Download - Chapter 7: The Judicial Branch - matsuk12.us
Art I: The Legislative Branch
Art II: The Executive Branch
Art III: The Judicial Branch
Art IV: Relations between states
Art V: Amendment process
Art VI: National Supremacy
Art VII: Ratification
This week we will focus on Article III – The Judicial Branch
Established a national Supreme Court
Congress has power to create lower federal courts
Federal Judges are appointed by the president
Appointments must be approved by Senate
Lists Federal Jurisdiction
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Notes:Laws and Courts
• Federal Judicial Branch Components
–The Supreme Court and more than
100 other federal courts.
• Disputes involving laws are resolved
in the legal system
• (Crash)
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Notes:What Courts Do• Words you need to understand
– Plaintiff: Individual or group bringing a complaint
against another party.
– Defendant: The party who answers the complaint
and defends against it.
– Prosecution: A government body that bring a
criminal charge against a defendant who is accused
of breaking one of its laws.
– Precedent: Guideline for how all similar cases
should be decided in the future
Notes:
− The courtroom calendar is called a docket.
− only a handful of cases make it onto this
list.
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Notes: What Courts Do (cont.)
• Other Members of the Court
– Judge
– Jury
– Bailiff
– Stenographer
– Witness
Notes:State Courts and Federal Courts• Jurisdiction – the power to hear a case
– Original Jurisdiction
• The authority to hear a case first
– Appellate Jurisdiction
• Appellate court- The authority to hear an appeal
– Appeal
» Asking a higher court review the decision
and determine if justice was done.
• Federal Cases– Those involving federal laws & appeals from State cases.
Cases involving the Constitution
Violation of Federal Law
Controversies between States
Disputes between people from different States
Suits involving the Federal Government
Cases involving Foreign Governments & Treaties
Cases based on Maritime Laws
Cases involving US Diplomats
The first four are of particular importance.
(CRASH)
Notes:The District Courts
• The “workhorse” of the federal court
system
– 94 District Courts
– 300,000 cases per year (criminal and civil)
– 80 percent of federal cases
– Between 1 and 28 judges may serve a
district court
– The trials have witnesses and juries
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Notes:The Courts of Appeals
• Court of Appeals
– This court handles the appeals from the federal districts
– Often called Circuit Courts
– There are twelve regular Circuit Courts, with a thirteenth
one serving special federal courts and agencies of the
executive branch.
• Trials
– Three Judges who affirm or reverse the lower court’s
decision.
– No jury, no witnesses - a bench trial = 3+Judges
Notes:The Supreme Court
• Highest Court in the Federal system
– Purpose: to serve as the final court of appeals for
both the state and federal court systems.
• Other Special Federal Courts
– Court of Claims
– Court of Customs
– Court of Patent Appeals
– Tax Court
– (Crash)
Notes:Federal Court Judges
• Appointment
– Federal judges are appointed by the
President and approved by the Senate
– They serve life terms; can only be removed
by impeachment or resignation.
– Only nine judges are appointed to the
Supreme Court
Notes:
− There are 8 Associate Justices and 1 Chief Justice
Chief Justice John Roberts
(First Chief Justice was “The
Honorable John Jay”)
(Founding Father and Writer
of the Federalist Papers)
Notes:The Justices of the Supreme Court• Qualifications
– None listed in the Constitution
• IN THEORY – you don’t need a law degree
• IN REALITY-The President selects justices from the
most respected and qualified judges, lawyers, and
legal scholars in the country.
– There have been 112 Justices; All but 6 of them
have been white men.
– Exceptions: Thurgood Marshall, Clarence
Thomas, Sandra Day O’Connor, Ruth Bader
Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan
Clarence Thomas sits on
the court today.
Had previously won important SC
case – Brown v. Bd. Of Education
She retired in 2006
Sonya Sotomayor Elena Kagan
Current Women Supreme Court Justices
Ruth Bader Ginsberg
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Notes:The Work of the Supreme Court
• Selecting Cases
– More than 8,000 requests are made per year, but only
about 100 cases are heard
• Hearing Arguments
– Attorneys submit briefs, and make verbal arguments
before the court
• Making a Decision
– The Justices vote and usually submit an opinion or
written statement explaining the reasons for the
decision.
