Supreme Court Cases
Munn V. Illinois, 1876 Established that states can regulate privately owned business in
the public’s interest
Schenck v US, 1919 “Clear and present danger” principle can be used to limit speech.
Mapp v Ohio, 1961 Defined “unreasonable search and seizure,” regulated use of
warrants to obtain evidence.
Baker v. Carr, 1962 Decided that redistricting issued present justiciable questions, thus
enabling federal courts to intervene and hear redistricting cases.
Engle v. Vitale, 1962 No school-led prayer in public school.
Gideon v. Wainright, 1963 States must provide defendants with attorneys.
Miranda v. Arizona, 1966 Police must explain rights of the accused at the time of arrest
Terry v. Ohio, 1968 Police can search and seize with probable cause.
N.Y. Times v. US Limited prior restraint of the press
Roe v. Wade, 1973
circumstances
Established a woman’s righto an abortion under specific
US v. Nixon, 1974 Executive privilege does not extend to criminal cases.
Gregg v. Georgia, 1976 Death penalty cases do not violate the Constitution
Buckley v. Valeo, 1976 Political candidates can donate unlimited amounts of money to
their own campaign.
Regents v. Bakke, 1978 No racial quotas allowed in admissions quotas, but race can be
considered.
Hazlewood v Kuhlmeier, 1988 School newspapers can be censored by teachers and
administrators.
Texas v. Johnson, 1989 Flag burning is a form of political speech
Planned Parenthood v Casey, 1992 States can put restrictions on Roe rights
Gratz v Bollinger, 2003 Affirmative action in admissions process okay but limited
Supreme Court Group Assignment
Tasks:
1) You will write a 1.5-2 page summary of the case your group chooses.
2) As a group you will present the facts, decision and outcomes of the case to the
class.
Your paper must include the following.
Facts: Summarize the facts of the case. (What happened before the trial)
Procedure: Most of the cases are appellate cases, what happened in the lower
courts.
Legal Question(s): What is the legal question(s) facing the court.
Decision: How did the court answer the legal question?
Legal Reasoning: Describe the rational behind the Courts decision
Optional: What did the dissenting opinion(s) state
Impact: What was the impact of this case
This is a summary of the case, not an argumentative paper so you do not need to
include a thesis. However, it should be written in a professional manner.
Presentation
Your presentation must include all of the required aspects of the paper. How you
wish to present the case is up to you. Below are a few options. You are not limited to
these options but you need to check with me if you wish to do something different.
Reenactment of the original trial or appeal
PowerPoint presentation
Create a movie reenacting the facts of the case (or the trial)
Talk Show: Interview people (Actors playing a role) who were involved in the case