 Judicial: relating to laws and courts  Trial: a legal examination in which the disputing groups meet in court and present their positions to an impartial decision maker  Defendant: the person accused of the wrongdoing or crime  Plaintiff: the person or designated government official accusing the defendant  Evidence: facts that support their position 2

 Jury: a group of citizens not involved in the dispute  Case: a dispute that has been brought into court  Criminal law cases: disputes in which the government charges an individual with committing a crime and violating a law that protects another’s safety  Civil law cases: disputes among individual citizens or individual citizens and government officials over property or money 3

The Ohio Judicial Center 4

 The state court system is organized into three levels of authority  Level One:  Superior or district courts Trial courts that handle cases throughout the state 5

 State courts of appeals Separated into regions Reviews a superior or district court’s decision when requested Presided over by a panel of judges (usually three) Three options Agree with the lower court Disagree with and overrule the lower court Order a new trial in the lower court 6

 State supreme court Reviews courts of appeals cases Also involves a panel of judges Decision is final unless the losing party is able to convince the Federal Supreme Court to take the case 7

 Established by Article III of the Constitution; left the development up to Congress  The Judiciary Act of 1789 established the federal district courts and the circuit courts of appeals  Have jurisdiction (authority to hear cases) over such federal crimes as  Mail fraud  Counterfeiting  Smuggling  Bank robbery  Illegal interstate commerce 8

 Separated into district courts  Each state has at least one district  Each court has 2-28 judges, appointed to life terms by the president  The US is divided into 13 judicial circuits, each with its own court of appeals  Ohio belongs to the 6 th judicial circuit  Each circuit court has between 6 and 28 permanent judges that hear cases in panels of three 9

The final authority for interpreting the Constitution 10

 Heads the Judicial Branch  Reviews court cases  Reviews legislative and executive decisions that raise Constitutional questions 11

The U.S. Supreme Court Certiorari (to be informed) United States Court of Appeals 12 circuits State Supreme Courts State Trial Courts U.S. District Courts Intermediate Appellate Courts FederalState 12

 Nine Justices  Appointed by the president to life terms  The Chief Justice is in charge of the court; the other eight are associate justices  Current justices:  John Roberts (current chief justice)—2005  Antonin Scalia—1986  Anthony Kennedy—1988  Clarence Thomas—1991  Ruth Bader Ginsburg—1993  Stephen Breyer—1994  Samuel Anthony Alito— 2006  Sonia Sotomayor—2009  Elena Kagen—

Back row (left to right): Sonia Sotomayor, Stephen G. Breyer, Samuel A. Alito, and Elena Kagan. Front row (left to right): Clarence Thomas, Antonin Scalia, Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Anthony Kennedy, and Ruth Bader Ginsburg 14

John Jay was the first Supreme Court chief justice First met in 1790 in New York City 15

 A writ of certiorari is a request for review based on important constitutional and legal issues raised by the court’s decision.  Under the rule of four, only four justices must agree to place a case on the docket (their schedule of cases to review)  The Supreme Court receives more than 7,000 requests each year, but places fewer than 100 on their docket. 16

 Begins the first Monday in October each year  Lawyers for both sides file briefs, written documents that contain facts and legal issues involved in the appeal; often hundreds of pages long  Present their case directly through oral arguments; only have 30 minutes  The court’s decision is the majority opinion— what five or more justices thought  The minority is the dissenting opinion 17

 Roe v Wade Roe v Wade  Marbury v Madison Marbury v Madison  Brown v Board of Education Brown v Board of Education  Dred Scott v Sandford Dred Scott v Sandford  Korematsu v United States Korematsu v United States  Miranda v Arizona Miranda v Arizona  New Jersey v T.L.O. New Jersey v T.L.O.  Texas v Johnson Texas v Johnson  Tinker v Des Moines Tinker v Des Moines 18

 William Marbury was commissioned Justice of the Peace of the District of Columbia at the end of President John Adam’s term.  New President Thomas Jefferson instructed his Secretary of State James Madison not to deliver the orders— keeping the opposing party from taking office.

 The Supreme Court evaluated this based on the foundation of checks and balances.  This established the concept of judicial review.

 Dred Scott was a slave owned by Army Major John Emerson  Scott travelled with Emerson to various states, including several free states  Upon the death of Emerson, Scott sued for his freedom  Emerson’s widow Eliza’s brother John Sandford was in charge of the will

 The Supreme Court ruled against Dred Scott  He was not a citizen and therefore could not sue  They also determined Scott was not a free man  Obviously this is a black mark for the Supreme Court.

 Fred Korematsu was a Japanese American citizen that was ordered into an internment camp through President Roosevelt’s executive order after the attack on Pearl Harbor.  Korematsu attempted to avoid being interned.

 Korematsu argued he was being discriminated against based on his race.  The government argued they needed to protect the country  The Supreme Court agreed that the need to protect the country was greater than protecting an individual’s rights.

 The parents of Linda Brown wanted their daughter to attend the closest public school in Topeka, Kansas—not the black school that was farther away.  They argued that this segregation violated the fourteenth amendment

 While segregation was legal under Plessy v. Ferguson (1896), the Court sided with the Brown family.  Linda was able to attend the school closest to her and the Civil Rights movement was strengthened.

 Ernesto Miranda was arrested, but was not informed of his fifth and sixth amendment rights.  He and his lawyer eventually sued the state of Arizona.  The Court agreed and now all police must take the proper steps by issuing the Miranda Warning.

 Jane Roe was an unmarried and pregnant resident of Texas who wanted an abortion  In 1970s Texas, abortions were illegal unless the mother’s life was in jeopardy  Henry Wade was the Dallas County district attorney

 The Supreme Court ruled in Roe’s favor  They said her rights were guaranteed in the 1st, 4th, 5th, 9th, and 14th Amendments  This also eliminated any state laws that prohibited first trimester abortions  Norma McCorvey later came forward and admitted she was Jane Roe

 Do schools have the right to search a student’s private property? What reasons do they have to have to search?  This case was based on two girls that were caught smoking in the bathroom—instead of in the designated area.  T.L.O. was the pseudonym for Tracy Lois Odem who denied smoking and had her purse searched.

 In addition to the cigarettes, the assistant vice principal also found drugs and other items that showed T.L.O. was dealing marijuana.  The Court sided with the school, although they agreed a “reasonable suspicion” was needed to perform a search.

 Gregory Johnson doused an American flag with kerosene and set it on fire during a political protest and demonstration in Texas.  Is this protected under the first amendment?

 Johnson (on the right) offended a lot of people by burning this symbol of America.  The Supreme Court sided with Johnson and said this symbolic speech was protected

 Defined the Constitutional rights of students in U.S. public schools  Students John F. Tinker, Mary Beth Tinker, and Christopher Eckhardt worn black armbands to school, protesting the Vietnam War  Before wearing the arm bands, the school found out and created a policy stating anyone wearing an armband would be removed immediately  All three wore armbands and were suspended from school

 7-2 majority opinion stating that First Amendment rights apply in schools, unless constitutionally sound reasons were given to limit the First Amendment  Your First Amendment right is protected in school as long as it does not cause a disruption