Landmark Supreme Court Cases 3.11

hi and welcome back to mr. Raymond Civic COC Academy where today we will continue to look at the judicial branch we are mostly going to be looking at landmark Supreme Court cases and these are famous court cases that have changed the way that the United States operates and we'll show you the power of the judicial branch and the US Supreme Court now last time we looked at how the judicial branch is set up what the US Constitution says about this branch its main power of judicial review and what courts handle different types of cases so if you haven't watched that go to our channel and check it out and our benchmark explains that the Supreme Court case is that you're going to need to know for your state exam our Marbury v Madison Plessy v Ferguson Brown versus the Board of Education Gideon versus Wainwright Miranda versus Arizona INRI Gault which is in reference to called Tinka versus Des Moines Hazelwood versus kuhlmeier the US versus Nixon and Bush versus Gore and just a reminder teachers that this PowerPoint with lesson plans activities worksheets and more are available teachers pay teacher's and Edmodo spotlights just search for mr. Raymond Civic COC Academy now the first landmark Supreme Court case you need to know is Marbury vs. Madison we looked at this case in our last video because this case produced the main power of the Supreme Court and the federal judicial branch known as judicial review judicial review is the power to declare laws unconstitutional if you know nothing else about Marbury vs. Madison other than judicial review you'll probably still get the question correct on your exam Marbury was a judge appointed by John Adams in 1801 after he had already lost the election to the incoming president Thomas Jefferson Jefferson's Secretary of State James Madison who you may know as the father of the Constitution and a future president refused to give the appointment letter to Marbury this was a fight between Federalist John Adams and anti-federalists and now Democratic Republican Thomas Jefferson at the time it was still a little unclear about what the job the Supreme Court was now Chief Justice John Marshall who happened to be Thomas Jefferson's cousin was able to clarify what the job of the court was in the ruling of this case justice Marshall laid out the job of the judicial branch when he declared that the US Constitution was the supreme law of the land and that it was the judicial branch's job to interpret laws as they pertain to the US Constitution in other words should a law be a law according to the Constitution he claimed that a law involved in the case that gave Marbury his job was not constitutional and therefore it should not be a law he claimed that if a law goes against the Constitution it is the judicial branches to strike down that law making it null and void and again this is called judicial review with the establishment of judicial review the three branches of the government were truly much closer to being equal remember our checks and balances where the three branches were supposed to share power and keep each other in line judicial review is the main chat that the judicial branch has on the other two branches their ability to stop them from doing something wrong therefore the big thing you need to know about Marbury vs. Madison is that this case established the power of judicial review this is almost guaranteed to be a question on your state exam next we're going to be looking at Fourteenth Amendment cases now hopefully you remember from our previous videos the power of the Fourteenth Amendment you might remember that it defines citizenship following the Civil War it also stated for the first time that state laws must be constitutional in other words the states could not violate any of your rights now the 14th amendment also states that no state shall deny any person quote equal protection under the law unquote and it's these essential words that provide the basis for appeal in the first two cases we'll look at Plessy vs. Ferguson and Brown vs the Board of Education of Topeka Kansas this first case took place in 1890 at a time of great racial tension especially in the south just thirty years after the Civil War and the abolition of slavery Homer Plessy was a man in Louisiana who was one-eighth african-american now Plessy was an activist which means he was someone who wanted to change things in America he's kind of like the Rosa Parks of the 1890s he had gotten on a train in Louisiana with the intention of getting arrested to fight segregation remember segregation was the legal policy of trying to keep blacks and whites separate plus he bought a first-class train ticket and informed the conductor that he was one-eighth african-american he was a guy who could kind of pass her being white when the conductor informed him that by law he would have to get into the all-black train car he refused and was arrested when Plessy was found guilty he sued the judge Ferguson claiming that his Fourteenth Amendment rights to equal protection under the law had been violated plus his case made its way up to the US Supreme Court where the court ruled that public facilities could be segregated as long as they were equal for this reason the case is often referred to as the separate-but-equal case the precedent and again all of these cases establish precedents which are rules that will guide future cases the precedent allowed segregationist laws to spread throughout the south that are often referred to as Jim Crow laws that provided different accommodations between blacks and whites for everything from water fountains to restaurants signs went up all over the south as a result of this case 60 years later the calls for the extension of civil rights for African Americans took hold in America we've discussed Brown versus the Board of Education in several videos before this the segregationist laws that existed in many parts of America were being challenged and this case combines several cases of african-americans suing over segregationist school logs Linda Brown a seven-year-old girl from Topeka Kansas who was forced to go to an all-black school despite the fact that she lived right near an all-white school was the name chosen to represent these different lawsuits because hers was a case that wasn't in the south but was in the Midwest and the court wanted to send a message that this wasn't just a southern problem the Supreme Court voted in a unanimous decision that segregating schools based on race was wrong and a violation of the 14th Amendment's promise to provide equal protection under the law in the opinion and an opinion is what the Supreme Court writes to explain their decision Chief Justice Earl Warren wrote that the precedent of separate-but-equal established by Plessy versus Ferguson had no place