Study Guide Chapter 6
Bill of Rights- a
list of citizens’ rights
Amendment process
– the way in which changes are added to the Constitution
Convention –
assembly
Separation of church and
state - the situation in which the
government may not favor any religion or establish an official religion
Eminent domain –
the power to take private property for public use
Due process of law
– a process by which the government must treat accused persons fairly according
to rules established by law
Double jeopardy –
being place on trial twice for the same crime
Freedom of the press
– the right to publish newspapers, magazines, and other materials without
government restriction
Freedom of speech
– the right express one’s opinions publicly
Case studies – descriptions
of situations or conflicts, the issues involved, and the decisions made
Tinker v. Des Moines – Supreme Court case involving the right
of students to wear armbands as a form of symbolic speech to protest the Viet
Nam War. The court ruled that armbands were a form of “speech” because they
were symbols representing ideas.
Skokie v. Illinois
– a Supreme Court case involving members of an American Nazi group and the town
of Skokie, Illinois. The town of Skokie refused to allow the American Nazi
group march in a local park. The Supreme Court ruled that the Nazi’s had the
right to march and distribute material expressing hatred because the First Amendment
protects the expression of all ideas
Texas v. Johnson – Gregory Lee Johnson burned an American flag
outside of the convention center where the 1984 Republican National Convention
was being held in Dallas, Texas. Johnson burned the flag to protest the
policies of President Ronald Reagan. He was arrest and charged with violating a
Texas law that prevented the desecration of a venerated object, including the
American flag. The Court ruled that flag burning is symbolic speech that is
protected by the First Amendment.
Marketplace of
ideas – a society where all ideas can be expressed
First Amendment –
Guarantees freedom of religion, of speech, and of the press; the right to assemble
peacefully; and the right to petition the government
Second Amendment –
Protects the right to possess firearms
Third Amendment –
Declares that the government may not require people to house soldiers during
peacetime.
Fourth Amendment –
Protects people from unreasonable search and seizures
Fifth Amendment –
Guarantees that no one maybe deprived of life, liberty, or property without due
process of law
Sixth Amendment –
Guarantees the right to a trial by jury
Seventh Amendment
– Guarantees the right to a trial by jury in most civil cases
Eighth Amendment –
Prohibits excessive bail, fines, and punishments
Ninth Amendment –
Declares that rights not mentioned in the Constitution belong to the people
Tenth Amendment –
Declares that powers not given to the national government belong to the states
or the people.