Baker v. Carr

(1962)

This Supreme Court Case: established that federal courts an hear suits seeking to force a state to redraw electoral districts.

- In this case the plaintiffs wanted the population of each district to be roughly equal to the population in all other districts. They claimed that where district populations differ, such an imbalace denied them equal protection of the laws. 

- Before this case, it was thought that federal courts had no authority under the Consitutution to decide issues of malapportionment.

Barron v. Baltimore

(1833)

This Supreme Court Case: held that the 5th Amendments provision that the government must pay if it takes private property did not apply to state governments. At the time, the decision supported the view that the Bill of Rights applied only to the federal government.

The Supreme Court Ruled: established that mostof the rights contained in the Bill of Rights apply to all levels of government-states, counties, cities, towns, and agencies such as local school boards.

*This case has been effectively overruled by cases which apply 14th Amendment protections to the Bill of Rights.

Brown v. Board of Education

(1954)

This Supreme Court Case: overruled Plessy v. Ferguson!!! and abandoned the separate-but-equal doctrine in the context of public schools.

The Court Ruled: held that racial segregation in publicschools violates the equal protection clause because it is inherently unequal.

- The court's holding in this case has been extended beyond public education to virtually all public accommodations and activities.

Auto Workers v. Johnson Controls

(1990)

Johnson tried to prevent his female employees from working in jobs that caused exposure to lead.

The Court decided: This proposal was ruled discriminatory against women.

Youngstown Steel v. Sawyer

(1952)

This Supreme Court Case: arose when a nationwide strike of steel workers threatened to shut down industry in Korean War.

The Supreme Court Ruled: that the President's authority as commander in chief did not justify his action. Only Congress could "nationalize" an industry.

Wisconsin v. Yoder

(1972)

The Supreme Court Ruled: that Wisconsin's compulsory education laws must yield to the concerns of Omish parents.

Charles River Bridge v. Warren Bridge

(1836)

The MA legislature incorporated the Charles River Bridge Co. to build a bridge and collect tolls. Later, it allowed another bridge, the Warren Bridge, to be built and collect tolls. The Charles River Bridge claimed that it was losing money and traffic and that the town defaulted on their original argeement.

The Court ruled: that the contract didn't say that another bridge couldn't be built, therefore the legislature ahdn't broken the contract.

Wesberry v. Sanders

(1964)

This Supreme Court Case: established the one-person, one-vote doctrin in elections for the United States House of Representatives. 

Regents of the University of California v. Bakke

(1978)

This Supreme Court Case: was the first Supreme Court decision to suggest that an affirmative action program could be justified on the basis of diversity.

Issue:  A high school student was in a bathroom in the school and an assistant principal saw smoke coming from the bathroom leading him to conclude the girl had been smoking.  He searched her purse and found items commonly used for using drugs.  Was his search of the girl within his rights as a school administrator?

The Court Ruled:  That only "reasonable suspicion", a lesser standard than "probable cause was needed".  School administrators have broad powers in conducting searches because of this case.

Tinker v. Des Moines School District

(1969)

This Supreme Court Case: extended Frist Amendment protection to public school students. The Supreme Court held that a public school could not suspend students who wore black armbands to school to symbolize their opposition to the Vietnam War.

Issue:  The state of Connecticut had passed a law banning the use of birth control pills.  A doctor violated the law by prescribing birth control.  Can the state pass such an invasive law?

The Court Ruled:  That the 3rd, 4th, and 9th amendments implied a right to privacy and states could not pass such legislation.

Dred Scott v. Sandford

(1857)

Dred Scott was a slave in Missouri, moved to Illinois as a free person, and moved back to Missouri and filed for his rights.

The Court ruled: that a slave was property, not a citizen, and had no Constitutional rights.

Schenk v. United States

(1919)

This Supreme Court Case: upheld convictions under the Federal Espionage Act. Allowed the government to limit freedom of Speech in a time of war.

*Defendents were charged with distributing leaflets aimed at inciting draft resistance during World War 1

Established that all people must be informed of their constitutional rights to remain silent and to an attorney upon their arrest.

Engel v. Vitale

(1961)

A NY school board provided for a nondenominational, optional prayer at the beginning of each school day.

The Court ruled: that it violated the establishment clause and was unconstitutional.

Schecter Poultry Corp v. United States

(1935)

This Supreme Court Case: overturned the conviction of the employers, who were charged with violating wage and hour limitations of a law adopted under the authority of the National Industrial Recovery Act.

*Since defendents did not sell poultry through interstate commerce they were not subject to federal regulation on wages and hours.

Determined that states could not ban abortion because of the implied right to privacy in the U.S. Constitution

Escobedo v. Illinois

(1963)

Escobedo was arrested and denied contact with his lawyer. He confessed to murder.

The Court ruled: that Escobedo was inadequately informed of his right to remain silent and not incriminate himself.

Mapp v. Ohio

(1961)

This Supreme Court Case: extended the exclusionary rule to state and local law-enforcement officers. After this case evidence seized in violation of 4th Amendment could not be used by the prosecution as evidence of a defendant's guilt in any court, state, federal, or local.

Ex parte Milligan

Milligan was sentenced to death for disloyalty by a military commission in Indiana during the Civil War.

The Court ruled: trials of civilians by presidentially created military commissions are unconstitutional.

McCullock v. Maryland

(1819)

This Supreme Court Case: held that the establishment clause was violated by a publich school district's practice of allowing privately paid teachers to hold weekly religion classes in public schools.

Fletcher v. Peck

(1810)

Enacted legislation in GA deprived a purchaser of land of the property he had purcheased.

The Court ruled: that the legislative action violated the impairment of contract clause.

Korematsu v. United States

(1944)

This Supreme Court Case: upheld the federal government's authority to exclude Japanese Americans, many whom were citizens from designated military areas that included almost the entire West Coast.

Garcia v. San Antonio

(1983)

The San Antonio Metropolitan Transit Authority claimed it was exempt from federally mandated minimum wage and overtime requirements.

The Court ruled: that SAMTA was subject to these requirements through the Commerce Clause.

Swan v. Mecklenburg

(1970)

This Supreme Court Case: was an important United States Supreme Court case dealing with the busing of students to promote integration in public schools.

The Court held that busing was an appropriate remedy for the problem of racial imbalance in schools and it upheld that all students received equal education. 

Gibbons v. Ogden

(1824)

The Court ruled: that only Congress, not the states, can regulate commercial activity that contains interstate and intrastate activity. (commerce within states and commerce between states)

was a United States Supreme Court decision that determined that the question of whether the Senate had properly tried an impeachment was a political question, and could not be resolved in the Courts.

The majority opinion (the court's decision was unanimous, although four separate opinions were published) held that the courts may not review the impeachment and trial of a federal officer because the Constitution reserves that function to a coordinate political branch. Article I. Sec. 3 of the Constitution gave the Senate the "sole power to try all impeachments". Because of the word "sole" it is clear that the judicial branch was not to be included.

Shaw v. Reno

(1993)

This Supreme Court Case: was significant in the area of redistricting and racial gerrymandering. 

The court ruled that redistricting based on race must be held to a standard of strict scrutiny under the equal protection clause.

Gitlow v. New York

(1922)

Gitlow, a socialist, was arrested for distributing copies of a "left-wing manifesto" that called for the establishment of socialism through strikes and class action of any form.

The Court ruled: that the states can rule that frredom of speech doesn't apply.

United States vs. Lopez

(1995)