Deck 4: Civil Liberties

Question 1

Why is Palko v. Connecticut (1937) an important case?

A) It was the first time the Supreme Court announced a constitutionally protected right to privacy.
B) The Supreme Court explained the process for determining which parts of the Bill of Rights would protect individuals against states as well as the national government.
C) The Supreme Court established the "exclusionary rule" in this case.
D) This case was the first time the Supreme Court upheld the free exercise protections for a nonmainstream religion.
E) The Supreme Court ruled that persons under arrest must be informed of their right to remain silent.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

________ are areas of personal freedom with which governments are constrained from interfering.

A) Civil rights
B) Political rights
C) Electoral rights
D) Civil and political discourse
E) Civil liberties

Answer 2

E

Question 3

The Bill of Rights was written because

A) the Antifederalists demanded it as the price of ratification of the Constitution.
B) the Federalists realized that no Constitution would last for long without a bill of rights.
C) the federal government in the early days of the republic was violating too many individual rights.
D) Alexander Hamilton advocated the measure very forcefully.
E) the Supreme Court ruled that a bill of rights was needed.

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Near v. Minnesota (1931) and Wolf v. Colorado (1949) were significant because they

A) struck down ex post facto laws.
B) protected the right of habeas corpus.
C) upheld the constitutionality of bills of attainder.
D) forced state governments to obey the Second Amendment of the Constitution.
E) incorporated provisions of the Bill of Rights through the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

Question 5

________ was largely responsible for getting a series of constitutional amendment proposals passed in the U.S. House of Representatives that would ultimately become known as the Bill of Rights.

A) Alexander Hamilton
B) James Madison
C) Patrick Henry
D) Benjamin Cardozo
E) Henry Clay

Question 6

________ is a court order demanding that an individual in custody be brought into court and shown the cause for detention.

A) An advisory opinion
B) A bill of attainder
C) Ex post facto
D) Habeas corpus
E) A writ of mandamus

Question 7

In what year was freedom of speech extended to protect against the acts of state governments?

A) 1833
B) 1865
C) 1868
D) 1925
E) 1964

Question 8

During the Founding era, ________ were the strongest supporters of adding a bill of rights to the Constitution.

A) Federalists
B) Antifederalists
C) merchants and landowners
D) slaves
E) members of the military

Question 9

Which of the following is the best description of the Supreme Court's first ruling on the issue of the nationalization of the Bill of Rights in 1833?

A) The takings clause restricts national and state governments but not city governments.
B) The Bill of Rights should not be used if a state's constitution already contains its own bill of rights.
C) The takings clause does not cover accidents caused by government officials.
D) The Bill of Rights limits the national government but not state governments.
E) The Bill of Rights limits state governments but not the national government.

Question 10

The process by which the Supreme Court justices have expanded specific parts of the Bill of Rights to protect citizens against state and federal actions is called ________.

A) habeas corpus
B) selective incorporation
C) the takings clause
D) dual federalism
E) cooperative federalism

Question 11

Which of the following statements best describes the impact of the Fourteenth Amendment?

A) The addition of the Fourteenth Amendment immediately forced state governments to abide by all of the provisions in the Bill of Rights.
B) The addition of the Fourteenth Amendment had no effect whatsoever on state governments because it was designed to address the federal government.
C) The addition of the Fourteenth Amendment eventually forced state governments to abide by almost every provision in the Bill of Rights, but the process took over 100 years.
D) The addition of the Fourteenth Amendment required states to immediately abide by the First Amendment to the Constitution but not to any of the other amendments in the Bill of Rights.
E) The addition of the Fourteenth Amendment required states to immediately abide by the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution but not to any of the other amendments in the Bill of Rights.

Question 12

What was the main reason that Alexander Hamilton did NOT want a bill of rights?

A) He wanted the national government to have as much power as possible.
B) He believed that too many individual liberties destroyed the trust between citizen and government.
C) He believed it was unnecessary for a national government that possessed only specifically delegated powers.
D) He believed a bill of rights would make the Constitution too specific and cumbersome.
E) He believed a bill of rights would lead to many frivolous lawsuits.

