Landmark Supreme Court Cases You decide

As a group, read through the landmark (significant) Supreme Court case which has been given to your group. Your “court” will have the opportunity to determine how you believe the court should have ruled based on the knowledge you have gained from your knowledge of the Constitution. After each group has given their verdict, the decision of the Supreme Court will be revealed.

Choose a Chief Justice each time you receive a case. They will lead the group in discussing a case. They may read the case to the group, select a reader, or have everyone read it silently and then discuss it. As you read the case, be on the lookout for rights which have been violated. Remember, your decision must be based on the Constitution, not your personal feelings.

Everyone must fill in the information that is discussed for each of the cases on the individual graphic organizers provided. After you have read about the cases, make your decision. The court’s decision does not need to be unanimous, however each verdict comes with a review of the decision and if all the justices on your court do not agree with the majority’s decision, those who opposed, may indicate this on the handout.

When you are finished, write your court’s verdict on the dry erase board and send the Chief Justice to your court’s seat in order to give their decision. The Chief Justice should bring the reason sheet in order to explain their decision and to indicate if any of their justices felt strongly enough to dissent. Remember though, majority rules in the delivery of the decision.

Tinker v Des Moines 1969

Facts of the case:Tinker v Des Moines 1969 Students wanted to protest the Vietnam War by wearing black armbands. The Des Moines School District suspended students who wore the arm bands.

Tinker v Des Moines 1969 Does the constitutional right of free speech protect the symbolic speech of public school students?

The Decision In a 7-2 decision, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Tinkers.  Students retain their constitutional right of freedom of speech while in public school. Wearing the armbands was a “silent, passive expression of opinion” that did not involve any “disorder or disturbance,” and was unlikely to cause a “material and substantial disruption” in the school.

Miranda v Arizona 1966

Facts of the case: Miranda v Arizona 1966 Miranda’s confession was used to convict him of kidnapping and assault Miranda claimed that his confession was given because he didn’t know he had the right to remain silent.

Miranda v Arizona 1966 What is the role of the police in protecting the rights of the accused, as guaranteed by the Constitution?

The Decision 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. 

Plessy v Ferguson 1892

Facts of the case:Plessy v Ferguson 1892 In the 1890s railroad cars were separated by race. Homer Plessy was a black man who bought a first class ticket for a white’s only railroad car. He was arrested.

Plessy v Ferguson 1892 Does "separate but equal" facilities satisfy the guarantees of the 14th Amendment?

The Decision The result was the final decision against Plessy, in 1896. The Court ruled 7–1 that the Separate Car Act, which “implies merely a legal distinction” between the two races, did not violate Plessy’s rights under the the Fourteenth Amendment. The Court also rejected the argument of Plessy’s lawyers that the Louisiana law implied that blacks were inferior to whites because they were separated.

Gideon v Wainwright 1963

Gideon v Wainwright 1963 Clarence Gideon was arrested for breaking into a pool hall and stealing money and wine. Clarence demanded a lawyer and told that it wasn’t a capital case so he was on his own.

Gideon v Wainwright 1963 In state criminal trials, are indigent or poor defendants entitled to a lawyer, even in noncapital cases, those which will not result in the death penalty?

The Decision The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Gideon in a unanimous decision.  The right to the assistance of counsel in felony criminal cases is a fundamental right, and must be required in state courts as well as federal courts. 

Brown v Board of Education 1954 Did segregated schools break the 14th Amendment’s guarantee to equal protection of the laws?

Brown v Board of Education 1954 Black students were segregated from whites in school The Browns believed segregated schools can never be equal to one another simply because they were separate.

Brown v Board of Education 1954 Did segregated schools break the guarantee to equal protection of the laws?

The Decision In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Brown. 9-0 that separating children solely on the basis of race, created a feeling of inferiority in the “hearts and minds” of African American children. It denied the equal protection of the laws guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment.

Marbury v Madison 1800

Marbury v Madison 1800 William Marbury wanted a position as a judge in DC. Marbury went directly to the Supreme Court with his demand because of a law passed by Congress increasing the amount of cases the court could hear directly. (Judiciary Act 1789)

Marbury v Madison 1800 Does the Supreme Court have the authority to order the delivery of commissions from the president? Can the Supreme Court hear more types of cases under original jurisdiction than the Constitution says it can hear?

The Decision: JUDICIAL REVIEW IS BORN. The Supreme Court unanimously agreed that Marbury had a right to receive his commission, but disagreed that the Court had the power to issue the writ. The Supreme Court gets its power directly from the Constitution, and the Constitution says only certain kinds of cases can start at the Supreme Court. That meant the 1789 law passed by Congress was unconstitutional. Congress did not have the power to allow more kinds of cases to start at the Supreme Court. Therefore, the Supreme Court said it could not help Marbury get his commission. JUDICIAL REVIEW IS BORN.

Korematsu v United States 1944

Korematsu v United States 1944 All people of Japanese decent were put in internment camps during the war. The government says its ok to hold people during a time of war because of security concerns.

Korematsu v United States 1944 Does “equal protection of the law” exist for all people, even during a time of war?