in public education that simply by separating based on race these laws created an unequal situation therefore Brown versus the Board of Education overturned Plessy versus Ferguson and open the door to challenge segregation throughout the United States another case that appealed under the 14th Amendment's Due Process Clause was the case of in re Gault or in reference to Gault the unusual name for this case is because this was a juvenile case involving a minor or son under the age of 18 Gerald Gault was a fifteen year old accused of making an obscene phone call to his neighbor now rules for juveniles accused of crimes can be different from those of adults God's parents were not told that their son had been arrested and were not allowed to attend the hearings in which a judge sentenced the youth to six years in a detention center as this was not his first offense six years for making a prank phone call now during these hearings Gault was never given a lawyer was never allowed to present a defense the Supreme Court ruled that Galt's guarantee of due process in the 14th amendment again due process the rights and rules that the government must follow and give for those who are accused of crime these rights had been violated this ruling established the precedent that even juveniles must have protection from self-incrimination as guaranteed by the Fifth Amendment as well as the right to a lawyer and to confront once accuser with witnesses for your own defense as guaranteed by the sixth amendment to everyone not just adults following in regaled juveniles could not be denied the same due process rights that adults are guaranteed next we're going to look at First Amendment or free speech cases both of which involve the of students with tinker versus the Des Moines Iowa School District and Hazelwood school district versus kalamata tinker versus Des Moines was the case of three students who were wearing black armbands to school to protest the Vietnam War the students were suspended by the school and sued claiming their First Amendment rights to free speech have been violated the court ruled seven to two in favor of the students in the opinion delivered by justice Abe Fortas the court claimed that the protest did not disrupt the learning environment and that quote the students did not shed their First Amendment rights at the schoolhouse gates the court also ruled that free speech is more than just words and it can include clothing or art or any way that people choose to express themselves this precedent continues to be debated for students who believe that their free speech rights are being violated as we have seen more schools impose uniforms and dress codes but courts have ruled in favor of school districts in cases since tinker V Des Moines and one of those cases is Hazelwood school district versus Coleman now Hazelwood versus Cole Meyer is the case of a student newspaper which was gonna include two articles that the school found inappropriate after the articles had been removed from the paper the students sued claiming that their first memorized of free speech and freedom of the press have been violated after the trial court found in favor of the school the students took their case to the Federal Court of Appeals which overturned the ruling finding in favor of the students the school appealed to the US Supreme Court which ruled in their favor the Supreme Court ruled that because the newspaper was sponsored by the school the principal could take out articles that would be damaging to the reputation of the students and the school now Hazelwood vs. Kalmar further established the precedent that students rights at school were not unrestricted in the ways that adults are in the real world with this case the court seemed to want to give the schools back some of the powers to limit juvenile rights in favor of maintaining environment that's focused on the next area of cases we're going to look at our rights of eq's which again hopefully by now no a due process right and these includes amendments four through eight of the bill of rights the first case is that of Clarence Gideon who had been convicted of breaking and entering and stealing money and property from a bar in Florida Gideon was unable to afford a lawyer and the right to a free attorney was only guaranteed by federal courts at this time not state courts like Florida Gideon wrote to the Supreme Court from prison and explained that he had requested an attorney from the state but had been turned down the Supreme Court took on Gideon's case in a move to resolve this issue the Supreme Court ruled that everyone was entitled to a lawyer and that a state must provide one if a defendant can't afford one now most of you have probably heard of the Miranda rights you have the right to remain silent anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law you have the right to an attorney if you cannot afford one one will be provided by the state thanks Gideon yes the Miranda rights are named after Ernesto Miranda now Miranda was found guilty of a serious crime but his lawyer was able to argue that Miranda a man with the intelligence of a child did not know he had the right to a lawyer or to remain silent as provided by the six and Fifth Amendment's now Miranda was accused of a very serious crime and very few Supreme Court cases involve serious crimes so the court was really looking to change the way the police operate some people are opposed to giving suspected criminals additional rights but the court was looking to establish rules for police interrogation as a result of this case police officers are required to notify people who have been placed under arrest that they have the right to remain silent and the right to a lawyer and this one case has changed the way that police have to operate in our country now two of our last cases involve the Supreme Court ruling on the executive branch of the federal government and these are the US government versus President Nixon and George Bush versus Al Gore the case of the you government versus President Nixon was a result of what was known as the Watergate scandal which took place during the early 70s the Watergate scandal was when burglars were caught breaking and entering into the Democratic election headquarters at the Watergate Hotel in Washington DC investigators helped by reporters from the Washington Post were able to trace the break-in back to employees linked to President Nixon now during the investigation it was revealed that President Nixon had tape recorders going in the Oval Office of the White House when the investigation asked Nixon to turn over the tapes he refused claiming executive privilege now this case heard by the Supreme Court was a big question of the power of the President and the rule of law or whether the law applied to even the president in