Chapter 9 Flashcards
(49 cards)
A statement of an individual citizen’s legal privileges which may not be taken away by a civil government.
Bill of rights
What three documents form the historical background to the Bill of Rights?
Massachusetts Body of Liberties, the English Bill of Rights, and the Virginia Declaration of Rights
When had the states ratified 10 of the 12 amendments that Madison had proposed?
December 15, 1791
The clause in the First Amendment which states that Congress may not establish a state church or give legal preference to any church or denomination.
Establishment clause
A three-pronged legal standard established by the U.S. Supreme Court in Lemon v. Kurtzman (1971) to determine whether a law or governmental action violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.
Lemon Test
The clause in the First Amendment which protects the right of the individual to worship God according to the dictates of his own conscience and to practice his religion freely.
Free exercise clause
List the four things that the First Amendment guarantees.
- Freedom of Religion
- Freedom of Speech
- Freedom of the Press
- Freedom of Assembly and Redress of Grievances
An “army” composed of armed citizens (rather than professional soldiers) who can be called out in times of emergency.
Militia
The two dominant ideas in the Second Amendment.
- Militias are necessary to the security of a free state.
- The right to keep and bear arms cannot be infringed (violated).
What amendment affirms the property rights of American citizens?
3rd Amendment
A written statement issud by a judge which gives a law officer the legal right to search for a particular thing in a specific place.
Warrant
What amendment guarantes the freedom from unreasonable search and seizure, reaffirming the right to own and to control private property?
4th Amendment
What law, passed by Congress in 1993, restricts the sale of handguns by requiring a waiting period for the purchase of a handgun?
Brady Law
What word means “to destroy another person’s reputation by false speech”?
Slander
Which laws forbid an American citizen to say or write anything that would harm his country or advocate its violent, revolutionary overthrow?
Laws of treason
A crime so serious that it is punishable by death.
Capital crime
A serious crime but not a capital crime.
Felony
A special military court which tries breaches of military law or cases involving members of the armed forces.
Court-martial
A serviceman found guilty in court-martial has the right to appeal the verdict to where?
U.S. Court of Military Appeals
The right of civil government to take over a person’s land or other private property for public use.
Eminent domain
A court order for an individual to appear in court as a witness.
Summons
A sum of money that a person accused of a crime deposits with a court in order to be temporarily released from jail.
Bail
What did President Abraham Lincoln issue as a war measure on January 1, 1863, declaring the slaves within the Confederacy to be “then, thenceforward, and forever free”?
Emancipation Proclamation
The freedoms listed in the Bill of Rights are summarized in the 14th Amendment as the right to what?
“Life, liberty, and property”
