Landmark Supreme Court Cases

What is a precedent? An earlier court decision that is used as a rule or guide when deciding on later, similar cases

Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857) Precedent: In a 7-2 opinion, a majority of the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Sanford. African Americans were not citizens as defined by the Constitution then ruled that slaves did not become free simply by entering a free state or a territory that had not yet become a state.

Plessey v. Ferguson (1896) Precedent: In a 7-1 decision, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Ferguson. The majority rejected Plessy’s Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendment arguments, instead putting its stamp of approval on the doctrine of “separate but equal.”

Brown v. Board of Education (1954) Precedent: In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Brown. The Court found the practice of segregation unconstitutional and refused to apply its decision in Plessy v. Ferguson. “Separate but equal not constitutional.

Gideon v. Wainwright (1963) Precedent: The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Gideon in a unanimous decision. The court ruled that the right to the assistance of counsel in felony criminal cases is a fundamental right, and thus must be required in state courts as well as federal courts.

Miranda v. Arizona (1966) Precedent: In a 5-4 opinion, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Miranda. The majority opinion concluded that defendants arrested under state law must be informed of their constitutional rights against self-incrimination and to representation by an attorney before being interrogated when in police custody.

Regents of the University of California v. Bakke (1896) Precedent: Five members of the Court voted to require the University of California at Davis to admit Bakke to its medical school. The Court determined that any racial quota system in a state supported university violated both the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Fourteenth Amendment. The Court also ruled that the benign use of race as one of several criteria in admissions decisions did not violate either the Civil Rights Act or the Fourteenth Amendment.