Landmark
Supreme Court
Cases
“EQUAL JUSTICE
UNDER LAW”
Abington School District v. Schempp
 Also known as School District of Abington
Township, Pennsylvania v. Schempp, 1963
 Do opening exercises including scripture reading
and recitation of the Lord’s prayer violate the
Establishment and Free Exercise clauses? (1st
amendment)
 Yes, such exercises are a violation of the
establishment clause (8-1)
 “if the purpose and effect of a law is the
advancement or inhibition of religion, it exceeds the
scope of legislative power.”
2
Baker v. Carr (1962)
 Do imbalances among congressional districts deny
residents equal protection of the laws? (14th
amendment)
 Do federal courts have jurisdiction over cases
involving malapportionment?
 The court ruled yes on both questions (6-2)
 This case helps lead to the Wesberry case that
established the “one person, one vote” principle in
redistricting cases
 One of 3 key redistricting cases. Can you name the
other two?
3
Bethel School District #403 v. Fraser
(1986)
 Do schools have the right to restrict students’
speech content?
 Is sexually suggestive speech protected by the 1st
amendment?
 Yes to the first issue, no to the second (7-2)
 Students can be punished for speech in school that
would be protected in other settings.
 the Court has upheld “time, place and manner”
restrictions in other cases as long as they are
“content neutral”
4
Brown v. Board of Ed. of Topeka,
Kansas (1954)
 Overturned the Plessy decision
 What does this case say about stare decisis?
 Is this case an example of judicial activism?
 “separate but equal is inherently unequal”
because the very fact that separate schools
exist marks one race as inferior
 The court’s opinion was unanimous (9-0)
5
Buckley v. Valeo (1976)
 Are campaign contributions and expenditures
protected by the 1st amendment as political
speech?
 Is the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1974
constitutional?
 The Court ruled that it is not a violation of free
speech rights to limit the amount individuals
or groups may contribute to campaigns, but
that it is a violation to limit the amount of
money candidates or groups may spend. (no
majority vote)
6
Bush v. Gore (2000)
 Does the manual recount of votes cast in
Florida violate the equal protection clause?
 Yes, because the standards for judging a
voter’s intent in the recount weren’t uniform
 Historical implication of this case: 1st time the
Court intervened in a presidential election;
critics claim this interference ensured Bush’s
election
 (7-2 vote on the equal protection question, 54 on stopping the recounts)
7
Clinton v. City of New York (1998)
 Is the Line Item Veto Act of 1997
constitutional?
 Do you remember what a line item veto is?
 Why would Congress want to give the
executive this power?
 No, the Act is not constitutional because it
violates the doctrine of separation of powers.
 (6-3)
8
Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857)
 Are slaves citizens?
 Is the Missouri Compromise constitutional?
 The Court answered no to both questions,
which contributed to the political tensions
leading up to the Civil War. (7-2)
 What amendment would later be passed that
would ensure the citizenship of former slaves
and free people of color?
 Is this case an example of judicial activism or
judicial restraint?
9
Cruzan v. Director, Missouri Dept. of
Health (1990)
 Does someone have a constitutionally protected right
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to die under the 9th amendment?
This is the original “right to die” case.
The court ruled in a 5-4 decision to reject Nancy
Cruzan’s parents’ request that they be allowed to
take their daughter off life support (a feeding tube)
due to a lack of “clear and convincing evidence” that
Nancy’s parents would be honoring their daughter’s
wishes.
This case drew attention to the need for living wills,
especially for terminally ill patients.
How does this case compare with the Terri Schiavo
case from 2005?
10
Edwards v. Aguillard ( 1987)
 Are state laws requiring the teaching of “creation
science” a violation of the First Amendment’s
Establishment clause?
 Yes, because such laws violate the Lemon test



is there a clearly secular purpose?
Does the statute neither advance nor inhibit
religion?
Do such laws create excessive entanglement of
government with religion? (7-2)
 What recent cases have come before the court on
this issue?
11
Engel v. Vitale (1962)
 Does the use of a nonsectarian
(nondenominational) prayer violate the
Establishment clause?
 Yes (6-1) because it creates “government
compelled” prayer, even if students choose not
to participate.
 “When the power, prestige, and financial support
of government is placed behind a particular
religious belief, the indirect coercive pressure
upon religious minorities to conform to the
prevailing, officially-approved religion is plain.”