Question 13

The constitutional basis for the nationalization of the Bill of Rights is the ________.

A) First Amendment (1791)
B) Fourth Amendment (1791)
C) Fifth Amendment (1791)
D) Tenth Amendment (1791)
E) Fourteenth Amendment (1868)

Question 14

Which of the following is NOT a liberty protected by the Bill of Rights?

A) the free exercise of religion
B) freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures
C) the guarantee of due process of the law
D) equal protection of the laws
E) freedom of speech

Question 15

In Lemon v. Kurtzman (1971), the Supreme Court justices ruled that government action toward religion is

A) permissible only if it is secular in purpose, neither promotes nor inhibits religion, and does not lead to excessive entanglement with religion.
B) permissible only if it promotes religious organizations that have a large number of members.
C) permissible only if it promotes religious organizations that have a small number of members.
D) permissible only if it inhibits religious organizations who espouse anti-American beliefs.
E) never permissible.

Question 16

The Bill of Rights was ratified by the states in ________.

A) 1776
B) 1787
C) 1791
D) 1802
E) 1812

Question 17

Which of the following is true about the Bill of Rights?

A) It includes the first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
B) It includes all of the civil liberties and civil rights found in the U.S. Constitution.
C) It is the first national Constitution of the United States.
D) It is the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
E) It is the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Question 18

________ is a law that declares a person guilty of a crime without a trial.

A) Habeas corpus
B) Ex post facto
C) A bill of attainder
D) An executive order
E) A writ of judicial error

Question 19

The ________ of the First Amendment protect(s) an individual's right to believe and practice whatever religion he or she chooses.

A) establishment clause
B) free association clause
C) free exercise clause
D) religious freedom restoration clause
E) privileges and immunities

Question 20

Which of the following rights is NOT found in the original, unamended Constitution?

A) the guarantee of habeas corpus
B) prohibition of ex post facto laws
C) prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment
D) the guarantee of trial by jury in the state where the crime was committed
E) prohibition of bills of attainder

Question 21

In Buckley v. Valeo (1976), the Supreme Court justices articulated the principle that

A) spending by or on behalf of a candidate for office is protected speech.
B) libel is protected by the First Amendment, as long as the person libeled is a public figure.
C) burning draft cards is a protected symbolic act, but only if it is done in public.
D) the Espionage Act of 1917 was unconstitutional.
E) government can regulate speech if the speech contains an incitement to imminent lawless action.

Question 22

The rights to assembly and petition are guaranteed by the same amendment that guarantees ________.

A) free speech
B) due process
C) privacy
D) the right to bear arms
E) equal protection of the laws

Question 23

Van Orden v. Perry (2005) and McCreary v. ACLU (2005) illustrate that

A) the issue of government-sponsored displays of religious symbols has not yet been definitively settled.
B) there are different opinions about whether the establishment clause should apply to state governments as well as to the federal government.
C) the free exercise clause has still not been incorporated through the Fourteenth Amendment.
D) the Lemon test does not apply to cases involving school prayer.
E) the government will never be allowed to display any kind of religious symbols anywhere on government property.

Question 24

________ argued that there was a "wall of separation" between church and state.

A) George Washington
B) James Madison
C) Ben Franklin
D) Alexander Hamilton
E) Thomas Jefferson

Question 25

The wall of separation between church and state is best found in what clause of the Constitution?

A) the free exercise clause
B) the establishment clause
C) the equal protection clause
D) the wall of separation clause
E) the full faith and credit clause

Question 26

The judicial doctrine that places a heavy burden of proof on government officials when they seek to regulate or restrict speech is called ________.

A) libel
B) prior restraint
C) strict scrutiny
D) speech plus
E) due process

Question 27

Justice Potter Stewart was talking about ________ when he declared "I know it when I see it."

