstitutional by SCOTUS in US v Lopez because it exceeded congressional authority under the Commerce Clause

commerce clause

gives the federal government the power to regulate interstate commerce, but SCOTUS interpretations can influence the extent of this power

-can regulate anything affecting interstate commerce (overused)

-used the most to expand federal power

-Article I

Baker v Carr (1962)

main idea: redistricting

facts: tennessee’s congressional apportionment (allocate seats to various regions to ensure equal representation based on population) didn’t account for population changes

-charles baker who lived in an urban area felt his vote was devalued and wouldn’t count the same as those of voters residing in more rural (less populated) areas

holding: approtionment and redistricting claims are ”judiciable” in federal court

-led to one person, one vote principle of voting equality

reasoning: under 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause, residents have a right to challenge unequal apportionment (malapportionment)

(re)apportionment

changing the # of seats each state has in the House

-occurs after census

malapportionment

drawing congressional districts of very unequal size (ruled unconditional)

equal protection clause

-14th Amendment

-protects the rights of minority groups and ensures that all americans are treated equally under the law

Shaw v Reno (1993)

main idea: redistricting

facts: department of justice rejected north carolina’s redistricting plan under preclearance because it believed that the state could and should have created a second majority-minority district

-NC created an oddly shaped second majority-black district for the purpose of increasing black representation in congress

holding: congressional districts cannot be drawn based only on race

-racial gerrymandering is unconstitutional

reasoning: drawing a congressional district based on race violates the 14th Amendment Equal Protection Clause

voting rights act of 1965

-prohibits racial discrimination in voting

-established preclearance: required states with a history of voting discrimination to get federal approval to changes in election policies

-ends literacy tests

majority-minority district

an electoral district where the majority of the residents belong to a minority group

-districts are created to ensure minority groups have an opportunity to elect candidates of their choice

-usually racial minority

gerrymandering

drawing congressional districts in bizarre shapes to benefit a party (usually majority but can be minority like in Shaw v Reno)

Engle v Vitale (1962)

main idea: religious freedom

facts: public schools in NY began each school day with a voluntary nondenominational prayer

holding: states can’t hold prayers in public schools, even if it’s voluntary and the prayer isn’t tied to a specific religion

reasoning: states sponsored prayer in public school violates the Establishment Clause of the 1st Amendment

establishment clause

prevents congress from establishing an official religion

-separation of church and state

Wisconsin v Yoder (1972)

main idea: religious freedom

facts: wisconsin had a law mandating school attendance until age 16

-amish families refused for religious reasons to send their kids to high school

holding: compelling amish students to attend public school beyond 8th grade violates the Free Exercise Clause

reasoning: individuals’ interest in Free Exercise of Religion outweighs the states’ interest in compelling school attendance behind 8th grade

free exercise clause

prevents congress from stopping somebody from practicing the religion of their choice

-no polygamy or animal sacrifice

Tinker v Des Moines (1969)

main idea: freedom of speech

facts: students were suspended from school for wearing black armbands as a symbol to protest the Vietnam War

holding: students have free speech rights at school

reasoning: the students’ right of political, symbolic speech based on 1st Amendment’s Free Speech Clause overrode the school’s concern for potential disorder

-to justify suppressing speech, the school must prove that it would substantially interfere with the operation of school

symbolic speech

nonverbal action that communicates an idea or belief

-protected

New York Times v US (1971)

main idea: freedom of press

facts: the nixon administration attempted to block and implement prior restraint against the publication of the Pentagon Papers by the NYT and Washington Post

holding: the government didn’t have the right to block publication of the Pentagon Papers

reasoning: because of the First Amendment’s Freedom of Press, there is a heavy presumption against the constitutional validity of government claims of prior restraint

prior restraint

refers to the government action that prohibits speech or other forms of expression before they can take place

McDonald v Chicago (2010)

main idea: selective incorporation

facts: chicago passed a law preventing new handguns from being registered

-mcdonald desired a gun for self defense

holding: incorporated the right to bear arms

reasoning: the second amendment establishes an individual right to bear arms through the fourteenth amendment’s due process clause it applies to states

selective incorporation

has imposed limitations on state regulation of civil liberties by extending select protections of the Bill of Rights to the states through the due process clause of the 14th Amendment

due process clause

specifies that no state shall deprive a person without their natural rights without due process

-states cannot take away a person’s fundamental liberties

Gideon v Wainwright (1973)

main idea: selective incorporation

facts: clarence earl gideon was charged with a felony and requested the court appoint an attorney for him

-the judge declined, stating that florida only provided attorneys for someone charged with a capital crime (murder)

holding: states must provide attorneys for defendants who can’t afford one

reasoning: the 6th Amendment’s guarantee to the right of counsel applies to defendants in state court; incorporated by the Due Process Clause

Brown v Board of Education (1954)

main idea: equal protection

facts: linda brown tried to gain admission to a whites-only school closer to her house, but her application was denied by the Board of Education of Topeka because of her race

holding: required the desegregation of public schools

reasoning: racially segregated public schools violate the equal protection clause

Citizens United v FEC (2010)

main idea: free speech

facts: a nonprofit group, Citizens United, was prevented from airing commercials for their Anti-Hillary Clinton movie because doing so would violate BCRA

holding: struck down parts of BCRA; corporate funding of independent politician spending cannot be limited

reasoning: based on the free speech clause, corporations have the right to engage in political speech

bcra

bipartisan campaign reform act

-banned soft money

-banned corporate ads 60 days before a general election and 30 days before a primary election (electioneering communication)

-banned direct corporate contributions to candidates

-“Stand by your Ad” provision attempted to reduce negative attack ads