12
Escobedo v. Illinois (1964)
 Escobedo was accused of murdering his brother-in-
law. During questioning, he was not allowed to
consult with his attorney, who was at the police
station at the time. Escobedo made some
incriminating statements during questioning, but
had not been notified of his right to remain silent.
 Were Escobedo’s 6th amendment rights to counsel
violated?
 Yes (5-4) (general questioning versus an
accusatory investigative process)
 Upholds the ruling in Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)
13
Furman v. Georgia (1972)
 Is the death penalty “cruel and unusual
punishment” and therefore a violation of the
8th amendment?
 Is the imposition of the death penalty by juries
done in a fair manner?
 Yes; No, which makes it a “cruel and unusual
punishment” because juries aren’t given
specific guidelines about imposing the death
penalty (5-4)
 This case was overturned by . . .
14
Gibbons v. Ogden (1824)
 What happens when state laws regarding
commerce conflict? Can a state grant an
exclusive right to navigate its waters?
 Who has the final authority to regulate
interstate commerce?
 Upheld the constitutionality of the Commerce
Clause in Article I section 8 (6-0) Why?
 Sometimes called the “steamboat case”
15
Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)
 Gideon had been convicted of a misdemeanor. He couldn’t
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afford a lawyer and Florida state law didn’t provide for counsel
for non-capital crimes.
Was Gideon’s 6th amendment right to counsel violated?
Under what circumstances must an accused person be
provided with legal counsel?
The due process clause of the 14th amendment makes it
necessary for the states to “recognize that in our adversary
system of criminal justice, any person hauled into court, who is
too poor to hire a lawyer, cannot be assured a fair trial unless
counsel is provided for him.” (9-0)
This case extends the right to counsel under the 6th amendment
16
to both capital and non-capital cases.
Gitlow v. New York (1925)
 Does the freedom of speech
1st
guaranteed in the
amendment
apply to the states? (Can states
make laws that violate it?) This
case marks the beginning of the
incorporation process of the 1st
amendment.
 Does the 1st amendment protect
speech that would encourage the
overthrow of the U.S. government?
Just how far does free speech
protection go?
 The Court ruled that the 1st
amendment protection does apply
to the states, but that in this case,
the state had a legitimate interest in
protecting public safety that
trumped an individual’s right to free
speech, so Gitlow’s conviction was
upheld. (7-2)
 Has the court ruled consistently on
this issue? Under what
circumstances is the Court less
tolerant of free speech?
 For a current example, consider:
Justice Talking
 http://www.justicetalking.org/viewpro
gram.asp?progID=141
17
Gregg v. Georgia (1976)
 This case was a test of the revised laws many
states had passed after the Furman decision in an
attempt to overcome the problems the Court had
raised with regard to the arbitrary application of
capital punishment.
 This case upheld that Georgia’s two phase trial
process (phase one determines guilt or acquittal,
second phase determines sentencing) overcame
the problems the Court had found in the Furman
decision.
 Overturned the Furman decision and found that the
death penalty was “not necessarily” cruel and
unusual (7-2)
18
Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)
 Is it legal for states to pass laws that would punish
“any person who uses any drug, medical article or
instrument for the purpose of preventing conception?”
The law also allowed for punishment of anyone who
assisted another in committing an offense of this law,
such as a doctor who wrote a prescription for
contraceptives.
 This case established that certain decisions (such as
family planning) exist within a “zone of privacy”
protected by provisions of the 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 9th, and
14th amendments. (7-2)
Griswold is considered the cornerstone of the later Roe
v. Wade case.
19
Hazelwood School District v.
Kuhlmeier (1988)
 To what extent are school newspapers forums for public
expression?
 Are student publications free from censorship by school
authorities?
 “The public schools do not possess all of the attributes of
streets, parks, and other traditional public forums” meaning
that “school officials retain ultimate control. . .over a schoolsponsored newspaper.” (5-3)
 Can you explain the differences in the Court’s rulings in this
case versus its rulings in the Tinker and Bethel cases?
20
Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United
States (1964)
 Do federal civil rights laws violate a private property
owner’s rights to due process under the 14th
amendment?
 Does Congress have the power to enact civil rights
legislation under the Commerce Clause?
 No and Yes. ((9-0)
 “The action of the Congress in the adoption of the act
[Title II of the Civil Rights Act of 1964] as applied here
to a motel which concededly serves interstate
travelers is within the power granted it by the
Commerce Clause of the Constitution as interpreted
by this court for 140 years.”
