Pols 111 Chapter 4 – Flashcards
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In Buckley v. Valeo (1976), the Supreme Court justices articulated the principle that
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libel is protected by the First Amendment, as long as the person libeled is a public figure.
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Why did the Supreme Court justices rule the Communications Decency Act unconstitutional?
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The Act attempted to protect children by suppressing speech that adults have a constitutional right to receive.
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What were the Alien and Sedition Acts?
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laws passed in the 1790s that made it a crime to say or publish anything that would defame the government of the United States
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The Religious Freedom Restoration Act, passed by Congress in 1993, was an attempt to
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give more protection to religious freedoms than the Supreme Court allowed.
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Due process of law" in the United States is generally defined by the ________ amendments.
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Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth
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A recent controversy that has tested the constitutional definition of "search and seizure" has been
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mandatory drug testing.
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________ prevents people from being tried twice for the same crime.
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Double jeopardy
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What is the standard for determining guilt in criminal cases?
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Guilt must be proven "beyond a reasonable doubt."
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Why was New York Times v. Sullivan (1964) significant?
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The justices ruled that a newspaper had to print false and malicious material deliberately in order to be guilty of libel.
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Which of the following best reflects the Supreme Court's position on commercial speech, such as advertisements?
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Advertisements receive limited First Amendment protection.
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The decision in R.A.V. v. City of St. Paul (1992) suggests that
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political speech receives more protection under the Constitution than commercial speech.
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Which of the following would NOT be an example of speech plus?
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assassinating a political leader
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________ is most closely associated with the idea that the First Amendment protects the "marketplace of ideas."
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Oliver Wendell Holmes
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Which of the following rights is NOT found in the original, unamended Constitution?
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prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment
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The fact that federal judges have relied on a discretionary use of the exclusionary rule in recent years means that
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it is difficult to know whether a defendant will be protected from an illegal search under the Fourth Amendment.
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The words under God were added to the Pledge of Allegiance
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in the midst of the Cold War, as a response to the "godless communism" of the Soviet Union.
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________ are areas of personal freedom with which governments are constrained from interfering.
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Civil liberties
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In Lawrence v. Texas (2003), the Supreme Court justices ruled that
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laws criminalizing gay sexual behavior are a violation of the right to privacy.
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The right to legal counsel in a criminal proceeding is guaranteed by the ________ Amendment.
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Sixth
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Which of the following is true about high school students in public schools?
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High school students have no free speech rights whatsoever.
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________ is a law that declares a person guilty of a crime without a trial.
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A bill of attainder
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Griswold v. Connecticut (1965) and Roe v. Wade (1973) have been extremely important in the development of
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a constitutional right to privacy.
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What is a grand jury?
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a jury that determines whether there is enough evidence to justify a trial
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A woman's constitutional right to an abortion was established in ________.
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Roe v. Wade (1973)
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Gideon v. Wainwright (1963) established the right
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to be informed of constitutional rights at the time of arrest.
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Which of the following is the best description of the Supreme Court's first ruling on the issue of the nationalization of the Bill of Rights in 1833?
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The Bill of Rights limits the national government but not state governments.
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The judicial doctrine that places a heavy burden of proof on government officials when they seek to regulate or restrict speech is called ________.
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strict scrutiny
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The rights to assembly and petition are guaranteed by the same amendment that guarantees ________.
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equal protection of the laws
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In what year was freedom of speech extended to protect against the acts of state governments?
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1925
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The right to remain silent is guaranteed by the ________ Amendment.
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Sixth
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The constitutional basis for the nationalization of the Bill of Rights is the ________.
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Fourteenth Amendment (1868)
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In West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette (1943), the Supreme Court justices announced that
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children cannot be required to salute the flag if it violates their religious faith.
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West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette (1943) was significant because it
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endorsed the free exercise of religion even when it was offensive to the beliefs of the majority.
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What did the Supreme Court justices decide in Kelo v. City of New London (2005)?
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A city can seize land from private owners and transfer it to another private owner as part of a redevelopment program.
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The ________ rule forbids the introduction in trial of any piece of evidence obtained illegally.
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exclusionary
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In Lemon v. Kurtzman (1971), the Supreme Court justices ruled that government action toward religion is
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permissible only if it is secular in purpose, neither promotes nor inhibits religion, and does not lead to excessive entanglement with religion.
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The wall of separation between church and state is best found in what clause of the Constitution?
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the establishment clause
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The process by which the Supreme Court justices have expanded specific parts of the Bill of Rights to protect citizens against state and federal actions is called ________.
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selective incorporation
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________ argued that there was a "wall of separation" between church and state.
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Thomas Jefferson
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Near v. Minnesota (1931) and Wolf v. Colorado (1949) were significant because they
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forced state governments to obey the Second Amendment of the Constitution.
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Which of the following types of speech receives the greatest level of First Amendment protection?
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obscenity
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________ occurs when government officials block the publication of material they do not want released.
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Prior restraint
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When New York Times reporter Judith Miller was jailed in 2005, it illustrated that
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the press has no constitutional right to withhold information in court.
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Since 1973, the right to an abortion has been
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upheld but narrowed in scope.
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Which of the following statements about freedom of speech is true?
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Free speech can be regulated by government officials.
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________ was largely responsible for getting a series of constitutional amendment proposals passed in the U.S. House of Representatives that would ultimately become known as the Bill of Rights.
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James Madison
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The Fourth Amendment protects against ________.
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unreasonable searches and seizures
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The due process clause of the Fifth Amendment is best described as a(n) ________.
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procedural civil liberty
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During the Founding era, ________ were the strongest
supporters of adding a bill of rights to the Constitution.
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Antifederalists