The Supreme Court and Individual Rights, 5th Edition, Vol. 1 » (5th Edition)

The Supreme Court and Individual Rights, Fifth Edition, examines the impact of U.S. Supreme Court decisions on the rights and freedoms of the individual through the Court's 2007-2008 term. Written by the author of CQ Press's Guide to the U.S. Supreme Court, Fifth Edition, and a companion to the new second edition of the Supreme Court and the Powers of the American Government, the book traces the Court's emergence as a defender of individual rights and liberties, including recent cases regarding a handgun ordinance in Washington, D.C., an important death penalty case in Louisiana, and the rights of prisoners held at Guantánamo Bay. A chapter on Second Amendment rights to keep and bear arms is new to this edition.

The first chapter offers a broad overview of the Court's jurisprudence on individual rights. Chapter 2 addresses the First Amendment's expressive freedoms: freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and freedom of religion. The rights to an equal vote and political association are covered in Chapter 3 Second Amendment freedoms and the right to bear arms are analyzed in Chapter 4. Chapter 5 examines due process and criminal rights: the guarantees of a fair trial and legal counsel, as well as protections against unreasonable search and seizure, self-incrimination, and cruel and unusual punishment. Equal rights and equal protection, especially racial and sexual equality, are the focus of Chapter 6. Chapter 7 discusses personal liberties and privacy rights.

The reference materials section provides a glossary of legal terms, information about online and print sources for Supreme Court decisions, an explanation of how to read a legal citation, biographical dataon all current and former justices, the full text of the U.S. Constitution, and a selected bibliography. The volume also includes subject and case indexes.

Preface ix

Chapter 1 The Court and the Individual 1

In the Beginning: Few Rights and Narrow Protection, 1789-1865 2

The Civil War Amendments 4

Freedom for Ideas 12

Political Rights 13

Equality Before the Law 16

Fundamental Fairness 18

Chapter 2 Freedom for Ideas: The First Amendment and the Right to Believe, to Speak, to Assemble, to Petition, and to Publish 22

The First Amendment 23

Government Restraints 25

The Task of Balancing 28

The Search for a Standard 30

Freedom of Speech 33

Seditious Speech and National Security 34

Public Speech and Public Safety 49

The Freedom of Assembly 63

Freedom of the Press 83

Prior Restraint: Censorship 85

Subsequent Punishment: Libel 96

A Free Press Versus the Right to a Fair Trial 110

Access and Confidentiality 116

Freedom of Religion 125

The Free Exercise of Religion 127

Establishment of Religion 141

Chapter 3 The Rights of Political Participation 171

Fair Elections and the Right to Vote 174

The Right and the Power: A Narrow View 174

Pattern of Exclusion 177

The Right and the Power: A Broad View 185

The Right to an Equal Vote 192

Congress, Districts, and People 192

House Districts: Strict Equality 200

State Districts: More Leeway 202

Bush V. Gore: Deciding Who Becomes President 209

Freedom of Political Association 217

Communism and Cold War 220

Political Association: A Contemporary View 244

Chapter 4 The Second Amendment and the Right to Bear Arms 252

Only Federal Gun Laws Limited 252

Second Amendment Revival: A Loss for the District of Columbia's Handgun Ban 254

Chapter 5 Crime and Punishment 259

The Long March toward Today'sBill of Rights 260

A Fair Trial by Jury 267

The Right to a Jury Trial 267

The Right to a Speedy Trial 278

The Right to Confront Witnesses 281

Search and Seizure 286

The Neutral Magistrate 287

Probable Cause 288

Property, Papers, and Effects 289

Arrests and Searches 292

Electronic Eavesdropping 309

Self-Incrimination 313

Privilege and Immunity 314

Expanding Protection 316

Coerced Confessions 317

Confessions and Counsel 320

The Aid of Legal Counsel 328

A Fundamental Right 328

The Appointment of Counsel 329

Double Jeopardy 338

One Trial per Sovereign 338

State Action 339

Resentencing Restrictions 340

Appealing Dismissals 340

One Offense, Two Trials? 342

Fines and Forfeitures 342

Cruel and Unusual Punishment 344

The Eighth Amendment and the States 344

Prison Conditions 346

Capital Punishment 347

Chapter 6 Equal Rights and Equal Protection of the Laws 366

What Is Equal Protection? 367

Modern Standard 368

Racial Classifications 370

Discrimination against Aliens 370

Sex Discrimination 370

Fundamental Interests 371

Racial Equality 374

Segregation under Attack 375

Equal Opportunity for Education 381

Travel and Public Accommodations 406

The Right to Fair Housing 414

Equal Employment Opportunity 421

Affirmative Action 427

Equal Protection: The Alien and the Poor 440

Aliens and the Law 440

Poverty and Equal Protection 446

Sex Discrimination 453

"Romantic Paternalism" 453

The Search for a Standard 454

Discrimination in Employment 462

Chapter 7 Liberty and Privacy 474

Origins of Personal Privacy 476

Abortion, Roe v. Wade, and the Controversy that Never Ends 480

A Limited "Right to Die" 487

Gay Rights 490

Reference Materials 499

Glossary of Legal Terms 501

Sources of Supreme Court Decisions 504

How to Read a Court Citation 505

Supreme Court Justices 506

Constitution of the United States 512

Selected Bibliography 523

Illustration Credits and Acknowledgements 529

Subject Index 531

Case Index 557