21
INS (Immigration and Naturalization
Service) v. Chadha (1983)
 Is a one-house congressional veto constitutional?
 Does Chadha get to stay in the country?
 No and Yes
 In this case, the Court declared the legislative veto
unconstitutional because Article I requires that
“every order, resolution, or vote to which the
concurrence of the Senate and House of
Representatives may be necessary. . . shall be
presented to the President of the United States.”
 Do you remember what a legislative veto is? See
p. 394-395 in Wilson.
22
Korematsu v. United States (1944)
 Following the invasion of Pearl Harbor, President Truman
issued an executive order to clear all persons of Japanese
descent from California and relocate them to internment camps.
(Executive Order 34)
 Was this executive order a proper exercise of the war power
even though it uses racial classifications, which are subject to
the highest judicial scrutiny?
 In a 6-3 vote, the Court said yes. Although this case raises all
sorts of civil rights issues, the court only agreed to take up the
question of the President’s use of war powers rather than
imposing martial law.
 Under President Regan, Congress passed legislation to provide
financial compensation to the living survivors of the exclusion
and relocation orders.
23
Lemon v. Kurtzman (1971)
 Established the 3-part “Lemon”
 In this case, the states of
test used to determine if a statute,
Pennsylvania and Rhode
law or action violates the
Island were giving state money
st
Establishment clause of the 1
to parochial schools to use to
amendment.
pay for books, teacher
salaries, etc. for academic
 The three parts are:
subjects only. The Court found
 is there a clearly secular
that while these actions did
purpose for the government
have purely secular functions
action?
(using taxpayer money to help
 Does the statute neither
educate the state’s children), it
advance nor inhibit religion?
created excessive
 Do such laws create
entanglements between
excessive entanglement of
religion and government.
government with religion?
 For example, would the
 If the answer to any of the
science teachers be forced to
above is “yes”, then the
teach evolution if it violated the
Establishment clause has
schools’ doctrinal positions?
been violated.
 (7-1 vote)
24
Marbury v. Madison (1803)
 Is the Judiciary Act of 1789 authorizing the Supreme Court to
issue writs of mandamus constitutional? Does Marbury get his
job?
 Why is this arguably the most important Supreme Court case
ever?
 What’s the historical significance of the Court’s decision in this
case? The answer to this has two parts. . . (5-0)
 Consider Justice Marshall’s words: “It is emphatically the
province and duty of the judicial department to say what the law
is…” and “Why does a judge swear to discharge his duties
agreeably to the constitution , if that constitution forms no rule
for his government? If it is closed upon him, and cannot be
inspected by him?”
25
McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)
 Does Congress have the power to create a
bank?
 Can the state of Maryland tax such a bank?
 Yes to the first, no to the second.
 This case upholds the idea that Congress has
“implied powers” based on the “necessary
and proper” clause found in Article I section 8
26
Miranda v. Arizona (1966)
 Are confessions obtained
during a suspect’s
interrogation as part of an
investigation admissible as
evidence if the suspect has
not been notified of his/her
right to remain silent (5th
amendment) or right to have
counsel present (6th
amendment)?
 One of the Warren court’s
most controversial decisions.
Why would this case be
considered judicial activism?
 In a 5-4 decision, the court
ruled to overturn Miranda’s
conviction. “the prosecution
may not use statements,
whether exculpatory or
inclupatory, stemming from
custodial interrogation of the
defendant unless it
demonstrates the use of
procedural safeguards
effective to secure the
privilege against selfincrimination. By custodial
interrogation, we mean
questioning initiated by law
enforcement officers after a
person has been taken into
custody or otherwise
deprived of his freedom of
action in any significant way.”27
Near v. Minnesota (1931)
 A newspaper called The Saturday Press published by Mr.
Near and others published a series of articles that accused
public officials with “gross neglect of duty or misconduct in
office”. The newspaper was shut down under a state statute
aimed at “malicious, scandalous and defamatory
periodicals” which found the paper to be a “public nuisance”
 Is this an infringement of the liberty of the press under the
14th amendment?
 The court ruled yes in a 5-4 vote. This case upheld the idea
that prior restraint amounts to censorship of the very kind
the Framers intended the 1st amendment to prevent. So,
even though some newspapers might exploit a scandal,
28
state laws can’t be used to prevent publication.
