Deck 4: Civil Liberties

Question 1

Most of the civil liberties afforded to Americans are outlined in

A) various acts of the Congress passed since 1861.
B) executive orders issued by the President since 1941.
C) Article I of the U.S. Constitution.
D) the Declaration of Independence.
E) the Bill of Rights.

Answer 1

the Bill of Rights.

Question 2

The establishment clause prevents the government from

A) owning national media services.
B) interfering in religious activities.
C) approving a national religion.
D) increasing the federal income tax.
E) maintaining a national draft.

Answer 2

approving a national religion.

Question 3

Which of the following U.S. Supreme Court rulings did NOT center on the establishment clause of the First Amendment?

A) Engel v. Vitale
B) Employment Division of Oregon v. Smith
C) Edwards v. Aguillard
D) Lee v. Weisman.
E) Grand Rapids v. Ball.

Answer 3

Employment Division of Oregon v. Smith

Question 4

The U.S. Supreme Court decision in Near v. Minnesota dealt with the issue of

A) the establishment clause.
B) the free exercise clause.
C) freedom of speech.
D) freedom of assembly.
E) freedom of the press.

Question 5

False, harmful statements made either through written or spoken media, often referred to as _____, is not a constitutionally-protected form of speech.

A) defamation
B) delegitimation
C) intonation
D) connotation
E) denotation

Question 6

The U.S. Supreme Court decision in New York Times Company v. United States dealt with the issue of

A) the establishment clause.
B) the free exercise clause.
C) freedom of speech.
D) freedom of assembly.
E) freedom of the press.

Question 7

The Federal Communications Commission is charged with

A) regulating the nation's broadcast media.
B) monitoring foreign intelligence communications.
C) assisting the Central Intelligence Agency in analyzing communications.
D) ensuring smooth communication between the U.S. government and the national media.
E) providing assistance to national election campaigns regarding media strategy.

Question 8

Which of the following is NOT part of a defendant's Miranda rights?

A) The right to consult an attorney during questioning.
B) The right to remain silent.
C) The right to stop answering questions at any time.
D) The right to an attorney at no cost if indigent.
E) The right to habeas corpus.

Question 9

The process that permits defendants to use the power of the courts to require witnesses to appear in court and to obtain needed documents that might be relevant to the case is known as the

A) voluntary process.
B) absentee process.
C) compulsory process.
D) counteracting process.
E) exclusionary rule.

Question 10

In Duncan v. Louisiana, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that _____ limited the authority of the states, as well as the federal government.

A) the right to trial by jury
B) freedom of assembly
C) freedom of religion
D) freedom of association
E) the right to bear arms

Question 11

Separate trials to determine guilt and to decide the appropriate sentence in death penalty cases are referred to as

A) dual procedures.
B) bifurcated proceedings.
C) two phase trials.
D) split trials.
E) procedural duplication.

Question 12

The pathway that has had the most impact on capital punishment is

A) grassroots mobilization pathway.
B) courts pathway.
C) lobbying decision-makers pathway.
D) cultural change pathway.
E) elections pathway.

Question 13

Arguments were presented in McCleskey v. Kemp (1987) that because minorities are more likely to receive the death penalty than whites accused of the same crime, the death penalty violates the

A) due process clause of the Fifth Amendment.
B) prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment in the Eighth Amendment.
C) right of confrontation in the Sixth Amendment.
D) prohibition against double jeopardy in the Fifth Amendment.
E) equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

Question 14

Since the 1974 decision Roe v. Wade, the percentage of

A) teenagers obtaining abortions has fallen.
B) married women obtaining abortions increased over time.
C) women aged 25 to 29 obtaining abortions has been reduced.
D) unmarried women obtaining abortions greatly decreased.
E) women aged 30 to 34 fell below 10 percent.

Question 15

If the Roe decision were overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court, the most likely impact would be that

A) abortion would be illegal across the county.
B) abortion would be legal across the country.
C) abortion law would devolve to the states, with some states prohibiting abortion and other maintaining those rights.
D) Congress would act to overturn the decision.
E) there would be no significant changes.

Question 16

In the Bowers v. Hardwick decision of 1986, the Supreme Court

A) recognized the constitutional right to privacy for the first time.
B) unanimously held that the Constitution did not ensure the right of homosexuals to participate in sodomy.
C) unanimously held that homosexuals were allowed the right to privacy in sexual matters.
D) in a divided opinion, held that the Constitution did not guarantee the right of homosexuals to engage in sodomy.
E) in a divided opinion, sided with Justice Blackman in citing that the "…right to be left alone" applied to the homosexual who engaged in sodomy in private.

