SCOTUS

1. Engel v. Vitale (1962)

  • Details: The New York State Board of Regents authorized a short, voluntary prayer at the start of each school day. Parents sued, claiming it violated the First Amendment.

  • Right/Amendment: First Amendment – Establishment Clause (freedom of religion).

  • Decision: The Supreme Court ruled 6–1 that school-sponsored prayer in public schools is unconstitutional, as it amounts to government endorsement of religion.

2. Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972)

  • Details: Amish parents refused to send their children to public school past eighth grade, violating Wisconsin’s compulsory education law.

  • Right/Amendment: First Amendment – Free Exercise Clause (freedom of religion).

  • Decision: The Court ruled unanimously (7–0) that the law violated Amish families’ right to freely practice their religion. The Amish could end formal schooling after 8th grade.

3. Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District (1969)

  • Details: Students wore black armbands to protest the Vietnam War and were suspended.

  • Right/Amendment: First Amendment – Freedom of Speech (symbolic speech).

  • Decision: The Court ruled 7–2 in favor of the students, saying that students do not lose their First Amendment rights at school unless their speech disrupts learning.

4. Schenck v. United States (1919)

  • Details: Charles Schenck distributed leaflets urging resistance to the WWI draft and was charged under the Espionage Act.

  • Right/Amendment: First Amendment – Freedom of Speech.

  • Decision: The Court ruled unanimously (9–0) that Schenck’s speech was not protected, establishing the “clear and present danger” test — speech that poses a danger (like encouraging draft resistance) can be limited.

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

  • Details: The Nixon administration tried to stop the New York Times and Washington Post from publishing the “Pentagon Papers” about the Vietnam War.

  • Right/Amendment: First Amendment – Freedom of the Press.

  • Decision: The Court ruled 6–3 that the government could not use prior restraint to stop publication; the press has the right to publish unless it causes direct, immediate harm to national security.

6. McDonald v. Chicago (2010)

  • Details: Chicago’s handgun ban was challenged as violating the Second Amendment.

  • Right/Amendment: Second Amendment – Right to Bear Arms; Fourteenth Amendment – Due Process Clause (incorporation).

  • Decision: The Court ruled 5–4 that the Second Amendment applies to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment. Chicago’s handgun ban was unconstitutional.

7. Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)

  • Details: Clarence Gideon was charged with a felony but denied a lawyer because Florida only provided attorneys for capital cases.

  • Right/Amendment: Sixth Amendment – Right to Counsel; Fourteenth Amendment – Due Process Clause.

  • Decision: The Court ruled unanimously (9–0) that the right to an attorney applies to all felony cases at the state level. States must provide lawyers to defendants who cannot afford one.

8. Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

  • Details: African American students were denied admission to public schools attended by white children.

  • Right/Amendment: Fourteenth Amendment – Equal Protection Clause.

  • Decision: The Court ruled unanimously (9–0) that racial segregation in public schools is unconstitutional, overturning Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) and ending “separate but equal.”

9. Marbury v. Madison (1803)

  • Details: William Marbury sued Secretary of State James Madison for not delivering his judicial appointment.

  • Right/Amendment: Concerned Article III of the Constitution and judicial powers.

  • Decision: The Court ruled unanimously that while Marbury had a right to his commission, the Court could not issue the writ because the law allowing it was unconstitutional — establishing judicial review (the power to declare laws unconstitutional).

10. McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)

  • Details: Maryland tried to tax the Second Bank of the United States, and the bank’s cashier, McCulloch, refused to pay.

  • Right/Amendment: Necessary and Proper Clause (Article I, Section 8) and Supremacy Clause.

  • Decision: The Court ruled unanimously that Congress has implied powers to create a national bank and that states cannot tax federal institutions — “the power to tax involves the power to destroy.”

11. United States v. Lopez (1995)

  • Details: A student brought a gun to school and was charged under a federal law banning guns in school zones, based on the Commerce Clause.

  • Right/Amendment: Commerce Clause (Article I, Section 8).

  • Decision: The Court ruled 5–4 that Congress overstepped its power under the Commerce Clause. Carrying a gun in a school zone is not economic activity and does not substantially affect interstate commerce.