New Jersey v. T.L.O. (1985)
 Should school officials have to meet the same
standards of reasonableness for conducting searches
as law enforcement officials do when dealing with the
public?
 The issue here is the conflict between the school’s
need to provide safety and order and a student’s
reasonable expectation of privacy under the 14th
amendment
 The Court ruled 5-3 that schools have to meet a
lesser standard that searches be “reasonable” rather
than the “probable cause” standard.
29
New York Times Co. v. Sullivan (1964)
 This is a famous libel case originating in Montgomery,

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Alabama
To what extent does the 1st amendment protect people who
criticize public officials?
Several minor details in the ad which ran in the Times were
incorrect—did this constitute libel? Can public officials sue
for libel if people criticize their actions as public officials?
In a unanimous vote, the court ruled that “erroneous
statement is inevitable in free debate” and that the Alabama
law that allowed the law suit would create condition in which
“critics of official conduct may be deterred from voicing their
criticisms, even though it is believed to be true and even
though it is in fact true, because of doubt whether it can be
proved in court or fear of the expense of having to do so.”
Remember the Alien and Sedition Acts? The Court did in
30
writing the opinion in this case!
Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)
 Did the Louisiana law allowing for “separate but
equal” rail cars for whites and blacks violate the
13th and 14th amendments?
 The court ruled no to both questions in a 7-1
vote. Justice Harlan dissented, writing that “our
Constitution is color-blind, and neither knows nor
tolerates classes among citizens.”
 This case upheld the “separate but equal”
standard that proliferated in the South and other
places across the country under “Jim Crow” laws
after the Civil War.
 Which case overturned this decision?
31
Powell v. Alabama (1932)
 One of the famous “Scottsboro boys” cases.
 Were the defendants denied the right to counsel
and then tried in a hostile environment too
quickly to develop an adequate defense?
 This case is one in a series through which the
court slowly developed the “fundamentals of
fairness” to which an accused person (especially
the poor and minorities) is entitled under the
Constitution. (7-2)
 What other cases help develop this doctrine?
32
Regents of the University of California
v. Bakke (1978)
 Are quota systems in college admissions unlawful?
 Is it acceptable to consider race as a factor in admissions

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criteria?
This case was the first major legal challenge to affirmative
action policies.
The Court ruled (5-4) that the UC-Davis policy amounted
to a quota and was a violation of the 14th amendment’s
equal protection clause, but upheld that race may be
considered as part of admissions criteria.
This was an extremely controversial ruling and produced 7
separate opinions.
Review affirmative action in Glencoe p. 412-413 & Wilson
p. 544-549
Do you think this case would be decided the same way
today?
33
Reynolds v. Sims (1964)
 Another redistricting case originating in
Birmingham, Alabama when residents of
Jefferson County challenged the
apportionment of the Alabama state
legislature.
 Was the equal protection clause of the 14th
amendment violated?
 The Court ruled (8-1) that apportionment
must be based primarily on population.
34
Roe v. Wade (1973)
 This case is NOT just about abortion: Does the 14th
amendment use of the word “person” include the unborn?
Does the right of privacy found in the Constitution include a
woman’s right to an abortion?
 In a 7-2 decision, the court found that the term “person”
applies only after birth: “We need not decide the difficult
question of when life begins. When those trained in the
respective disciplines of medicine, philosophy, and theology
are unable to arrive at any consensus, the judiciary, at this
point in the development of man’s knowledge, is not in a
position to speculate as to the answer.”
 This case is often cited as the exemplar of judicial activism
35
and is considered a “litmus test” for judicial nominees.
Santa Fe School District v. Doe (2002)
 Do student-led, student-initiated, invocations
broadcast at public school football games violate
the establishment clause of the 1st amendment as
applied to the states by the 14th amendment?
 In a 6-3 decision, the court ruled that they are a
violation of the establishment clause.
 You be the judge: Does the school’s policy hold
up under the Lemon test?
 The court held that the policy subjected those
who attended the games to what some may find
a “personally offensive religious ritual”
36
Schenck v. United States (1919)
 What does this case say about civil rights and
liberties during times of war?
 In a unanimous decision, the Court ruled that
Schenck’s actions, by encouraging men to evade
the draft constituted a “clear and present danger”
to national security. Established the “clear and
present danger” test.
 How does this case compare to other cases
when safety, national security, the public good,
etc. have been pitted against the rights of the
individual?
