S. Schane, LIGN 105, Law & Language 9b
I. of III. California v. Robinson
Read the case, California v Robinson, the write your answers to the following questions and be prepared
to discuss them in class.
1. Section 11721 of the California Health and Safety Code had expressly provided that "no person shall
[a] use, or [b] be under the influence of, or [c] be addicted to the use of narcotics.."
For which of these offenses had Robinson been tried in the Los Angeles municipal court?
2. The original trial took place in the municipal court. Of which piece of Section 11721 (a, b, or c) did the
jurors find Robinson guilty?
3. The case was appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. What is/are the Constitutional issue(s) before the
Court?
4. What was the majority decision of the Supreme Court as written by Justice Stewart?
5. What was the principal objection to the majority view as expressed in the dissenting opinion by Justice
Clark?
II: Powell v. Texas
The following questions pertain to the case Powell v. Texas. Write your answers and be prepared
to discuss this case in class.
1. What is the expert witness's definition of "chronic alcoholism"?
2. Why is it important to the state that the appellant knew the difference between "right" and
"wrong"?
3. The Court is unwilling to accept a "disease theory" of alcoholism. Why?
4. The Court cites an authority who said that "a disease is what the medical profession
recognizes as such. What does such a statement mean to you?
5. The Court contrasts "penal incarceration" with "therapeutic civil commitment". Why might
the former be preferable from the perspective of the person to be committed?
6. What does it mean to say that mens rea must accompany a prosecutable act?
7. How does the conclusion that the Court reaches in this case differ from that of Robinson?
IIi. Status vs. State
For the following sentences indicate whether the underlined attributes depict statuses or states of
their subjects. A noun (e.g. teacher) or a noun phrase (e.g. an intelligent student) typically
denotes a status, whereas an adjective (e.g. sad), a past participle (e.g. broken), or an adjective
phrase (e.g. in high spirits), depending on context, could be either a status or a state.
NOTE: For those of you who know Spanish, sentences with statuses would require the verb ser;
those with states the verb estar.
STATUS
STATE
1. ___
___
Obama is the president of the United States.
2. ___
___
Herman seems to be in a bad mood.
3. ___
___
Helen is getting married today.
4. ___
___
I think Helen is pregnant.
5. ___
___
Helen seems sad.
6. ___
___
Professor Zachary is boring.
7. ___
___
My sister is young.
8. ___
___
George is a chronic alcoholic.
9. ___
___
I'm embarrassed over what happened.
10. ___ ___
Peter is a married man.
11. ___ ___
Helen looks beautiful in that exquisite wedding gown.
12. ___ ___
George has been drunk for an entire week.
13. ___ ___
Professor Zachary's students are bored.
14. ___ ___
The U.S. marines pride themselves in being brave.
15. ___ ___
I'm not lazy! I just don't like working on weekends.
16. ___ ___
That guy thinks he's macho.
17. ___ ___
I feel lazy this morning. I think I'll stay in bed.
18. ___ ___
You shouldn't wear black. It makes you look old.
19. ___ ___
For being President of the United States, Obama is not old.
20. ___ ___
I'm a shortie, but my older brother is tall.
21. ___ ___
The Eiffel Tower is tall.
22. ___ ___
This lemonade is too sweet.
23. ___ ___
Sugar is sweet.
24. ___ ___
My little sister is sweet.
25. ___ ___
My little sister is a sweetheart.