Civil Liberties

True or False • Bigamy is legal in the United States

• A police officer can lie to an accused person while questioning them.

• A police officer can search your car without your consent.

• You may use illegal drugs if it is part of a religious ceremony/ritual

True or False

• States can require a female under the age of 18 to have parental consent before having an abortion.

• You have a right to assisted physician suicide.

• You can legally burn the American flag.

Freedom of Religion

Rests on Two Principles:

Establishment Clause

Free Exercise of Religion

Establishment Clause and related

Supreme Court Cases/Findings

The Issue of School Prayer

• Engel v. Vitale (1962)

• Moment of Silence

• Pledge of Allegiance – Jehovah Witnesses

• Pledge of Allegiance – “Under God”

Aid to Religious Schools

• Lemon v. Kurtzman (1971)

• The Lemon Test:– Aid must be used for secular purpose

– Aid must be neutral – it may not advance or inhibit religion

– Aid must not extensively entangle the government in religion

Aid to Religious Schools

• Using state university buildings for religious services

• Student religious groups meeting during activity hours

• Lending books and computers

• School vouchers

The Free Exercise of Religion

• When practices work against public policy and welfare of the people

Freedom of Speech, Press and

Assembly

Unprotected Speech

Direct Incitement/Imminent Lawless Action

Libel & Slander

Fighting Words

Obscenity

Direct IncitementTest

• Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969)

• Direct Incitement Test– Directed at inciting or producing imminent

lawless actions

– Likely to incite or produce such an action

– Immediate, violent, and illegal action

Libel & Slander

• Slander is a spoken statement

• Libel is a written statement

• Defame character

• Truth is an absolute defense

Slander• To be slanderous the statement must…

– Be false

– Harm a person’s good reputation

– Be made to a third party

Libel

• New York Times Co. v. Sullivan (1964)

– Actual Malice

– Press’s watchdog role in Democratic society

– Public figures have access to public medium

Fighting Words• Inflict injury or tend to incite an immediate

breach of peace

• Actual threat of immediate violence, not merely offensive

• Fighting words can include profanity, obscenity, and threats

• Contextual

Obscenity

• Miller v. California (1973)– Violates contemporary community standards

– Appeals to a prurient interest in sex

– Patently offensive conduct

– Lacks serious redeeming literary, artistic, political or scientific merit

Protected Speech

Prior Restraint

Symbolic Speech

Prior Restraint

• An activity cannot be stopped before it occurs.

• New York Times v. United States (1971) – Pentagon Papers

Symbolic Speech

• Includes gestures, movements, articles of clothing, etc.

• Texas v. Johnson (1989)

–Burning American flag during peaceful protest

Bong Hits 4 Jesus

Right to Assembly

Rights of the Accused

Fourth Amendment&

Searches and Seizures

Searches & Seizures

• No search warrant needed…

– Consent is given

– Once a person is arrested

– Plain view doctrine

– Immediate reach

Searches & Seizures

• No search warrant needed…

– Violence or destruction of evidence

– Reasonable suspicion person committing or about to commit a crime

– Breathalyzer test

Exclusionary Rule of Evidence

• Mapp v. Ohio (1961)

–Evidence obtained in illegal search and seizures are not admissible in a court of law

Fifth Amendment

Self-Incrimination&

Eminent Domain

Self-Incrimination

• Accused do not have to take stand

• Involuntary statements/confessions may not be used against

• Miranda v. Arizona (1966)

Kelo v. City of New London

• Eminent Domain Case

• City take private property to increase tax revenue

• Meaning of public use/public purpose

• 90% of Americans disagree with ruling

Sixth Amendment &

Right to CounselJury Trials

Right to Counsel

• Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)

• Cannot afford an attorney the government must provide counsel

Jury Trials

• Speedy and public trial by an impartial jury

Eighth Amendment &

Cruel and Unusual Punishment

Death Penalty Cases• Furman v. Georgia (1972)

– Arbitrary nature/racial bias

– States must review statutes

– Not applied capricious or discriminatory manner.

• Atkins v. Virginia (2002)

– No executions of mentally retarded

The Death Penalty• Roper v. Simmons

– Execution of Minors

– Evolving Standards of decency

– Sociological/Scientific Research

– Overwhelming international opinion against

Right to Privacy

Birth Control

Abortion

Homosexuality

Right to Die

Right to Privacy

• Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)– Director of Planned Parenthood

– First, Third, Fourth, and Ninth Amendments created umbrellas (penumbras) that established zones of privacy

– Falls under protection of Equal Protection – 14th Amendment

– Right to privacy covers marital relations

Roe v. Wade

• Laws against abortion violated a woman’s right to privacy

• During the first trimester states must leave decision to woman & her physician.

• During the 2nd trimester states may regulate abortion in.

• During final trimester state may prohibit abortion unless mother’s life is in danger

Further Rulings on Abortion

• States can…– Ban the use of public hospitals for abortions– Require pre-abortion counseling– Waiting period of 24 hours– Parental/judicial permission for girls under 18– 2000: Ended the ban on RU – 486– Partial Birth Abortion is legal

Homosexuality

• Lawrence v. Texas (2003)

– Texas law banning sodomy was unconstitutional

–Scalia: Court has signed on to the so-called homosexual agenda

Right to Die

• Cruzan v. Director, Missouri Dept. of Health (1990)

–Patient’s life-sustaining treatment can be withdrawn at request of family only if there is clear & convincing evidence patient did not want such treatments.

Physician Assisted Suicide

• Washington v. Glucksberg (1997)

–Not a fundamental liberty protected by the Fourteenth Amendment – Due Process Clause