37
Texas v. Johnson (1989)
 Was Johnson’s action of burning the flag during
a protest at the 1984 Republican National
Convention a form of constitutionally protected
freedom of speech/expression?
 What is symbolic speech? What kinds of
speech or actions did the Framers intend to
protect when they wrote the 1st amendment?
 Was Johnson prosecuted not for his point of
view, but “because of the method he chose to
express his dissatisfaction”? (Justice Stevens’s
dissent)
38
Tinker v. Des Moines School District
(1969)
 Does the 1st amendment protect the rights of
public school students to wear black armbands to
school in protest of the Vietnam War?
 In a 7-2 vote, the court held that the students’
action was protected because the school board
didn’t demonstrate that the action was disruptive
 “It can hardly be argued that either students or
teachers shed their constitutional rights to
freedom of speech or expression at the
schoolhouse gate.” (Justice Fortas, writing for
the majority)
 Has the Court been consistent in its rulings on
these types of cases?
39
United States v. Nixon (1974)
 Can a federal court force a president to turn over
materials (papers, tapes, etc) that a president
has claimed are covered by executive privilege?
 In an 8-0 decision, the court ruled that “to read
the Article II powers of the president as providing
an absolute privilege. . .would upset the
constitutional balance of a ‘workable government’
and gravely impair the role of the courts under
Article III.
 What were the historical implications of this
ruling?
40
Wesberry v. Sanders (1964)
 Another redistricting case; upholds the “one
person, one vote” principle
 “While it may not be possible to draw
congressional districts with mathematical
precision, that is no excuse for ignoring our
Constitution’s plain objective of making equal
representation for equal numbers of people with
the fundamental goal of the House of
Representatives. That is the high standard of
justice and common sense which the founders
set for us.”
41
Wallace v. Jaffree (1985)
 Another case that originated out of Alabama—a Mobile
man sued on behalf of his children, making the case that
a state statute that permitted one minute of “silence or
voluntary prayer” amounted to regular religious services.
 The court ruled 6-3 that in this case “we are faced with a
state measure which forces an individual, as part of his
daily life. . .to be an instrument for fostering public
adherence to an ideological point of view he finds
unacceptable.” The 1st amendment protects “the right to
select any religious faith or none at all.” (Justice
Stevens)
 Would the moment of silence pass the Lemon test if the
42
wording was changed?
Webster v. Reproductive Health
Services (1989)
 The first major challenge to Roe, this case upheld that
state legislatures can place some limits on abortions.
 Specifically,




can states refuse to spend taxpayers’ money on abortions?
(yes)
Can states decide when life begins (language in the
Missouri law said life began at conception)? (yes)
Can states recognize the rights of the unborn? (yes)
How are these limitations not inconsistent with the Roe
decision?
43
West Virginia State Board of Ed. v.
Barnette (1943)
 Can states require students to recite the
Pledge of Allegiance or salute the flag? What
if students’ religious beliefs consider this to be
worshipping a graven image?
 Do such laws pass the Lemon test?
 Do such laws prohibit the students’ free
exercise of religion?
 The West Virginia state statute was found
unconstitutional in a 6-3 vote
44
Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972)
 This case involves Amish families who wished to end
their children’s schooling at the eighth grade. Although
they felt further education teaches values they viewed as
at odds with the traditional Amish lifestyle, the parents
recognized the need for elementary education as
necessary “in order to read the Bible, to be good farmers
and citizens and to be able to deal with non-Amish
people when necessary in the course of daily affairs.”
 Do compulsory education laws infringe on the free
exercise clause?
 In a 6-1 decision, the court found that such laws do
violate the free exercise clause.
 Some critics of this ruling contend that by exempting the
Amish, the state is actually violating the establishment 45
clause. (there’s always more than one viewpoint!)
Works Cited
Hall, Kermit L. , ed. The Oxford Guided to United States
Supreme Court Decisions. Oxford, UK: Oxford
University Press, 1999.
Menez, Joseph F and John R. Vile. Summaries of
Lading Cases on the Constitution. 50th anniversary
ed. New York: Rowman & Littlefield, 2004.
Remy, Richard C. United States Government:
Democracy in Action. Glencoe, 2006.
McClenaghan, William A. Magruder’s American
Government. Prentice Hall, 2000.
Wilson, James Q. and John J. DiIlulio, Jr. American
Government. 9th ed. Houghton Mifflin, 2004.
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