A) free speech
B) slander
C) pornography
D) prior restraint
E) sedition

Question 28

Which of the following is true about high school students in public schools?

A) High school students have the same free speech rights as adults.
B) The justices have always provided a broad protection of free speech rights for high school students.
C) both a and b
D) High school students have conditionally protected speech.
E) High school students have no free speech rights whatsoever.

Question 29

The words under God were added to the Pledge of Allegiance

A) in the midst of the Cold War, as a response to the "godless communism" of the Soviet Union.
B) during the Civil War, to tie the Union's war effort to religion.
C) in 1823, during a religious revival called the Second Great Awakening.
D) as a result of campaign promises made by the Republican Party during the election of 1980.
E) immediately following the ratification of the Constitution in 1788.

Question 30

West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette (1943) was significant because it

A) endorsed the free exercise of religion even when it was offensive to the beliefs of the majority.
B) allowed the use of tax-supported vouchers for religious schools.
C) established a constitutional right to privacy.
D) prohibited suspicion-less searches of high school students.
E) banned prayers in public schools.

Question 31

The first and most famous test for determining when the government could intervene to suppress political speech was called the ________.

A) speech plus test
B) clear and present danger test
C) strict scrutiny test
D) Lemon test
E) imminent lawless action test

Question 32

The Lemon test involves what part of the Constitution?

A) free speech
B) the establishment clause
C) due process
D) equal protection of the laws
E) the free exercise clause

Question 33

________ is most closely associated with the idea that the First Amendment protects the "marketplace of ideas."

A) John Marshall
B) Oliver Wendell Holmes
C) Earl Warren
D) Antonin Scalia
E) Thurgood Marshall

Question 34

In West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette (1943), the Supreme Court justices announced that

A) Amish children are not required to attend school past the age of twelve.
B) children cannot be required to salute the flag if it violates their religious faith.
C) children can be required to salute the flag even if it violates their religious faith.
D) school officials are permitted greater authority to censor speech and expression than would be permissible off school grounds.
E) prayer in school violates the establishment clause.

Question 35

The Religious Freedom Restoration Act, passed by Congress in 1993, was an attempt to

A) recognize Judeo-Christianity as the unofficial religion of the United States.
B) give more protection to religious freedoms than the Supreme Court allowed.
C) establish a federal school voucher program.
D) permit prayer in public schools.
E) limit the kinds of religious ceremonies that nonmainstream religious organizations conducted at their services.

Question 36

What was the result of the 2004 case that argued the phrase under God in the Pledge of Allegiance violated the First Amendment?

A) The Supreme Court ruled that the phrase did not violate the establishment clause.
B) The Supreme Court ruled that the phrase violated the establishment clause.
C) The Supreme Court ruled that the phrase was protected by the free exercise clause.
D) The Supreme Court ruled that the phrase was not protected by the free exercise clause.
E) The Supreme Court did not rule on the issue, dismissing the case on a technical matter.

Question 37

Conflicts over whether public schools should be allowed to assign reading from the Bible and lead nondenominational prayers are examples of disagreements about the

A) meaning of selective incorporation.
B) meaning of the establishment clause.
C) applicability of prior restraint.
D) applicability of the exclusionary rule.
E) meaning of eminent domain.

Question 38

Freedom of speech and of the press have a special place in American democracy because

A) free and open debate is an essential mechanism for determining the quality and validity of competing ideas.
B) they are the only liberties explicitly mentioned in the Bill of Rights.
C) they were the last provisions in the Bill of Rights to be incorporated through the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
D) they have never been restricted by any law in the history of the United States.
E) they were the only liberties explicitly mentioned in Article I of the Constitution.

Question 39

Why did the Supreme Court justices rule the Communications Decency Act unconstitutional?

A) The Act attempted to impose prior restraint on newspapers.
B) The Act violated the First Amendment's right to freedom of assembly.
C) The Act granted too much authority to the executive branch and therefore violated the separation of powers.
D) The Act attempted to protect children by suppressing speech that adults have a constitutional right to receive.
E) The Act imposed penalties that were too severe for certain forms of hate speech.

