CHAPTER 4CIVIL LIBERTIES AND PUBLIC POLICY

Coach Hamilton

AP Government

•We will be discussing topics that are open for debate/dispute and discussion

• To better understand concepts be sure to ask questions

•Not everything will be black & white. There will be gray area

BILL OF RIGHTS

•Civil Liberties – The legal constitutional protections against the government.

•The Bill of Rights – The first 10 amendments, which protect basic liberties such as religion and speech.

CIVIL LIBERTIES EXAMPLES

• Freedom of speech• The right to privacy• The right to be free from unreasonable searches of your home• The right to a fair court trial• The right to marry• The right to vote

•Who protects your civil rights and liberties?

•Who controls the Government?

•Who protects your civil rights and liberties?

BILL OF RIGHTS

FREEDOM OF RELIGION

• The Establishment Clause•No laws shall be made respecting the establishment of religion.

• Lemon v. Kurtzman (1971) – Aid to church related schools must (1) have a secular legislative purpose, (2) neither advance nor inhibit religion, and (3) not foster an excessive government entanglement with religion.

THE LEMON TEST

1)The purpose of the aid must be nonreligious.

2)The aid can neither advance nor inhibit religion.

3)Aid must not excessively entangle the government with religion

FREEDOM OF RELIGION

• The Establishment Clause (cont.)• Engel v. Vitale (1962)

ruled that prayer in public schools violates the Establishment Clause.

FREEDOM OF RELIGION

• The Free Exercise Clause• Prohibits government from interfering with the practice

of religion.• Some religious practices may conflict with other rights,

and then be denied or punished.• Employment Division v. Smith (1988) upheld

prosecution of persons using the drug peyote as part of their religious rituals.

FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION

•Prior Restraint•Prior restraint – A government preventing material from being published.•Near v. Minnesota (1931) ruling that the 1st Amendment protects newspapers from prior restraint.•May be permissible during wartime.•One may be punished after something is published.

FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION

•Obscenity• “I’ll know it when I see it”•Roth v. United States (1957) ruling that “obscenity is not constitutionally protected”•Miller v. California (1973) – That community standards be used to determine obscenity in terms of appealing to a “prurient interest” and being “patently offensive” and lacking in value.

FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION

• Libel and Slander• Libel (printed) and slander (spoken) are false statements that damage one’s reputation.•New York Times v. Sullivan (1964) ruled that statements about public figures are libelous only if made with reckless disregard for truth.

FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION•Symbolic Speech•Nonverbal communication, such as burning a flag or wearing an armband.• Texas v. Johnson (1989) ruled that the burning of the American flag was symbolic speech protected by the First Amendment.

FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION

•Commercial Speech• Communication in the form of advertising.

• The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) decides what kinds of goods may be advertised on radio and television and regulates the content of such advertising.

FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY

•Right to Assemble•Within reasonable limits, called time, place, and manner restrictions, freedom of assembly includes the rights to parade, picket, and protest.•Usually, a group must apply to the local city government for a permit and post a bond of a few hundred dollars.

FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY•Right to Associate• Freedom to join groups or associations without government interference.•NAACP v. Alabama (1958) ruled that the NAACP did not have to reveal its membership list and thus subject its members to harassment.

THE RIGHT TO BEAR ARMS

• Protected by the Second Amendment of the Constitution• District of Columbia v. Heller (2008)• Right to possess a firearm for self-

defense within the home.• Requiring firearm in a home to be

disassembled or bound by trigger lock is unconstitutional.

• McDonald v. Chicago (2010)• Extended 2nd Amendment’s limits

on restricting right to bear arms to state and local laws.

DEFENDANTS’ RIGHTS

• Interpreting Defendants’ Rights• Criminal Justice personnel are

limited by the Bill of Rights and failure to follow constitutional protections may invalidate a conviction.

• Courts continually rule on what is constitutional and what is not.

DEFENDANTS’ RIGHTS

•Searches and Seizures•Probable Cause – When the police have reason to believe that a person should be arrested.•Unreasonable searches and seizures – Evidence is obtained in a haphazard or random manner, prohibited by 4th Amendment.• Exclusionary rule – Evidence obtained unconstitutionally can not be introduced into a trial.

DEFENDANTS’ RIGHTS•Searches and Seizures (cont.)• Mapp v. Ohio (1961) – Protection

of 4th Amendment against unreasonable searches and seizures extended to the states.• The War on Terrorism – Patriot

Act (2001) allows wiretapping, surveillance, and investigation and the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (2008) allows warrants to eavesdrop on groups.

DEFENDANTS’ RIGHTS

•Self-Incrimination•When an individual accused of a crime is compelled to be a witness against himself or herself in court. What Amendment is this associated with?•Miranda v. Arizona (1966) ruled that set guidelines for police questioning of accused persons must be used to protect them against self-incrimination and to protect their right to counsel.

DEFENDANTS’ RIGHTS• The Right to Counsel• Sixth Amendment – The right

to counsel, the right to confront witnesses, and the right to a speedy and public trial.• Gideon v. Wainwright (1963) – Anyone accused of a felony where imprisonment may be imposed, however poor he or she might be, has a right to a lawyer.

DEFENDANTS’ RIGHTS• Trials•Plea bargaining – A bargain between the prosecution and defense for a defendant to plead guilty to a lesser crime; 90 percent of cases end here and do not go to trial• Juries generally consist of 12 people, but unanimity is not always needed to convict.

DEFENDANTS’ RIGHTS• Cruel and Unusual Punishment• The Eighth Amendment forbids cruel and unusual

punishment.• Gregg v. Georgia (1976) - The death penalty is not

cruel and unusual, but it is “an extreme sanction suitable to the most extreme crimes.”• The death penalty’s use and application varies by state.

THE RIGHT TO PRIVACY

• Is There a Right to Privacy?• The right to a private personal life free from the intrusion of government.

•Controversy over Abortion•Roe v. Wade (1973) – Ruling that a state ban on all abortions was unconstitutional.•Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992) – Ruling that permits considerably more regulation on abortions.

UNDERSTANDING CIVIL LIBERTIES

•Civil Liberties and Democracy•Rights ensured in the Bill of Rights are essential to democracy.•Courts typically protect civil liberties from excesses of majority rule.

UNDERSTANDING CIVIL LIBERTIES

•Civil Liberties and the Scope of Government• In deciding between freedom and order, the United States generally chooses liberty.

•Civil liberties limit the scope of government, even though government efforts are needed to protect rights.