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Marbury v. Madison
John Adams was the president and in the last few days of his term, tried to appoint William Marbury as Chief Justice of Maryland. The person who was supposed to make it happen, James Madison, did not do so since Thomas Jefferson told him otherwise. Marbury sued Madison and lost the case. The court ruled that the Judiciary Act was unconstitutional and removed it. This case basically showed that the court could deem things unconstitutional and remove them. -
McCulloch v. Maryland
The state of Maryland began to tax the banks within the state. McCulloch was a banker who refused to pay the tax. The state proceeded to sue McCulloch. The state lost the case since they did not have the power to tax a federal bank. This case affected the world because it basically shined some light on what kind of power the states do not have against the government. -
Dred Scott v. Sandford
In this case, Dred Scott was a recent slave who claimed that he was supposed to be free since his master died while they were both in a free state. Sandford tried to say no and so he sued them; demanding his freedom. The case ended with Dred Scott losing the case. The judge said that African-Americans are not people but property and therefore have no rights. This case showed how bad racism was during those times. -
Plessy v. Ferguson
Homer Plessy, a white man who was 1/8th black, went onto the "White Only" section of a train and was arrested for doing so because authorities claimed him as black. At his first trial John Howard Ferguson said that Plessy was guilty and that the train companies could rule as they pleased. Plessy had lost his case. The significance of this case was that it began to break the color barrier in society. -
Korematsu v. U.S.
Fred Korematsu was a Japanese American who happened to be living in America during the Pearl Harbor Bombing. The U.S. decided that Japanese Americans had to be sent to what were basically Japanese Concentration Camps, without the death. Korematsu refused to leave his home. He was arrested and after going through his first trial, appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. He had lost his case and was put away. This case was important because it showed how the U.S. treated immigrants. -
Brown v. Board of Education
The Brown case was a case that basically started the desegregation of schools. Multiple African-American people sought to have their children in public schools with the white children. After many cases of people arguing, the courts decided that it was time to rule in favor of Brown and desegregate schools. This case was a huge step forward in the country since it began the desegregation of many more than just schools. -
Mapp v. Ohio
Dollree Mapp was a woman who was suspected to have been hiding a criminal in her house. Some police went to investigate but had no warrant. She refused them entrance; demanding a warrant. Shortly after, they came back saying they had a warrant but did not. They went in and found obscene material that was illegal. They arrested her. The case ended up finding Mapp not guilty since the evidence was not to be used. This case showed what the police could and could not do. -
Gideon v. Wainwright
Earl Gideon was a man who was supsected of theft from a bar. He had no money to pay for a lawyer so he represented himself in court. Eventually, he got to the Supreme Court and was given a lawyer who helped him tremendously. Gideon was found not guilty and was free to go. This case changed how court is today. Now, you have a right to an attorney, whether or not one can afford one. If they cannot, then one is provided by the state. -
Miranda v. Arizona
Ernesto Miranda was arrested and put to questioning. When being questioned, the police did not inform him of this 5th amendment rights and he basically confessed. While in court, Miranda argued that the police should have informed him, thus making the confession unusable by the police. The Supreme Court agreed with Miranda, thus setting him free. This case gave birth to the Miranda Rights which police officers must inform one of if they are arrested. -
Tinker v. Des Moines
Mary Beth Tinker and John Tinker went to school wearing black armbands to symbolize that they were against the Vietnam War. The school then made a rule which outlawed armbands but not other political symbols. The father took action and sued the school. The district court was on the school's side. Eventually, it got to the Supreme Court where they said the Tinker's rights were violated by the school. The Tinkers won their case. This case gave students the rights of citizens while in school. -
Roe v. Wade
A Texas woman argued that in the early stages of pregnancy, a woman should be allowed to get an abortion if she so chooses. Some people thought it was killing a child while others argued that it is not yet a child therefore it is not killing another human being. The early courts were in favor of Roe using the 9th amendment. The Supreme Court was also in favor of Roe, but this time using the 14th amendment. This case helped women progress with their rights. -
New Jersey v. T.L.O
Two girls, TLO and her friend were thought to be smoking in the school bathroom. The friend admitted to smoking while TLO denied ever smoking at all. They demanded to see the contents of her purse and found things that said otherwise. TLO argued that her 4th amendment rights were violated, implying that the same rights apply in school. The Supreme Court said the same thing, but that under 'probable cause' the right may be basically violated. This case showed more about student rights. -
Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier
Some students tried to publish an article in the school newspaper. The school said that, under certain censoring, that the article could be published. The students thought that the censorship violated their first amendment rights to freedom of the press and took it to the court. The Supreme Court ruled that the rights were not violated; therefore ruling in favor of the school. This case further expanded on student rights. It showed that some things could be controlled by the schools. -
Texas v. Johnson
The Texas v. Johnson case was mainly about free speech. Greg Johnson burned an American flag during a protest. No one was hurt but some complained that it was offensive. In the court, Johnson argued that his burning of the flag is free speech. The others said that the American Flag is a symbol and should be respected as such. This would be okay if it did not basically say that our flag was better than any other flag. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Johnson.This case showed free speech.