Question 40

What were the Alien and Sedition Acts?

A) laws passed in the 1790s that made it a crime to say or publish anything that would defame the government of the United States
B) laws that made it a crime for foreign immigrants to belong to the Communist Party or other anti-American organizations
C) a law passed by Congress denying civil liberties to all citizens
D) laws passed during the Civil War denying Confederate sympathizers the right to free speech
E) a law passed by Congress in 1921 that restricted immigration to the United States

Question 41

Near v. Minnesota (1931) established the principle that

A) the government could block publication of newspapers during a time of crisis such as the Cold War.
B) only under the most extraordinary circumstances should the government prevent the publication of newspapers and magazines.
C) news articles that were not truthful received no First Amendment protection.
D) the news media could not publish obscene material.
E) the government cannot regulate any form of commercial speech.

Question 42

The exclusionary rule was applied to all levels of government by the Supreme Court justices in ________.

A) Miranda v. Arizona (1966)
B) Near v. Minnesota (1931)
C) Mapp v. Ohio (1961)
D) Escobedo v. Illinois (1964)
E) Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)

Question 43

Which of the following best reflects the Supreme Court's position on commercial speech, such as advertisements?

A) Commercial speech receives no First Amendment protection.
B) Advertisements receive limited First Amendment protection.
C) Advertisements receive as much First Amendment protection as anything else written in the newspaper.
D) Commercial speech regulations depend on the commerce clause, not the Bill of Rights.
E) The Supreme Court has never issued a ruling on the extent to which commercial speech receives First Amendment protection.

Question 44

McDonald v. Chicago (2010) was significant because it

A) applied the Second Amendment to state governments for the first time.
B) rejected the idea that the Second Amendment applies to state governments.
C) concluded that the Second Amendment applies only to state governments and not to the federal government.
D) banned assault rifles in the United States.
E) upheld the state of Illinois's restrictions on gun ownership by former felons.

Question 45

The Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth amendments are largely about

A) protections for those accused of committing crimes.
B) the right to privacy and travel.
C) the demands that citizens be treated equally.
D) the limits of Congress regarding economic regulation.
E) the process of amending the Constitution.

Question 46

The ________ rule forbids the introduction in trial of any piece of evidence obtained illegally.

A) warrant
B) exclusionary
C) Miranda
D) ex post facto
E) evidentiary

Question 47

Which of the following would NOT be an example of speech plus?

A) burning the American flag
B) assassinating a political leader
C) picketing a factory
D) holding a sit-in at a public park
E) distributing leaflets advocating political reform

Question 48

Why was New York Times v. Sullivan (1964) significant?

A) The justices ruled that a newspaper had to print false and malicious material deliberately in order to be guilty of libel.
B) The justices ruled that newspapers could be guilty of libel if they published any information that was ultimately proven to be inaccurate.
C) The justices ruled that the government could prevent the publication of newspapers and magazines only under the most extraordinary circumstances.
D) The justices ruled that pornography is always illegal.
E) The justices ruled that "shield laws" were unconstitutional.

Question 49

Which of the following types of speech receives the greatest level of First Amendment protection?

A) slander
B) pornography
C) obscenity
D) libel
E) political speech that stops short of inciting violence

Question 50

The Supreme Court's decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010) was significant because it concluded that the

A) Constitution prohibits the government from limiting campaign spending in any way.
B) Constitution allows the government to prevent certain candidates from running campaign ads.
C) Constitution allows the government to ban political speech funded by corporations.
D) Constitution prohibits the government from regulating political speech funded by corporations.
E) "millionaire's amendment" to the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act was consistent with the Constitution.

