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Marbury v. Madison
Marbury petitioned the Supreme Court to force Secretary of State James Madison to deliver the documents, but the court denied Marbury's petition, holding that the part of the statute upon which he based his claim, the Judiciary Act of 1789, was unconstitutional. all votes for Madison, none against him. -
Pervear v. Massachusetts
A Massachusetts business owner was convicted and sentenced to the payment of a large fine and to three months of hard labor for failing to have a state license for his liquor store.He tried to invoke the "cruel and unusual punishment" clause of the Eighth Amendment. The Supreme Court ruled that the Constitution did not apply to state cases but only to federal issues. Pervear did not take the case further. -
Plessy v. Ferguson
rail companies carrying passengers in Louisiana must provide separate but equal accommodations for white and non-white passengers. The penalty for sitting in the wrong compartment was a fine of $25 or 20 days in jail. Plessy purchased a first class ticket and sat in the white railroad car. Plessy was arrested for violating the Separate Car Act & argued in court that the Act violated the 13th & 14th Amendments to the Constitution. Court rejected Plessy's arguments. -
Whitney v. California
Charlotte Anita Whitney, a member of the Communist Labor Party of California, was prosecuted under that state's Criminal Syndicalism Act. The Act prohibited advocating, teaching, or aiding the commission of a crime, including "terrorism as a means of accomplishing a change in industrial ownership or effecting any political change." -
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka
Black children were denied admission to white public schools under laws requiring or permitting segregation. The white and black schools approached equality in terms of buildings, teacher salaries, and etc. Courts declared separate educational facilities are inherently unequal. As a result, racial segregation was ruled a violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution. -
Miranda v. Arizona
Ernesto A. Miranda was arrested based on evidence linking him to the kidnapping & rape of an 18yr old woman 10 days earlier. At no time was Miranda told of his rights. he was convicted, but An appeal was filed to the Arizona Supreme Court claiming that Miranda's confession was not fully voluntary and should not have been in the court proceedings. Miranda's conviction was overturned. -
Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District
This case involves Freedom of Speech where students, John F. Tinker, Christopher Eckhardt, and Mary Beth Tinker were expelled after they wore black armbands to school in symbolic protest of the Vietnam War, the Supreme Court held that students "do not shed their constitutional rights at the schoolhouse gate" and that the 1st Amendment protects public school students' rights to express political and social views. The courts upheld that the 1st amendment protected students rights to wear them. -
New York Times Co. v. United States
This case involves Freedom of Press, where The Pentagon Papers were illegally copied and then leaked to the press. The NY Times and the Wash. Post had obtained the documents. Acting at the Government's request, the US district court in NY issued a temporary injunction that directed the NY Times not to publish the documents. The Government claimed that the publication of the papers would endanger the security of the US. the court ruled in favor of the NY Times. -
Roe v. Wade
Norma L. McCorvey discovered she was pregnant, & friends advised her to assert falsely that she had been raped, as she could then obtain a legal abortion. She was referred to attorneys Linda Coffee and Sarah Weddington after failed attempt of illegal abortion. a suit was filed on her behalf under alias Jane Roe. Courts sided with Roe. The Roe Court deemed abortion a fundamental right under the United States Constitution. -
New Jersey v. T.L.O.
A New Jersey high school student was accused of violating school rules by smoking in the bathroom, leading an assistant principal to search her purse for cigarettes, marijuana was dicovered. The search did not violate the Constitution and established more lenient standards for reasonableness in school searches. -
Texas v. Johnson
Johnson participated in a demonstration, another member handed Johnson an American flag stolen from a flagpole outside one of the buildings. When they reached Dallas City Hall, Johnson poured kerosene on the flag and set it on fire. Johnson was charged with violating the Texas law that prohibits vandalizing respected objects & sentenced 1yr in prison. the burning was protected expression under the First Amendment. -
Counts v. Cedarville School District
The school board of the Cedarville, Arkansas school district voted to restrict students' access to the Harry Potter because the books promoted disobediance and disrespect for authority and dealt with witchcraft. The district overturned the Board's decision and ordered the books returned to unrestricted circulation, on the grounds that the restrictions violated students' First Amendment right to read and receive information. -
Kennedy v. Louisiana
Patrick O. Kennedy was sentenced to death after being convicted of raping his 8 yr. old stepdaughter. Kennedy maintained that the assault was committed by 2 neighborhood boys, and didn't plead guilty when a deal was offered to spare him from a death sentence. He was convicted and sentenced under a 1995 Louisiana law that allows the death penalty for the rape of a child under the age of 12. Eighth Amendment bars states f -
Arizona v. Gant
Rodney J. Gant was arrested by police and charged with driving on a suspended driver’s license. Gant and all other suspects on the scene were then secured in police patrol cars. The officers then searched Gant's vehicle. After finding a weapon and a bag of cocaine, they also charged him with possession of a narcotic for sale and possession of drug paraphernalia. Search valid if arrestee accesses vehicle at time of search or vehicle has evidence of offense of arrest. -
Dean v. United Stated
In 2004, Christopher M. Dean tried to rob a bank. Dean and an accomplice were later caught and charged with conspiracy to commit robbery. Dean admitted and was convicted. In a 7 to 2 decision delivered by Justice Roberts, the Supreme Court held that Section 924(c)(1)(A)(iii) required no separate proof of intent. Justice Stevens and Justice Breyer filed dissenting opinions.
