Landmark Supreme Court Cases

Marbury v. Madison

1803DECISION

Established the concept of Judicial Review: the Supreme court has the final authority to find acts of government unconstitutional

Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier

What happened Students wrote an article the principal would not

allow to be published in the school newspaper

DECISION Schools can filter or limit information that is

placed into a school newspaper. This case allows school officials to have full control of

school sponsored activities Activities can continue “so long as their actions are

reasonably related to legitimate pedagogical concerns

1st Amendment (1988)

New Jersey v. T.L.O.

What happened 2 students caught smoking in bathroom, sent to

VP, asked to open purses, VP found rolling paper used for marijuana, asked students to dump out purses, found money, marijuana, and list of people owing her money

DECISION Schools are only required to have “reasonable

suspicion” to search students

4th Amendment (1985)

Bethel School District v. Fraser

What happened Obscene Speech at assembly

DECISION Schools may limit the profane, obscene lewd

speech of a student

1st Amendment (1983)

Tinker v. Des Moines

What happened Students wore black arm bands protesting

Vietnam War, they were suspended

DECISION A student does not shed his rights at the door.

Black armbands to protest the Vietnam War can be worn since they are not disruptive.

1st Amendment (1969)

In re Gault

What happened Sent to juvenile detention for an alleged obscene

phone call, no lawyer, no witnesses

DECISION Juveniles are provide due process as well as

adults Prior to this ruling juvenile crimes were handled in family

law not criminal law

14th Amendment – Due Process (1966)

McCulloch v. Maryland

What happened Maryland tried to put a tax on a branch of the

Bank of the US

DECISION A state cannot tax a federal institution

Supremacy Clause (1819)

Gibbons v. Ogden

What happened Ogden had NY state license to ferry people from

NYC to NJ, Gibbons also ferried people but had no state license but did have a federal coasting license

DECISION The Federal government has the power over the

state to regulate interstate commerce. Federal ferry license prevails over a State Ferry License (no NY monopoly)

Supremacy Clause (1824)

Dred Scott v. Sandford

What happened Sandford lived in MO (a slave state) took Dred

Scott to IL (a free state) and Scott said he was now free

DECISION States cannot deprive a person of his right to

property

5th Amendment (1857)

Plessy v. Ferguson

What happened Plessy (1/8 of African decent) sat in white only

train car, would not move when asked

DECISION Established the concept of “separate but equal”

in public facilities

14th Amendment (1896)

Brown v. Board of Education

What happened Mr. Brown wanted his daughter to attend the

neighborhood school (she was black and the school was for whites)

DECISION Schools were desegregated. Separate is unequal.

Separate but equal has no place Integrated schools Overturned Plessy v. Ferguson

14th Amendment (1954)

Swann v. CMS Board of Education

What happened Mr. Swann said CMS was not integrated even

though Brown v. Board of Ed said that segregation is not okay

DECISION Court ordered busing to integrate schools This decision changed the landscape of CMS

schools by forcing the busing of students outside their neighborhood school

This lead to forced desegregation of schools

14th Amendment (1971)

Korematsu v. United States

What happened Mr. Korematsu said it is not Constitutional for

people of Japanese decent to be forced to move to internment camps

DECISION Justices ruled for US government saying that times

of national hardship and extreme times can allow some individual rights to be taken away

Court upheld the military order presented by the circumstances of WW II – “Pressing public necessity may sometimes justify the existence of restrictions which curtail the civil rights of a single racial group”

5th Amendment – Due Process (1944)

Furman v. Georgia

What happened Georgia death penalty law vague and so most

death row inmates were Black men

DECISION Capital Punishment and the enforcement of the

death penalty cannot be racially biased

8th and 14th Amendment (1971)

Gregg v. Georgia

What happened Sentenced to death for 2 counts murder

DECISION Upheld sentences of death – death penalty itself

does not violate the Constitution

8th and 14th Amendments (1976)

Gideon v. Wainwright

What happened Gideon charged with crime, at that time in FL

lawyers only given for death penalty and insanity cases, he had no money to pay a lawyer and was found guilty

DECISION All accused persons are entitled to a lawyer, even if

they cannot afford one. Right to Counsel Person must have counsel provided, regardless of the

charges filed against them Gideon Rule

6th Amendment (1963)

Miranda v. Arizona

What happened Miranda arrested but not told his right to not

confess to the crime, he signed a confession and was convicted

DECISION A person must be read his or her rights before

being arrested. When Ernesto Miranda was arrested and

questioned and signed a confession that listed that he had “full knowledge of his legal rights”, he was not made aware of his rights to counsel and the confession was illegally gained.

5th Amendment (1966)

Mapp v. Ohio

What happened Police searched Mapp’s house with a fake

warrant and found illegal material

DECISION Illegally obtained evidence cannot be used in

court. Illegal Evidence and Due Process Clause No illegal search and seizures applied to all states

Before this rule not every state incorporated excluding evidence gained through an illegal search

Exclusionary Rule

4th and 14th Amendment (1962)

Olmstead v. US

What happened/Decision “Reasonable expectation of privacy” did not

include wiretapping. 4th amendment does not protect individuals form wiretapping. And this evidence may be used in court.

4th Amendment (1928)

Engel v. Vitale

What happened School board required students to say a prayer at

beginning of each day

DECISION A school cannot require students to pray. This

court case upheld separation of church and state. Establishment Clause Eliminated prayers in school Students cannot be forced to recite a prayer because

it violates their 1st Amendment right to freedom of religion

1st Amendment (1962)

Texas v. Johnson

What happened Texas had a law against desecrating the Flag, Mr.

Johnson burned a Flag in protest

DECISION The Government cannot limit a citizen’s right to

burn the US Flag This case protected the rights of individuals to

freedom of expression, even if in this case that expression is the burning of the American flag

1st Amendment (1989)

Roe v. Wade

What happened/Decision A state cannot take away a woman’s right to an

abortion

4th Amendment (1973)

Schenck v. US

What happened Anti-Vietnam leader who urged men to resist the

draft

DECISION Free speech is limited during times of war and 1st

Amendment rights are not absolute

1st Amendment (1919)

Regents of the University of California

What happened A white student was not accepted in to the school

and several minority students with lower scores were

DECISION Schools cant use admissions quotas and admit

students solely based on race

14th Amendment (1978)

Heart of Atlanta Motel v. US

What happened/Decision Congress could outlaw racial segregation of private

facilities that are engaged in interstate commerce

Supremacy Clause (1964)

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