1. “Your rights as Americans”
Civil Liberties
“Your rights as Americans”

2. Founding Documents
Declaration of Independence - “We hold these truths to be self-evident; that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”
Constitution – framers believed in natural rights

3. Writ of Habeas Corpus Art. 1, Sec. 9 “Produce the body”
Requires government officials to present a prisoner in court and to explain to the judge why the person is being held

4. Ex Post Facto Laws “after the fact”
Being charged for committing a crime, that wasn’t a crime when the person committed the action

5. Bills of Attainder
Legislative act that punishes an individual without judicial trial
Court should decide guilt, not Congress

6. Bill of Rights Free speech, press, assembly, petition, religion
Right to bear arms
Prohibits quartering soldiers
Restricts illegal search and seizures
Provides grand juries, restricts eminent domain (gov can’t take private property unless compensation), prohibits forced self-incrimination, double jeopardy (can’t be charged for the same crime twice)

7. Bill of Rights 6. Outlines criminal court procedure 7. Trial by jury
8. Prevent excessive bail and cruel and unusual punishment
9. Amendments 1-8 do not necessarily include all possible rights of the people
10. Reserves for the states any powers not delegated to Fed. Gov by Constitution

8. 14th Amendment
“privileges and immunities” – Constitution protects all citizens
Due process – prohibits abuse of life, liberty, or property of any citizen, state rights were subordinate to Fed rights
Equal protection clause – Constitution applies to all citizens equally

9. Judicial Review Marbury v. Madison
The power of the Supreme Court to judge the constitutionality of a law

10. Legislative Action Sometimes laws can guarantee rights
Ex. Civil Rights Act of 1964

11. Religion
“Establishment” clause – prohibits the gov’t from establishing an official church
“Free exercise” clause – allows people to worship as they please

12. Free Speech
DOES NOT mean that you can “say anything you want”… but pretty close
Restrictions
Threat to national security
Libel – false written statement attacking someone’s character, with intent to harm
Obscenity – not protected, hard to define – Ex. Pornographic material
Symbolic speech – action to convey a message

13. Right to Privacy Not in the Constitution
Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)
Roe v. Wade (1971)
Yahoo and Google – search and s?

14. Due Process 5th and 14th Amendment
Forbids national AND state gov to “deny any person life, liberty, or property without due process of law.”
Procedural – fair trial
Substantive – fundamental fairness

15. Search and Seizure 4th Amendment
Freedom from “unreasonable search and seizure”
Prevent police abuse
Ex. Mapp v. Ohio

16. Self-incrimination 5th Amendment
No one “shall be compelled to be a witness against himself.”
Miranda v. Arizona 1966

17. Right v. Right Most cases are not simple
They often pit two rights against each other
Ex. – freedom of press v. national security