Question 51

________ occurs when government officials block the publication of material they do not want released.

A) Sedition
B) Speech plus
C) Prior restraint
D) Clear and present danger
E) Libel

Question 52

The decision in R.A.V. v. City of St. Paul (1992) suggests that

A) high school students have the same freedom of speech rights as adults.
B) political speech receives more protection under the Constitution than commercial speech.
C) commercial speech receives more protection under the Constitution than political speech.
D) virtually all hate speech is not protected by the Constitution.
E) virtually all hate speech is constitutionally protected.

Question 53

When New York Times reporter Judith Miller was jailed in 2005, it illustrated that

A) the press has no constitutional right to withhold information in court.
B) prior restraint can still be allowed in cases of national security.
C) journalists are held to a higher standard of libel than average citizens.
D) parodies are not protected speech.
E) journalists can be punished for reporting inaccurate information on political stories.

Question 54

What is the standard for determining guilt in criminal cases?

A) Guilt must be proven "beyond a reasonable doubt."
B) Guilt must be proven "beyond any possible doubt whatsoever."
C) Guilt is determined by "the preponderance of the evidence."
D) Guilt is determined by the "standard of reasonableness."
E) Guilt is determined according to different standards based on the severity of the crime.

Question 55

Members of Congress have frequently proposed a constitutional amendment to make flag burning a crime because

A) state laws that make flag burning a crime are too lenient.
B) state laws that make flag burning a crime are too harsh.
C) the only way to overturn the Supreme Court's ruling that flag burning is protected speech is through a constitutional amendment.
D) the Supreme Court has ruled that flag burning is a crime and that the Constitution should be updated to reflect this reality.
E) the Constitution must be made consistent with all of the state laws that also make flag burning a crime.

Question 56

The Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution deals with ________.

A) the right to bear arms
B) the quartering of troops
C) due process
D) cruel and unusual punishment
E) self-incrimination

Question 57

The Supreme Court justices do not give full protection to fighting words because

A) insults hurt people's feelings.
B) such words are not part of the essential exposition of ideas.
C) they are a form of sedition.
D) they are a form of obscenity.
E) they are necessarily slanderous.

Question 58

Which of the following statements about freedom of speech is true?

A) Free speech cannot be restricted by government officials.
B) Free speech can be regulated by government officials.
C) Free speech is an absolute right under the U.S. Constitution.
D) both a and c
E) Free speech is protected under the Second Amendment.

Question 59

________ prevents people from being tried twice for the same crime.

A) Self-incrimination
B) Double jeopardy
C) Exclusion
D) Unreasonable seizures
E) Cruel and unusual punishment

Question 60

The takings clause states that government may not take private property

A) for public use.
B) without prior notification.
C) without just compensation.
D) without giving it back in due time.
E) for any reason.

Question 61

The Eighth Amendment prohibits

A) double jeopardy.
B) cruel and unusual punishment.
C) denial of a lawyer in felony trials.
D) the violation of habeas corpus.
E) unlawful searches and seizures.

Question 62

A recent controversy that has tested the constitutional definition of "search and seizure" has been

A) physician-assisted suicide.
B) mandatory drug testing.
C) employers reading their employees' e-mail messages.
D) a mandatory waiting period for purchasing firearms.
E) attempts to restrict access to abortions.

Question 63

The right to legal counsel in a criminal proceeding is guaranteed by the ________ Amendment.

A) Fourth
B) Fifth
C) Sixth
D) Seventh
E) Eighth

Question 64

The term eminent domain describes the

A) power of the government to take private property for public use.
B) right of individuals not to have their private property taken by the government.
C) power of the Supreme Court to declare the meaning and scope of all civil liberties.
D) power of the federal government to seize land owned and managed by the states.
E) power of state governments to ignore a law enacted by the federal government.

Question 65

The requirement that a person under arrest be informed of his or her right to remain silent is known as the ________ rule.

A) Mapp
B) Gideon
C) Miranda
D) Escobedo
E) Benton

Question 66

Miranda v. Arizona (1966) was important because it produced rules that must be used

A) to determine if separation between church and state has been violated.
B) to judge whether or not printed materials are pornographic.
C) to determine if some element of the Bill of Rights should be applied to the states.
D) to determine whether a warrant should be issued for a police search.
E) by the police before questioning an arrested criminal suspect.

