Introducing 

Prezi AI.

Your new presentation assistant.

Refine, enhance, and tailor your content, source relevant images, and edit visuals quicker than ever before.

Loading…
Transcript

AP Government Landmark Supreme Court Cases

1800s Cases

Background-During the end of John Adams presidency, he tried to fill many government positions before he left office. He appointed 58 new people and he ordered his Secretary of State to deliver the paper work to these people but he was in a rush and gave the papers to the new Secretary of State, James Madison to deliver. However, the new president Thomas Jefferson ordered James Madison not to deliver some of the papers to the people Adams appointed. One of those people was William Marbury. He sued James Madison and tried to get the SCOTUS to issue a writ of mandamus, arguing for passage of law by congress (Judiciary Act of 1789).

Constitutional Question(s): Did Marbury have the right to commission? Does the Supreme Court have the authority to strike down and declare laws unconstitutional?

Court Decision: The court unanimously voted against the act, showing that section 13 of the Judiciary Act of 1789 was unconstitutional.

Impact of Case: With the Supreme Court's first ruling of an act of Congress unconstitutional, it established the doctrine of Judicial Review. This gives the SCOTUS authority to review the constitutional validity of a legislative act.

Marbury v. Madison

(1803)

McCulloch v. Maryland

(1819)

Background-Shortly after the founding of the U.S., discussion arose on how the government should address the debt the country had been accumulating. Secretary Alexander Hamilton offered the idea to create the Bank of the United States. However, not everyone agreed that the national government should have the power to create a bank. Thomas Jefferson argued that it was not within the federal governments explicit powers to create a national bank. Despite opposition to the bank, congress established the first Bank of the United States in 1791. In 1811, when it came time to renew the banks charter, the renewal was strike down. Five years later though, the bank would be reestablished, causing more outrage. Maryland's government did not want a national bank nor a branch in Maryland. When the branch opened in Baltimore in 1817 anyway, Maryland's government taxed it trying to run the bank out of business. James McColluch, the bank's cashier, refused to pay the tax and the Maryland government sued him in return. With both Maryland state courts agreeing that McColluch needs to pay the tax, McColluch took the case to the SCOTUS in 1819.

Constitutional Question: Did Congress have the authority to establish a national bank under the constitution? Did Maryland law unconstitutionally interfere with Congressional rule?

Court Decision: The court unanimously voted that congresshad the power to establish the bank through the "Necessary and Proper" clause found in Article 1 Section 8; Maryland did not have the power to tax government instruments.

Impact of Case: This formed the system of federalism where federal law has supremacy over state law. It emphasized that congress has "Implied Powers".

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka

(1954)

Background-The 1896 Supreme court decision of Plessy v. Ferguson had declared segregation "seperate but equal" legal. This ruling asserts that as long as black facuilties and accomidations were "equal" to whites, they could be seperated. Although claiming to be equal, many black schools lacked the basic neccesities to function properly. Linda Brown was a third grader who had to take a dangerously far route to attend her all black school while there was a white school much closer. Her father, Thurgood Marshall, filed a suit on the Topeka school district in 1951 with NAACP lawyers. Brown's case would eventually make it to the US Supreme court in 1954.

Constitutional Question(s): Is racial segregration of children in Schools constitutinal? Are "seperate but equal" accomadations really equal?

Court Decision: The Supreme Court overruled Plessey v. Ferguson and outlawed segregation. The Court agreed that the segregation of schools violated the 14th amendment which provides equal protection of law.

Case Impact: Brown v Board overturned the "seperate but equal" doctrine that lasted for nearly 60 years and it integrated schools for the first time.

Background-Charles Baker was an urban resident of Tennessee. In 1959, he filed suit suit against Joe Carr, the Secretary of State of Tennessee at the time, seeking for the reapportion of the legislative districts which had not changed in over 60 years; even though reapportionment was to be carried out every ten years. Baker argued based on the 14th Amendment equal protection clause, his vote as an urban resident had less value than a voter in a rural area. He claimed this was a "debasement of his votes".

Constitutional Question: Did the Supreme Court have Jurisdiction to intervene with legislative apportionment?

