question

As an arbiter between the rights of the individual and the exercise of power by society, the Supreme Court ______.

answer

has acted in an inconsistent manner across the spectrum of possible positions over the course of American history

question

The Supreme Court began the process of applying the Bill of Rights to the states ______.

answer

in a piecemeal fashion starting in 1897

question

In the conflict between accommodationist and separationist views of the establishment clause, the Supreme Court has, in recent times, ______.

answer

established no clear pattern and has favored each position at various times

question

The founders argued that freedom of religion is valuable for all of the following reasons EXCEPT this one:

answer

Religion is largely myth and therefore is not important enough to be of concern for government.

question

An interesting result of the obscenity debate has been ______.

answer

the alliance of conservatives and radical feminists in opposition to obscenity

question

The Supreme Court has ruled that public figures can win libel suits against the mass media only when the ______.

answer

claims made by the media are known by them to be false or are made with reckless disregard for the truth of the claims

question

The exclusionary rule is the Supreme Court rule that states that ______.

answer

illegally seized evidence cannot be used to obtain a conviction

question

The Supreme Court has ruled that the exclusionary rule should ______.

answer

apply only when the police conduct an illegal search deliberately; however, the burden is on the police to show they acted in good faith

question

All of the following statements concerning the right to privacy are true EXCEPT this one:

answer

The founders debated whether to include a right to privacy in the Constitution and rejected it.

question

According to the textbook, conflicts of rights often come down to conflicts ______.

answer

of power

question

An action that criminalizes an act after it occurs is a(n) ______.

answer

unconstitutional ex post facto law

question

The Supreme Court demonstrated the difficulty of balancing the free exercise of religion clause of the First Amendment with the need for social order in ______.

answer

in a piecemeal fashion starting in 1897

question

Which of the following statements concerning the protection of free expression in the United States is NOT true?

answer

The Supreme Court has consistently favored expansion of the freedom of expression.

question

The founders' opposition to prior restraint showed their commitment to ______.

answer

freedom of the press

question

It is difficult to know when to apply the prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment because ______.

answer

the definitions of cruel and unusual are difficult to establish

question

The Supreme Court's ruling in Griswold v. Connecticut is significant because it ______.

answer

opened the door for a variety of claims regarding the right to privacy

question

According to the textbook, we value individual rights because they lead to ______.

answer

collective benefits

question

Which of the following is not an example of a conflict of rights among individuals?

answer

The right to free speech versus the ability to carry a weapon

question

The right of an accused to be brought before a judge and informed of the charges and evidence against him or her is known as ______.

answer

habeas corpus

question

Separationists differ from accommodationists in that ______.

answer

separationists favor a stricter separation of church and state than accommodationists

question

The Supreme Court's ruling in Brandenburg v. Ohio is significant because it ______.

answer

created a new standard for regulating political speech

question

According to the textbook, free speech is valuable for all of the following reasons EXCEPT this one:

answer

It is good for economic development.

question

Based on Supreme Court rulings, in which of the following situations is the death penalty permissible?

answer

When lethal injection is the method used to impose the death penalty

question

According to the Supreme Court, for school prayer to violate the establishment clause, it must be ______.

answer

part of official school activities

question

Written defamation of character is known as ______.

answer

libel

question

It is difficult for the Supreme Court to determine the exact meaning of obscenity because ______.

answer

the whole area is so subjective that wide disagreement exists

question

Support of capital punishment has been weakening in the United States, mostly due to public concern that ______.

answer

the system might be executing innocent people

question

The current status of the exclusionary rule is that ______.

answer

unconstitutionally gathered evidence may be used in court as long as the police did not violate the Constitution deliberately; however, the burden is on the police to show they acted in good faith

question

The idea that language shapes behavior and, therefore, should be regulated to control its social effects is known as ______.

answer

politcal correctness

question

The right against self-incrimination ______.

answer

applies at all stages of a criminal proceeding at the state and national levels

question

Miranda v. Arizona held that ______.

answer

police have to advise people of their constitutional rights prior to questioning

question

The example provided in the textbook concerning the response to the September 11 attacks demonstrates that ______.

answer

it may be hard to protect both liberty and security

question

The Supreme Court has ruled that ______.

answer

West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette

question

In the conflict between media access to a trial and a defendant's right to a fair trial, the Supreme Court has ______.

answer

generally permitted press access to most stages of the legal proceedings

question

The Supreme Court has most recently ruled that what happens between consenting adults ______.

answer

is protected by the right to privacy

question

All of the following statements concerning incorporation of the Bill of Rights are true EXCEPT this one:

answer

The Supreme Court began the process of incorporation of the Bill of Rights in the late 1960s.

question

The Lemon test established that ______.

answer

there shall be no excessive entanglement of government and religion

question

The Supreme Court has ______.

answer

generally protected freedom of expression on the Internet

question

The Supreme Court has ruled that the right to refuse medical life support ______.

answer

is a matter for individuals to decide for themselves

question

The authors of the text conclude that the question of whether and how the states should regulate abortion ______.

answer

is likely to remain a divisive issue in American politics for some time

question

The source of authority cited by the Supreme Court for applying the Bill of Rights to the states is ______.

answer

the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution

question

The current status of the right to counsel in criminal trials is that ______.

answer

in many places, the right to counsel is complied with on a minimal basis

question

In reading about the issues discussed in the textbook concerning the right to privacy, one would conclude that most of the controversies over this right involve ______.

answer

life and death

question

The Supreme Court has ruled that prior restraint ______.

answer

may be upheld only in cases of extreme emergency

question

The Supreme Court most recently ruled that the Second Amendment individual right to bear arms ______.

answer

applies to the states as well as to the national government

question

According to the textbook, all of the following statements concerning rights are true EXCEPT this one:

answer

Rights involve the absence of power, not the creation of power.

question

The Supreme Court demonstrated the difficulty of balancing the free exercise of religion clause of the First Amendment with the need for social order in ______

answer

West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette

question

The test that seems to provide the most protection for free speech is the ______.

answer

imminent lawless action test

question

In attempting to decide when speech can be prohibited, the Supreme Court has ______.

answer

made it harder for the government to suppress speech

question

The difference between civil rights and civil liberties is ______.

answer

that civil rights involve government action to secure rights of citizenship, whereas civil liberties involve individual freedoms that limit the power of government

question

The establishment clause guarantees ______.

answer

that government will not create and support an official state church

question

The national government decides to prosecute a speaker who states at a political rally, "The U.S. government's policy toward the Middle East is responsible for the violence in the region, and our leaders should be forced to change their policy." Although the government would most likely be unsuccessful, for what would the government prosecute the speaker?

answer

sedition

question

The rights the founders believed were essential to maintaining a representative democracy included all of the following EXCEPT this one:

answer

Establishment of religion

question

Which of the following statements does NOT describe the Supreme Court's views regarding due process of the law?

answer

The death penalty is racially biased.

question

Which of the following statements best describes the constitutional right to privacy?

answer

A right to privacy is not clearly spelled out in the Constitution, but many people argue the right is implied.

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