Question 67

The fact that federal judges have relied on a discretionary use of the exclusionary rule in recent years means that

A) states are no longer required to provide legal counsel to people accused of crimes.
B) states no longer have to follow the Miranda rule.
C) it is difficult to know whether a defendant will be protected from an illegal search under the Fourth Amendment.
D) defendants will never be protected from illegal searches under the Fourth Amendment.
E) defendants will always be protected from illegal searches under the Fourth Amendment.

Question 68

A woman's constitutional right to an abortion was established in ________.

A) Mapp v. Ohio (1961)
B) Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)
C) Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)
D) Miranda v. Arizona (1966)
E) Roe v. Wade (1973)

Question 69

What did the Supreme Court justices decide in Kelo v. City of New London (2005)?

A) Police officers must have probable cause before searching someone loitering on the street.
B) A city can seize land from private owners and transfer it to another private owner as part of a redevelopment program.
C) Individuals have restricted rights to free speech when they are on the property of private shopping malls.
D) City governments cannot establish their own school districts.
E) Using trained police dogs to look for drugs in cars stopped at roadblocks is unconstitutional.

Question 70

The Supreme Court justices formally articulated the right to privacy in a case involving

A) a law criminalizing abortion.
B) access to birth control.
C) the right to die.
D) the right to grow drugs for personal use.
E) sodomy laws.

Question 71

"Due process of law" in the United States is generally defined by the ________ amendments.

A) First, Second, Third, and Fourth
B) First, Second, Ninth, and Tenth
C) Second, Third, Fourth, and Fifth
D) Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth
E) Seventh, Eighth, Ninth, and Tenth

Question 72

________ imprisons more of its people than any other country on earth.

A) Russia
B) Rwanda
C) Iran
D) Brazil
E) The United States

Question 73

The right to remain silent is guaranteed by the ________ Amendment.

A) First
B) Second
C) Fifth
D) Sixth
E) Ninth

Question 74

The current prohibition on states to criminalize abortion is based on

A) the right to due process of law.
B) equal protection against sexual discrimination.
C) the right to privacy.
D) the right against cruel and unusual punishment.
E) the free exercise clause.

Question 75

Gideon v. Wainwright (1963) established the right

A) to counsel in felony cases.
B) against self-incrimination.
C) to be informed of constitutional rights at the time of arrest.
D) against suspicion-less searches and seizures.
E) to an open trial before a judge.

Question 76

The due process clause of the Fifth Amendment is best described as a(n) ________.

A) substantive civil liberty
B) procedural civil liberty
C) civil right
D) delegated power
E) instrumental power

Question 77

The Fourth Amendment protects against ________.

A) cruel and unusual punishment
B) unreasonable searches and seizures
C) self-incrimination
D) quartering military troops in private homes
E) prior restraint

Question 78

What is a grand jury?

A) a jury used in federal courts
B) a jury that determines whether there is enough evidence to justify a trial
C) a jury that determines the sentence after guilt has been proven
D) a jury that determines whether the rights of the accused have been violated
E) a jury that determines guilt or innocence in a trial

Question 79

Which of the following statements about America's prison population is FALSE?

A) The United States imprisons more people per every 100,000 citizens than Rwanda, South Africa, China, Brazil, and Israel.
B) African Americans make up about 38 percent of the prison population but only 13 percent of the overall population.
C) People convicted of violent crimes make up the majority of prison inmates.
D) There are almost no drug offenders in prison.
E) Women make up less than 10 percent of the prison population.

Question 80

The Terri Schiavo case was an example of

A) the controversy surrounding the so-called right to die.
B) the limits of the Fourth Amendment.
C) selective incorporation of the Bill of Rights.
D) the Supreme Court's difficulty in defining "cruel and unusual punishment."
E) the difference between the establishment clause and the free exercise clause.