the end the court ruled against President Nixon and forced him to turn over the tapes the rule of law was greatly strengthened with its rallying cry that nobody not even the president is above the law next is Bush vs. gore the presidential election of the year 2000 between Vice President Al Gore and former Texas Governor and son of a former president george w bush was incredibly close the electoral vote came down to one state Florida where ballot regularities were being questioned in a few counties lawyers for Al Gore questions some of the results and it was found that some of the ballots were not working in the machines that count them gore supporters sued and the Florida Supreme Court ruled in Al Gore's favor and called for a recount of the ballots meanwhile for days and days and days America was unsure of who the next president would be Bush's camp appealed to the US Supreme Court who ruled in his favor and stopped the county which gave the election to Bush by a few hundred votes this case is still controversial because there's nothing about this in the US Constitution and many disagree with the idea that the Supreme Court should be deciding elections this election also demonstrates how important it is for everyone to vote for a presidential election of over a hundred million votes this election came down to a few hundred votes truly demonstrating that every vote counts finally we will look at a case about the Second Amendment which guarantees the right to bear arms and this is known as DC versus Heller and as we see here this was an historic victory for gun rights gun rights has become a very controversial issue in today's climate of mass shootings in America and this is one that is debated by politicians and people alike DC or the District of Columbia is unique and that it's not a state nor is it part of any state a law pass had made it illegal to own personal handguns in the district now dick Heller was a police officer who lived in DC and needed a firearm for work but was not allowed to have one in his home a special interest group called the Cato Institute sought out candidates like Heller to challenge the constitutionality of this law the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Second Amendment and stated that citizens had the constitutional right to own handguns for self-defense in DC now this was the first time that the Supreme Court ruled on the right to bear arms and this only applies to DC so this is an issue that still might be on so it's interesting to look at the makeup of the court of the five justices who voted to uphold the Second Amendment all five were appointed by Republican presidents and Republicans are the party that favored the absolute right to own car while the four who voted against it were appointed by Democratic presidents the party that is more likely to vote for gun control and this shows the political significance of presidential appointments this is likely to not be the last time the court rules on the Second Amendment as the debate over gun control increases in America and that concludes our look at the Supreme Court and the landmark cases up next is the rule of law on different types of laws but before we go there let's review as this video is getting kind of long I'm going to cruise through these multiple-choice state exam practice questions if you want to spend more time with the is just hit pause for each one okay what is the power to say whether a law or government action goes against the Constitution remember the power is called judicial review the power to declare law unconstitutional which power was given when Chief Justice John Marshall declared actions by the executive branch unconstitutional you know that one its judicial review anytime you see John Marshall think judicial review okay there is again justice marshal tablished judicial review and he said that the Constitution was quote the supreme law of the land what is filed when the Supreme Court wants to review a decision of a lower court it is this weird sounding word it is a petition for a writ of cert what is the most important part of judicial review as it pertains to the judicial branch what does it give this branch okay the most important part is that it gives them equal power as the other two branches so here's an example Congress proposes an amendment the Supreme Court rules that it's unconstitutional what does this event illustrate checks and balances all right judicial review is the big check for the judicial branch what case would most likely be heard by the US Supreme Court would it be a murder conviction jury can't decide the outcome most cases are a case in which rights are involved all right it's usually about rights when it gets to the Supreme Court which case extended the 14th Amendment's guarantee to equal protection was a Plessy Brown versus Board of Education tanker versus Des Moines well Brown versus Board of Education extended that 14th amendments equal protection under the law which case was known as separate but equal well it wasn't very equal this was not a good one it was Plessy versus Ferguson remember Plessy is the separate but equal case okay Gideon versus Wainwright Miranda versus Arizona these expand did the rights for people who accused of the crime okay when the Supreme Court ruled in Brown versus Board of Education that separate but equal has no place in schools they were again going back to that equal protection of the law as guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment okay which headline shows us judicial review Congress passes the civil rights law there it is New York State's plan ruled unconstitutional judicial review declaring something unconstitutional why has Gideon versus Wainwright and Miranda versus Arizona been criticized well some people don't really like the fact that this is giving more rights to people accused of crimes okay and that is it I know it's been a long one up next again we've got the rule of law and types of laws so be sure to subscribe just reminder teachers that this PowerPoint lesson plans activities worksheets etc are all available at Teachers Pay Teachers just search for mr. Raymond civic COC Academy thanks for watching guys

Channel: Mr. Raymond's Social Studies Academy

Views: 203,740

Keywords: US Supreme Court Landmark Cases, Civics, Civics EOC, Florida Civics EOC, Mr. Raymond's Civics EOC Academy, Marbury v. Madison, Plessy v. Ferguson, Brown v. Board of Education, Gideon v. Wainright, Miranda v. Arizona, In re' Gault, Tinker v. Des Moines, Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier, US v. Nixon, Bush v. Gore, Judicial Review, Seperate but equal, Due Process Rights, Free Speech, social studies, teaching US Supreme Court, landmark supreme court explained

Id: P_cy_ueZoX8

Length: 20min 57sec (1257 seconds)

Published: Mon Feb 01 2016