OBJECTIVES:
 COMPARE and CONTRAST federal
and state court systems
 LIST and EXPLAIN the differences
between criminal and civil cases
 DESCRIBE the basic structure of the
Supreme Court
 SUMMARIZE Supreme Court
decisions
 WRITE a legal brief from a Supreme
Court case
April 20
Vocab. Quiz
Article
Criminal Rights Amendments
Notes over Civil Liberties/group
discussion
Student wears a baseball hat to
school and refuses to take it off
when asked by an administrator.
The student is sent to ISR for rule
violation and insubordination.
Where does the school get the
authority to discipline the student?
 Another student starts a fire in a
trashcan and destroys part of the 300s
bathroom. The student is suspended
AND arrested.
 From where does the authority come to
arrest her?
 What if the student wanted to
“challenge” or “fight” the decision
made by the school or local
police…where would he/she go?
US GOVERNMENT
The Judicial Branch Notes
The Unalienable Rights
When the United States was
formed the framers wanted to
ensure individual rights against
those of the government.
However, these rights can be
restricted when they come into
conflict with the rights of others.
Each person’s rights are relative to
the rights of every other person.
Example: Every person has the
right of free speech, but no one
enjoys absolute freedom of speech.
A person can be punished for using
obscene language.
Apollo Media Corporation v.
United States 1999, upheld a
federal law that makes it illegal for
anyone to send obscene and
intentionally annoying e-mail via
the internet.
The Constitution
Includes a general listing of the
rights of the people, Bill of Rights
The 13th and 14th Amendments
added guarantees of personal
freedoms.
Guarantees both rights and liberties
to the American people.
Civil liberties are protections
against government.
– They are guarantees of the safety of
persons, opinions, and property from
arbitrary acts of government.
– Examples: Freedom of Religion,
speech, and press, and the guarantee
of a fair trial.
Civil rights are reserved for those
positive acts of government that
seek to make constitutional
guarantees a reality for all people.
– Examples: Prohibiting
discrimination on the basis of race,
sex, religious beliefs, or national
origin, set out in the Civil Rights Act
of 1964.
When Rights Conflict
Example: Freedom of the press
versus the right to a fair trial.
Sheppard v. Maxwell, 1966--- (p.
534)
– What was the issue and what was the
court’s decision?
– Do you agree with the court’s
decision?
To Whom Are Rights
Guaranteed?
Is it right to restrict the travel of
aliens within the United States?
Was the US justified in the forced
evacuation of people of Japanese
descent on the Pacific Coast?
14th Amendment
The Bill of Rights apply against
the National government, not the
states.
State constitutions contain a bill of
rights.
States also cannot deny basic rights
because of the 14th Amendment’s
Due Process Clause.
Due Process Clause– means that
NO State can deny to any person
any right that is basic to the order
of liberty.
– Process of Incorporation– The Court
has merged most of the guarantees in
the Bill of Rights into the 14th
Amendment’s Due Process Clause.
9th Amendment
Declares that there are rights
beyond those set out in the
Constitution.
– Examples: The right of an accused
person to not be tried on evidence
that is unlawfully gained.
– The right of a woman to have an
abortion without undue interference
by government.