Court Decision: The Supreme Court held that all votes shall carry equal weight regardless of voter's residence location. This is based upon the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment.

Impact of Case: This case allowed for the judicial review of congressional districts and the redrawing of those districts.

Baker v. Carr

(1961)

Background- In 1961, Clarence Earl Gideon was charged with the felony of breaking and entering in the state of Florida. When he was appointed in court and didn't have a lawyer, he requested for one. He was not given one though because Florida state law says that "an attorney may only be appointed to an indignant defendant in capital cases. Due to no lawyer to represent him in trial, Gideon was found guilty and sentenced to five years in prison. Gideon would file a habeous corpus, arguing that the state law violated his constitutional right to have an attorney. The Florida Supreme court would deny his proposal. The case would later go to the SCOTUS in 1963.

Constitutional Question: Does the sixth amendment right to an attorney in criminal cases stretch to defendants in state courts?

Court Decision: The Court unanimously ruled in favor of Gideon, emphasizing the right to counsel in for defendants in criminal cases guaranteed by the sixth amendment.

Impact of Case: Due to this case, all state courts had to follow the same "right to counsel" as federal courts do.

Gideon v. Wainwright

(1963)

Tinker v. Des moines

(1969)

Background- In 1965, a group of students in Des Moines, IA planned to publicly show their support for a truce in the Vietnam War. They decided to wear black armbands throughout the school year. School officials would later learn of the plan and create a policy banning the wearing of the armbands and any non-cooperation would result in suspension. Nonetheless, Mary & John Tinker wore their armbands to school were removed subsequently. The students would sue the school district, claiming they violated they're right of expression. The district court would dismiss the case, claiming their actions were reasonable.

Constitutional Question: Was the schools prohibition of the students wearing of black armbands, as a form of symbolic protest, a violation of the students right to freedom of speech guaranteed by the first amendment?

Court Decision: The Court agreed that the student's protest was a form of symbolic speech, agreeing that students did not lose their first amendment rights when stepping onto school grounds. For school officials to justify the suppression of speech, they must prove that the act would "materially and substantially interfere".

Impact of case: The case found that freedom of speech must be protected in public schools and that the showing of expression is not disruptive.

Roe v. Wade

(1973)

Background- In 1970, "Jane Roe" was a pregnant, unmarried Texas resident. She sought an abortion but Texas state law made it a felony to abort a fetus with an exception to save the women's life. Roe would file a suit against Henry Wade, the district attorney. She claimed the Texas law violated her guarantee of personal liberty and right to privacy, protected by the 1st, 4th, 5th, 9th and 14th amendments.

Constitutional Question: Does the Texas law of prohibition of abortion invade the right of personal liberty and to privacy?

Court Decision: The Court ruled that the Constitution protects a women who's pregnant the right to an abortion without interference of government restriction. The Due process clause of the fourteenth amendment provides a "right to privacy", protecting a pregnant women's choice.

Impact of Case: Roe v Wade rendered state laws that prohibited abortions unconstitutional and made abortion services safer and more easily accessible.

U.S. v Lopez

(1979)

Background- Alfonzo Lopez, a high school student, had carried a gun into his school in San Antonio. He was charged under Texas with possession of a firearm on school grounds. He was later dismissed of the charges and was charged with the federal statute; The Gun-Free School Zone Act. This Act made it a federal offense “for any individual knowingly to possess a firearm in a school zone.” Lopez was indicted by a grand jury and later found guilty. He was sentenced to six months in prison followed by two years probation.

Constitutional Question:

Citations

https://www.landmarkcases.org/marbury-v-madison/marbury-v-madison-background-summary--questions-1

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ap-us-government-and-politics/foundations-of-american-democracy/constitutional-interpretations-of-federalism/a/mcculloch-v-maryland-1819

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/us-history/postwarera/civil-rights-movement/a/brown-v-board-of-education

https://roseinstitute.org/redistricting/baker/

https://www.oyez.org/cases/1971/70-18

https://www.plannedparenthood.org/uploads/filer_public/c6/59/c65961ce-447c-48e1-b315-79bfac151e42/abortion_roe_history.pdf

Learn more about creating dynamic, engaging presentations with Prezi