The Decision In a 6-3 opinion, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the United States.  The majority concluded that the President and Congress did not act outside of their constitutional authority, and that the exclusion order did not violate the Fourteenth Amendment.  Because the exclusion order was issued during wartime, the Court gave great deference to the judgment of military authorities, Congress, and the President, all of whom deemed the measure necessary. 

New Jersey v T.L.O. 1983

New Jersey v T.L.O. 1983 TLO was caught breaking a school policy and her purse was searched. Mr. Choplick (an administrator) searched TLO’s purse and found drugs.

New Jersey v T.L.O. 1983 Does the 4th Amendment allow protection from unreasonable search and seizure by school officials?

The Decision In a 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of New Jersey and the school, and against T.L.O.  The majority concluded that school officials do not need a warrant to justify a search as long as the search was reasonable under the circumstances. School officials are only required to have a “reasonable suspicion” that a student has violated school rules in order to search that student. 

Hazelwood v Kuhlmeier 1988

Hazelwood v Kuhlmeier 1988 Students in a journalism class thought their right to publish articles was being stopped. Hazelwood High sponsored the newspaper and thought they should be able to decide what went in it.

Hazelwood v Kuhlmeier 1988 According to the Bill of Rights, how much expression do students have in a school newspaper?

The Decision The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Hazelwood in a 5-3 decision.  They concluded that the First Amendment does not prevent school officials from exercising reasonable authority over the content of school sponsored publications.  The First Amendment rights of students in public schools are not necessarily equal to those of adults outside of schools.  “A school need not tolerate student speech that is inconsistent with its ‘basic educational mission, even though the government could not censor similar speech outside the school.” 

United States v Nixon

United States v Nixon President Nixon taped conversations he had with people in the Oval office Nixon claimed he had “executive privilege” because of national security issues.

United States v Nixon Do the powers of the executive branch under Article II give the president the power to claim executive privilege in order to protect communications between high government officials?

United States v Nixon Unanimous decision, 9-0, the President did not have the authority to keep information regarding a crime as privileged information. Nixon turned over the tapes with pieces of conversation erased. He resigned soon after.

Bush V Gore Did the Florida Supreme Court violate Article II, Section 1, Clause 2 of the US Constitution by making new election law? Do standardless manual recounts violate the Equal Protection and Due Process Clauses of the Constitution?

Bush V Gore

Bush V Gore The election between Gore and Bush was very close. Gore wanted the courts to recount 70,000 disputed ballots.

Bush V Gore verdict Court voted 5-4 in favor of Bush. The recounting was stopped. The Supreme Court said that it was not the state court’s job to certify elections or order a recount after the results had been certified. The votes had been legally cast.

Re Gault 1964

Re Gault 1964 Gerald Gault was arrested for making indecent phone calls Gerald did not have the chance to question the victim at his hearing or get a lawyer for his case.

Re Gault 1964 The question before the court Was, do juveniles have the same protections and rights guaranteed them in court as adults have even when their punishments may not be as severe?

Gault Verdict The court determined in an 8-1 ruling in favor of the Gaults. The decision stated that Gerald Gault’s commitment to the Industrial School was a clear violation of 14th amendment rights and due process.

D.C. v Heller 2008

D.C. v Heller 2008 The city of DC passed a law requiring hand guns be disassembled for protection. Richard Heller said he had the right to protect himself.

D.C. v Heller 2008 Do the D.C. provisions violate the Second Amendment rights of individuals who are not affiliated with any state-regulated militia (like the National Guard), but who wish to keep handguns and other firearms for private use in their homes?

Heller Verdict

Texas v Johnson 1984

Texas v Johnson 1984 Greg Johnson burned a flag protesting the nomination of Ronald Reagan as a presidential candidate. Texas passed a law making it illegal to desecrate a venerated object.

Texas v Johnson 1984 Does the first amendment to freedom of speech protect flag burning?

The decision: It was a 5-4 decision. The court ruled in favor of Johnson saying that speech is not limited to words. Conduct can also be “speech” if it is intended to send a message. The fact that Johnson’s conduct involved an American flag only made it more obvious that he was trying to send a message: “Johnson was not... prosecuted for the expression of just any idea; he was prosecuted for his expression of dissatisfaction with the policies of this country and that kind of expression is “at the core of our First Amendment values”.of dissatisfaction with the policies of this country,” and that kind of expression is “at the core of our First Amendment values.”

Wrap up/reflection How did your court do in regards to matching up with the Supreme Court? What was the most difficult part of making the decisions? Why do you think these cases were considered landmark cases?

The Assessment: Choose one b. Pick one of the landmark cases presented and describe how this case has an effect on your life even though the decision may have been made years before you were even born. The response should include at least three supporting statements or details from the case/Constitution and the reasons why or how this particular case effects you. These statements should be underlined. The finished product should be neatly written or typed and free of grammatical and spelling errors. a. Pick one of the cases presented and write a letter to the editor of the paper either agreeing or disagreeing with the Court's decision. The letter should include at least three supporting statements/details from within the Constitution or the case itself to defend your viewpoint and should be written as though the verdict had been just delivered. The statements should be underlined. The finished product should be neatly written or typed and free of grammatical and spelling errors.