AP Gov Required Supreme Court Cases

šŸ› RELIGION

Engel v. Vitale (1962)

  • Facts: NY public schools held a short voluntary prayer at the start of the day.

  • Clause: Establishment Clause (First Amendment)

  • Ruling: State-sponsored prayer in public schools is unconstitutional.

  • Impact: Strengthened separation of church and state; banned school-led prayer.

Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972)

  • Facts: Amish parents refused to send kids to school past 8th grade due to religious beliefs; Wisconsin law required attendance until 16.

  • Clause: Free Exercise Clause (First Amendment)

  • Ruling: The law violated the parents' right to freely exercise religion.

  • Impact: Protected religious liberty over state interests in education.

šŸ—£ FREEDOM OF SPEECH & PRESS

Schenck v. United States (1919)

  • Facts: Schenck distributed leaflets urging resistance to the WWI draft.

  • Clause: Freedom of Speech (First Amendment)

  • Ruling: Speech that presents a ā€œclear and present dangerā€ is not protected.

  • Impact: Limited speech during wartime; precedent for dangerous speech limits.

Tinker v. Des Moines (1969)

  • Facts: Students wore black armbands to protest the Vietnam War; suspended.

  • Clause: Freedom of Speech (First Amendment)

  • Ruling: Students donā€™t lose rights at school; symbolic speech protected.

  • Impact: Expanded student rights to free speech in schools.

New York Times Co. v. United States (1971)

  • Facts: Nixon tried to stop NYT and Washington Post from publishing Pentagon Papers.

  • Clause: Freedom of the Press (First Amendment)

  • Ruling: Government canā€™t exercise prior restraint without proof of danger.

  • Impact: Protected freedom of the press; government must meet high burden to censor.

šŸ”« GUN RIGHTS

McDonald v. City of Chicago (2010)

  • Facts: Chicagoā€™s handgun ban challenged after D.C. v. Heller.

  • Clause: Second Amendment + Due Process Clause (14th Amendment)

  • Ruling: Second Amendment applies to the states via incorporation.

  • Impact: Expanded gun rights; incorporated Second Amendment to states.

šŸ—³ VOTING RIGHTS & DISTRICTS

Baker v. Carr (1962)

  • Facts: Tennessee hadnā€™t redrawn districts in decades, causing unequal populations.

  • Clause: Equal Protection Clause (14th Amendment)

  • Ruling: Courts can rule on redistricting (ā€œone person, one voteā€).

  • Impact: Opened door for courts to hear gerrymandering cases.

Shaw v. Reno (1993)

  • Facts: North Carolina drew a bizarre district to increase Black representation.

  • Clause: Equal Protection Clause (14th Amendment)

  • Ruling: Racial gerrymandering is unconstitutional if race is the sole factor.

  • Impact: Limited racial gerrymandering; districts must be race-neutral in intent.

šŸ› FEDERALISM & CONGRESS

McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)

  • Facts: Maryland tried to tax the federal bank; McCulloch (bank official) refused.

  • Clauses: Necessary and Proper Clause, Supremacy Clause

  • Ruling: Congress can create a national bank; states canā€™t tax federal institutions.

  • Impact: Strengthened federal power; established implied powers.

United States v. Lopez (1995)

  • Facts: Lopez brought a gun to school; charged under federal Gun-Free School Zones Act.

  • Clause: Commerce Clause

  • Ruling: Law exceeded Congressā€™s power under the Commerce Clause.

  • Impact: Limited federal power; first major rollback of Commerce Clause authority.

šŸ‘Øā€āš– EXECUTIVE POWER

Marbury v. Madison (1803)

  • Facts: Marbury sued for his judicial commission, which Jeffersonā€™s admin withheld.

  • Clause: Article III ā€“ Judicial Review

  • Ruling: The Court couldnā€™t enforce delivery but declared part of the Judiciary Act unconstitutional.

  • Impact: Established judicial review, allowing courts to declare laws unconstitutional.

Roe v. Wade (1973) (overturned in 2022)

  • Facts: Roe wanted an abortion, but Texas banned it.

  • Clause: Right to Privacy (implied from 14th Amendment ā€“ Due Process)

  • Ruling: Women have a constitutional right to abortion (1st trimester).

  • Impact: Legalized abortion nationwide; landmark for womenā€™s rights and privacy.

šŸ’¼ CAMPAIGN FINANCE

Citizens United v. FEC (2010)

  • Facts: Citizens United challenged campaign finance laws limiting corporate political spending.

  • Clause: Freedom of Speech (First Amendment)

  • Ruling: Corporations/unions can spend unlimited money on independent political ads.

  • Impact: Led to rise of Super PACs and large-scale independent spending