AMG Final Exam Study Guide (copy)

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Constitution

plan for organizing and operating gov

Implied powers

political powers granted to the United States government that aren't explicitly stated in the Constitution

Reapportionment

act of redistributing or changing the apportionment of something

Democracy

rule by the people

Inherent powers

implied powers

Gerrymandering

achieve (a result) by manipulating the boundaries of an electoral constituency

Politics

effort to control or influence gov

Double jeopardy

you cannot be tried for the same crime twice. Ex: Two murder charges in the same case

Ex post facto laws

“from a thing done afterward.” A criminal statute that punishes actions retroactively, thereby criminalizing conduct that was legal when originally performed.

Sovereignty

power of a state within its borders

Naturalization

legal process whereby a person becomes a US citizen

Censure

a public reprimand (discipline)

Federalism

Separation of state and federal governments

Collective naturalization

naturalization done to a group

Jurisdiction

Authority of court to hear a case

Oligarchy

a small group of people having control of a country, organization, or institution

Denaturalization

reverse naturalization. Revocation of citizenship

Original jurisdiction

original hearing, when the evidence is brought

Autocracy

one ruler

Immigrants

person who comes to the US with the intent of living here permanently

Appellate jurisdiction

the power to reverse or modify the lower court's decision.

Monarchy

political system based upon the undivided sovereignty or rule of a single person

Aliens

general name for one that is here but is not a citizen of the US

Concurrent jurisdiction

Both state and federal courts hear simultaneously

Consensus

a general agreement

Nominating convention

a political convention held every four years in the United States by most of the political parties who will be fielding nominees in the upcoming U.S. presidential election

Civil

Court disputes under tort (civil) law between two or more parties.

Capitalism

economic system in which individuals have the right to control their own economic choices

PAC(political action committee)

political committee organized for the purpose of raising and spending money to elect and defeat candidates

Criminal

Breaking federal or state laws

Free market

one where voluntary exchange and the laws of supply and demand provide the sole basis for the economic system, without government intervention

Lobbying

trying to get whatever you want to be done

Law of equity

equal justice under the law

Socialism

economic system in which individuals have the right to control their own economic choices

Establishment clause

the government will not establish a religion

Plaintiff

Person who brings the case in a civil suit

Communism

a political and economic ideology where most property and economic resources are owned and controlled by the state where you have limited power

Free exercise clause

protects citizens' right to practice their religion as they please

Prosecution

one whom the suit is against

Unitary system

a system of political organization in which most or all of the governing power resides in a centralized government

Seditious speech

speech urging resistance to lawful authority or advocating the overthrow of the government

Defendant

one whom the suit is against

State

a nation or territory considered as an organized political community under one government

Defamatory speech

false statement of fact about someone else that harms that person's reputation

Brief

a written argument submitted to the court

Limited government

the government is limited by the constitution

Pure speech

the verbal expression of thought and opinion before an audience that has chosen to listen

Majority opinion

an appellate opinion supporting the court's judgment (the result reached in the case)

Representative government

government is elected by citizens

Speech Plus

Verbal and symbolic speech used together

Six Principles of gov.

Popular sovereignty, Federalism, Limited government, Checks and balances, Separation of Powers, Judicial review

Separation of powers

each branch has its own unique abilities

Sequester

isolating the jury (and press) from the community and the news media during a trial

Roe v. Wade

abortion and when does life begin

Ratify

to approve

Gag order

An order issued by a judge restricting the publication of news about a trial or a pretrial hearing to protect the accused's right to a fair trial.

Plessy v. Ferguson

said separate but equal schools was ok

Unicameral

only one part

Censorship

restriction on access to ideas and information

Brown v. Bd of Ed

overruled Plessy and said no, separate but equal could never be equal

Bicameral

two part (houses)

Obscenity

an authoritative order; a decree.

Marbury v. Madison

Supreme Court case that established the principle of judicial review in the United States

Cede

to yield or grant usually by treaty

Exclusionary rule

any illegally obtained evidence cannot be used in court

Dred Scott Case

having lived in a free state and territory did not entitle an enslaved person, Dred Scott, to his freedom

Ordinance

an authoritative order

Miranda rights

the rights you are read before arrest

Engel v. Vitale

Court ruled that it is unconstitutional for state officials to compose an official school prayer and encourage its recitation in public schools

Loyalists

a colonist of the American revolutionary period who supported the British cause

Discrimination

prejudice against a group of people based on race, beliefs, or religion

Mapp v. Ohio

High court said evidence seized unlawfully, without a search warrant, could not be used in criminal prosecutions in state courts.

Federalists

supporters of the Constitution

Capital punishment

the state

Miranda v. Arizona

Supreme court ruled that an arrested individual is entitled to rights against self

Anarchy

anti

Jim Crow laws

state and local laws introduced in the Southern United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries that enforced racial segregation, "Jim Crow" is a pejorative term for an African

US v. Nixon

Court unanimously ordered President Richard Nixon to deliver tape recordings and other subpoenaed materials related to the Watergate scandal to a federal district court

Articles

a legal rule that can be set out under a statute, a code, or a paragraph in a legal document.

Segregation

the division of races

Regents of Cal v. Bakke

Supreme Court ruled that a university's use of racial "quotas" in its admissions process was unconstitutional

Jurisdiction

rights of the court to hear the case

Quorum

the minimum number of members of a deliberative assembly necessary to conduct the business of that group.

Boroughs

county in Alaska

Supremacy clause

The constitution and all laws and treaties under it constitute “the supreme law of the land” and take priority over all others

Filibuster

an action such as a prolonged speech that obstructs progress in a legislative assembly

County

The largest territorial and political subdivision of a state.

Amendment

a constitutional change

Private bills

bills that deal with a specific person or place

Parishes

county in Louisiana

Popular sovereignty

ruled by the people

Public bills

bills that deal with general matters and that apply to the entire nation

Selectmen

Elected town officials in New early England.

Checks and balances

each branch demonstrates some control over the others

Resolutions

statement issued by the House of Representatives or the Senate individually to regulate the administrative or internal business of the respective chamber, or to express facts or opinions on non

Town meeting

administered assembly in townships in early New England

Veto

presidential power to returns the legislation to the house in which it originated

Joint resolutions

A formal expression of congressional opinion that must be approved by both houses of congress and by the president

Townships

a subdivision of a county that has its own government

Judicial review

the supreme court can declare a law unconstitutional