Question 1

Which of the following is true of the Bill of Rights when it was ratified in 1791?

Accepted Answer

The Bill of Rights was made up of ten amendments.

Question 2

The PATRIOT Act allowed what constitutionally questionable law enforcement technique to combat terrorists?

Accepted Answer

Roving wiretaps allowed law enforcement to track communication on all types of electronic devices without specifying the device or the individual being targeted, which raised concerns about violating the Fourth Amendment's protections against unreasonable search and seizure.

Question 3

What are the first ten amendments to the Constitution collectively known as?

Accepted Answer

The first ten amendments to the Constitution are known as the Bill of Rights.

Question 4

The Supreme Court applied the provisions of the Bill of Rights to the states through which of the following processes?

Accepted Answer

The process that the Supreme Court used to apply the provisions of the Bill of Rights to the states is called incorporation. This means that the Court applied the protections of the Bill of Rights to the states through the Due Process Clause of the 14th Amendment. This process began with the landmark case of Gitlow v. New York in 1925 and has continued through subsequent cases.

Question 5

What did the ruling in the 1833 Supreme Court case of Barron v. Baltimore hold?

Accepted Answer

The ruling in Barron v. Baltimore held that the Bill of Rights did not apply to state laws, meaning that states were free to make their own laws regarding individual rights without being constrained by the Bill of Rights. This concept was known as "dual federalism" and was prevalent in the early years of the United States, until the 14th Amendment was ratified in 1868, which extended the protections of the Bill of Rights to the states.

Question 6

When adopted, the Bill of Rights imposed limits on which of the following?

Accepted Answer

The Bill of Rights, when first adopted, imposed limits specifically on the national government, not on state governments or individuals. It was designed to prevent the federal government from infringing on certain fundamental rights and freedoms.

Question 7

What did the Bill of Rights do as originally presented in the Constitution?

Accepted Answer

The Bill of Rights, as originally presented in the Constitution, was designed to limit the powers of the national government, not those of the states. This was intended to ensure that the federal government could not infringe on the rights and freedoms of individuals. The application of the Bill of Rights to the states came later through the process of incorporation via the Fourteenth Amendment.

Question 8

What does the incorporation doctrine do?

Accepted Answer

The incorporation doctrine is the view that the provisions of the Bill of Rights are extended to individuals for protection against action by states. This means that the protections afforded by the Bill of Rights, which were initially intended to limit the power of the federal government, also apply to state governments.

Question 9

The view that most liberties and rights guaranteed in the Bill of Rights are protected from state government actions through the due process clause is known as what?

Accepted Answer

The incorporation theory holds that the due process clause of the 14th Amendment effectively incorporates most of the Bill of Rights and applies it to state governments. This means that state governments must respect the constitutional liberties and rights protected in the Bill of Rights, just as the federal government must.

Question 10

Which of the following best describes campus speech codes at state universities?

Accepted Answer

Campus speech codes have been challenged in court and many have been ruled unconstitutional as they infringe upon the First Amendment right to free speech. However, some institutions continue to enforce them, albeit with more narrow and specific language. Thus, option B is the correct choice.

Question 11

Over time, the Supreme Court has used which of the following provisions of the Constitution to apply the specifics of the Bill of Rights to the states?

Accepted Answer

The Supreme Court has used the Fourteenth Amendment's due process clause to apply the specifics of the Bill of Rights to the states. This process is known as incorporation, where certain provisions of the Bill of Rights are made applicable to the states through the due process clause. The Court has interpreted the due process clause to include a requirement that states must respect fundamental rights, including those enshrined in the Bill of Rights.

Question 12

Which 1868 amendment's passage allowed the potential for the application of the Bill of Rights to the states which adds several restrictions on what the states can do?

Accepted Answer

The Fourteenth Amendment, ratified in 1868, contains the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses, which have been interpreted by the Supreme Court to apply several parts of the Bill of Rights to state governments. This imposes limits on state actions regarding individual rights, such as freedom of speech, religion, and press under the First Amendment, and the right to bear arms under the Second Amendment, among others.

Question 13

Which of the following amendments has been construed to extend a constitutional limit on national power to state governments?

Accepted Answer

The Fourteenth Amendment has been construed to extend a constitutional limit on national power to state governments. Specifically, the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses of the amendment have been used by the Supreme Court to strike down state laws that violate individual rights or discriminate against minority groups.

Question 14

The ratification of which of the following amendments prompted the Supreme Court to begin applying the Bill of Rights to the states?

Accepted Answer

The Fourteenth Amendment, ratified in 1868, contains the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses, which have been used as a basis for the Supreme Court to apply most of the protections in the Bill of Rights to the states. This process is known as "incorporation."

Question 15

As originally written, the Bill of Rights limited the activities of which level(s) of government?

Accepted Answer

The Bill of Rights was originally written to limit the power of the national government and protect the individual rights of citizens. It was later applied to state governments through the incorporation doctrine, but this was not part of the original intention of the Bill of Rights.

Question 16

States are now obligated to protect most provisions of the Bill of Rights as a result of the Supreme Court's interpretation of which Fourteenth Amendment clause?

Accepted Answer

The Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment has been interpreted by the Supreme Court to incorporate most of the protections of the Bill of Rights, making them applicable to the states. This process is known as incorporation.

Question 17

Originally, the Bill of Rights limited only the power of which of the following?

Accepted Answer

The Bill of Rights was added to the United States Constitution in 1791 to limit the power of the national government and protect individual rights. It did not apply to state governments until the Fourteenth Amendment was ratified in 1868. Therefore, choice E is the best answer as it correctly identifies the level of government the Bill of Rights was intended to limit.

Question 18

Beginning in 1897, the Supreme Court slowly began to use the protection of "life, liberty, or property" in what clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to incorporate some of the provisions of the Bill of Rights as binding on the states?

Accepted Answer

The clause in the Fourteenth Amendment that the Supreme Court began to use to incorporate some provisions of the Bill of Rights as binding on the states was the due process clause, which states that no state shall "deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law." The Court interpreted this to mean that certain fundamental rights were protected by the due process clause and thus applicable to the states through incorporation.

Question 19

What did the USA PATRIOT Act do?

Accepted Answer

The USA PATRIOT Act (Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act) is a law passed by the U.S. Congress in response to the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. It expanded the government's ability to tap phones and monitor Internet traffic in the name of preventing terrorism. Other options mentioned in the question are not related to the content of the USA PATRIOT Act.

Question 20

Which of the following is required to obtain a warrant for wiretapping?

Accepted Answer

In order to obtain a warrant for wiretapping, law enforcement must have probable cause, which means they have sufficient evidence to believe that the wiretap will yield evidence of a specific crime. Absolute certainty and overwhelming evidence are not required, and reasonable cause and reasonable suspicion are not sufficient to obtain a warrant.

Quiz 4: Civil Liberties