Notes:Decisions
• Majority opinion
– Written to explain how the court has decided
the case
• Concurring opinion
– Written if agree upon final decision, but for
different reasons
• Dissenting opinion
– Written to explain why they disagree with the
opinion
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Notes:Influences on Judicial Decision Making
• Considerations:
– Laws
– The Constitution
– Precedents
– Personal preference
• Duties
– Be fair and impartial
– Respect precedent
– Try to determine the intent of the Framers
Landmark Cases
Marbury v Madison
– Established the precedent that the Supreme Court
has Judicial Review
• The power to overturn any law that the Court decides is
in conflict with the Constitution.
Civics: Government and
Economics in Action
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The most important
case of all!!!!
What happened Students wrote an article the principal would not
allow to be published in the school newspaper
DECISION Schools can filter or limit information that is
placed into a school newspaper.
This case allows school officials to have full control of school sponsored activities
Activities can continue “so long as their actions are reasonably related to legitimate pedagogical concerns
1st Amendment (1988)
What happened
2 students caught smoking in bathroom, sent to VP, asked to open purses, VP found rolling paper used for marijuana, asked students to dump out purses, found money, marijuana, and list of people owing her money
DECISION
Schools are only required to have “reasonable suspicion” to search students
4th Amendment (1985)
What happened
Students wore black arm bands protesting Vietnam War, they were suspended
DECISION
A student does not shed his rights at the door. Black armbands to protest the Vietnam War can be worn since they are not disruptive.
1st Amendment (1969)
What happened
Sandford lived in MO (a slave state) took Dred Scott to IL (a free state) and Scott said he was now free
DECISION
States cannot deprive a person of his right to property
5th Amendment (1857)
What happened
Plessy (1/8 of African decent) sat in white only train car, would not move when asked
DECISION
Established the concept of “separate but equal” in public facilities
14th Amendment (1896)
What happened
Mr. Brown wanted his daughter to attend the neighborhood school (she was black and the school was for whites)
DECISION
Schools were desegregated. Separate is unequal.Separate but equal has no place
Integrated schools
Overturned Plessy v. Ferguson
14th Amendment (1954)
What happened Gideon charged with crime, at that time in FL lawyers
only given for death penalty and insanity cases, he had no money to pay a lawyer and was found guilty
DECISION All accused persons are entitled to a lawyer, even if they
cannot afford one.
Right to Counsel
Person must have counsel provided, regardless of the charges filed against them
Gideon Rule
6th Amendment (1963)
What happened
Miranda arrested but not told his right to not confess to the crime, he signed a confession and was convicted
DECISION
A person must be read his or her rights before being arrested.
When Ernesto Miranda was arrested and questioned and signed a confession that listed that he had “full knowledge of his legal rights”, he was not made aware of his rights to counsel and the confession was illegally gained.
5th Amendment (1966)
What happened Police searched Mapp’s house with a fake warrant
and found illegal material
DECISION Illegally obtained evidence cannot be used in court.
Illegal Evidence and Due Process Clause
No illegal search and seizures applied to all states Before this rule not every state incorporated excluding
evidence gained through an illegal search
Exclusionary Rule
4th and 14th Amendment (1962)
What happened
School board required students to say a prayer at beginning of each day
DECISION
A school cannot require students to pray. This court case upheld separation of church and state.
Establishment Clause
Eliminated prayers in school
Students cannot be forced to recite a prayer because it violates their 1st Amendment right to freedom of religion
1st Amendment (1962)
What happened
Texas had a law against desecrating the Flag, Mr. Johnson burned a Flag in protest
DECISION
The Government cannot limit a citizen’s right to burn the US Flag
This case protected the rights of individuals to freedom of expression, even if in this case that expression is the burning of the American flag
1st Amendment (1989)
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Notes:A Changing Court
• Judicial Activism
– An effort by judges to take an active role in
policymaking by overturning laws relatively often.
• Judicial Restraint
– An effort by judges to avoid overturning laws and
to leave policymaking up to the other two branches
of the government.