Brown v. Board of Education
1954 case that overturned Separate but Equal standard of
discrimination in education.
Gideon v. Wainwright
1963 ruling that a defendant in a felony trial must be provided a
lawyer free of charge if the defendant cannot afford one.
Griswold v. Connecticut
1965 decision that the Constitution implicitily guarantees
citizens' right to privacy.
Marbury v. Madison
1803 established the principle of judicial review
Miranda v. Arizona
1966 ruling that upon arrest, a suspect has the right to remain
silent and the right to consult with a lawyer.
Plessy v. Ferguson
1896 ruling that separate but equal facilities for different races
were not unconstitutional.
Schenck v. United States
1919--Case involving limits on free speech. Established the "clear
and present danger" principle.
Roe v. Wade
1973 ruling that decriminalized abortion.
Carig v. Boren
1976 ruling that classification of individuals based on gender
must be related to an important government objective; replaced
minimum rationality standard.
Miler v. California
1973 ruling that determined the obscenity clause to related to
works that lack literary, artisitic, political or scientific value.
(LAPS test)
Lemon v. Kurtzman
1971 defining government actionsin dealing with religion--must
not inhibit or advance religion and does not entangle the
goverment with religion.
Fletcher v. Peck
The decision stems from the Yazoo land cases, 1803, and upholds
the sanctity of contracts.
McCulloch v. Maryland
1819--The Court ruled that states cannot tax the federal
government, i.e. the Bank of the United States; the phrase "the
power to tax is the power to destroy"; confirmed the
constitutionality of the Bank of the United States.
Dartmouth College v. Woodward
1819--New Hampshire had attempted to take over Dartmouth
College by revising its colonial charter. The Court ruled that the
charter was protected under the contract clause of the U. S.
Constitution; upholds the sanctity of contracts.
Gibbons v. Ogden
1824--Clarified the commerce clause and affirmed Congressional
power over interstate commerce.
Korematsu v. U. S.
T1941--he court upheld the constitutionality of detention camps
for Japanese-Americans during World War 2.
Escobedo v. Illinois
1964--Ruled that a defendant must be allowed access to a lawyer
before questioning by police.
U. S. v. Richard Nixon
1974--The court rejected Richard Nixon's claim to an absolutely
unqualified privilege against any judicial process.
Bakke v. Regents of the University of California
1978--Ambiguous ruling by a badly divided court that dealt with
affirmative action programs that used race as a basis of selecting
participants. The court general upheld affirmative action, but
with a 4/4/1 split, it was a very weak decision.
Brandenburg v. Ohio
1969--Determined that a law that proscribes advocacy of violence
for political reform is constitutional if applied to speech that is
not directed toward producing imminent lawlessness and is not
likely to produce such action is not constitutional.
Duncan v. Louisiana
1968 guarantees the right to a trial by jury where a sentence of at
least two years is involved.
Gitlow v. New York (1925)
Anarchist calling for overthrow of the government. Established
precedent of federalizing Bill of Rights (applying them to States);
States cannot deny freedom of speech - protected through due
process clause of Amendment 14
Palko v. Connecticut (1937)
Provided test for determining which parts of Bill of Rights should
be federalized - those which are implicitly or explicitly necessary
for liberty to exist.
Mapp v. Ohio (1961)
Established exclusionary rule; illegally obtained evidence cannot
be used in court; Warren Court's judicial activism.
Engel v. Vitale (1962)
Prohibited state-sponsored recitation of prayer in public schools
by virtue of 1st Amendment's establishment clause and the 14th
Amendment's due process clause; Warren Court's judicial
activism.
Baker v. Carr (1962)
"One man, one vote." Ordered state legislative districts to be as
near equal as possible in population; Warren Court's judicial
activism.
Abbington v. Schempp (1963)
Prohibited devotional Bible reading in public schools by virtue of
establishment clause and due process clause. Warren Court's
judicial activism
Wesberry v. Sanders (1963)
Ordered House districts to be as near equal in population as
possible (extension of Baker v. Carr to Congressional districts).
Epperson v. Arkansas (1968)
Prohibited states from banning the teaching of evolution.
Tinker v. Des Moines (1969)
Guaranteed a student's right to protest (wearing armbands).
Furman v. Georgia (1972)
State death penalties (as then applied) are arbitrary and violate
equal protection of 14th Amendment.
Gregg v. Georgia (1976)
Upheld new Georgia death penalty laws requiring dual-phase
trial and special circumstances; capital punishment does not
constitute cruel & unusual punishment of 8th Amendment.
Buckley v. Valeo (1976)
1st Amendment protects campaign spending; legislatures can
limit contributions, but not how much one spends of his own
money on campaigns.
Webster v. Reproductive Health Services (1987)
More leeway for states in regulation abortion, though no
overturning of Roe v. Wade. Upholds MO law prohibiting
abortion in public hospitals; shift in composition of court. (Later
cases allow 24-hour waiting periods, parental consent for
minors, etc.)
Texas v. Johnson (1989)
Flag-burning is symbolic speech with a political purpose and is
protected by 1st Amendment.
Shaw v. Reno (1993)
NO racial gerrymandering; race cannot be the sole or
predominant factor in redrawing legislative boundaries;
majority-minority districts.
U.S. v. Lopez (1995)
Gun Free School Zones Act exceeded Congress' authority to
regulate interstate commerce.
Bush v. Gore (2000)
Use of 14th Amendment's equal protection clause to stop the
Florida recount in the election of 2000.
Parker v. Gladden
Right to an impartial jury
Barron v Baltimore (1833)
The guarantee in the 5th Amendment that private property shall
not be taken "for public use, without just compensation" is not
applicable to state governments as well as the federal
government.
Boy Scouts of America v. Dale
The boy scouts were allowed to dismiss a leader after learning
that he was gay, holding that freedom of association outweighed
the New Jersey anti-discrimination statute.
Near v Minnesota (1925)
Case centered on censorship - government cannot censor
something (newspapers) because that restricts freedom of the
press. Main issue was government officials were being criticized
and wanted to censor the criticism.
Everson v Board of Education (1942)
A New Jersey law allowing reimbursements of money to parents
who sent their children to school (public and private) on buses
operated by the public transportation system did not violate the
establishment clause or the 1st and 14th Amendments.
Palko v Connecticut (1937
Ruled a harsher sentence as a result of a new trial won on appeal
does not violate double jeopardy.