Question 17

In its decision in the case of _____, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that laws criminalizing consensual sexual contact between people of the same sex were unconstitutional.

A) Bowers v. Hardwick
B) Loving v. Virginia
C) Griswold v. Connecticut
D) Texas v. Johnson
E) Lawrence v. Texas

Question 18

In District Attorney v. Osborne is an example of when the Supreme Court has limited the definition of a particular civil liberty and narrowed the meaning of due process.

Question 19

The establishment clause concerns the ability of individuals to practice the religion of their choice without government interference.

Question 20

In Texas v. Johnson, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that burning a flag during a political protest was a constitutionally protected form of free speech.

Question 21

A high school student wearing a T-shirt critical of the president is an example of symbolic speech, and her actions are supported by the decision in Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District.

Question 22

Under the "fighting words doctrine," the government can limit speech that undermines national security.

Question 23

The Federal Trade Commission, which regulates television and radio broadcasts, has the authority to impose fines for profanity and sexual content.

Question 24

The case of Gideon v. Wainwright incorporated the Sixth Amendment right to counsel to the states.

Question 25

In 2000, Illinois Governor George Ryan reinstituted the death penalty after a study concluded that the chance of executing an innocent were slim.

Question 26

The Bill of Rights was enacted in response to fears that

A) state governments were too weak.
B) the Constitution did not do enough to protect the rights of individuals.
C) the Constitution did too much to protect the rights of individuals.
D) the national government was too weak.
E) the majority threatened political stability in the United States.

Question 27

The _____ clause of the Fourteenth Amendment has been interpreted by the U.S. Supreme Court as providing specific liberties to protect individuals against actions by state and local government officials.

A) due process
B) equal protection
C) civil liberties
D) civil rights
E) equal rights

Question 28

Which of the following is NOT a liberty protected under the First Amendment?

A) The right to petition the government for redress
B) Freedom of religion
C) Freedom of speech
D) Freedom of the press
E) The right to bear arms

Question 29

Constitutional guarantees of freedom of speech, the press, religion, and the right to petition the government can all be found in the

A) First Amendment.
B) Second Amendment.
C) Third Amendment.
D) Fourth Amendment.
E) Fifth Amendment.

Question 30

The _____ clause can be characterized as providing freedom of religion.

A) due process
B) establishment
C) commerce
D) free exercise
E) strict scrutiny

Question 31

The __________ point of view says that government must adhere strictly to the principle of separation of church and state.

A) accommodationist
B) separationist
C) establishment
D) First Amendment
E) free exercise

Question 32

The U.S. Supreme Court decision in Lemon v. Kurtzman dealt with the issue of

A) the establishment clause.
B) the free exercise clause.
C) freedom of speech.
D) freedom of assembly.
E) freedom of the press.

Question 33

The U.S. Supreme Court invalidated mandatory instruction in creation science as an alternative to evolutionary theory in the case of

A) Edwards v. Aguillard.
B) Grand Rapids v. Ball.
C) Lee v. Weisman.
D) Sherbert v. Venner.
E) Tennessee v. Scopes.

Question 34

The free exercise clause of the First Amendment has been expanded largely through legal challenges mounted by which religious denomination?

A) Mormons
B) Roman Catholics
C) Orthodox Catholics
D) Muslims
E) Jehovah's Witnesses

Question 35

The U.S. Supreme Court decision in West Virginia v. Barnette dealt with the issue of

A) the establishment clause.
B) the free exercise clause.
C) freedom of speech.
D) freedom of assembly.
E) freedom of the press.

Question 36

The U.S. Supreme Court decision in Employment Division of Oregon v. Smith dealt with the issue of

A) the establishment clause.
B) the free exercise clause.
C) freedom of speech.
D) freedom of assembly.
E) freedom of the press.

Question 37

The _____ standard places the burden on the government to demonstrate the necessity of a specific law in order to outweigh an individual's specific rights.

A) strict scrutiny
B) general interest
C) public good
D) national security
E) clear and present danger

Question 38

Congress enacted the Religious Freedom Restoration Act in order to

A) eliminate the Lemon test.
B) overturn the Supreme Court's decision in Gonzales v. O Centro Espirita Benficiente Unaio do Vegetal.
C) establish the Office of Faith-Based Initiatives.
D) reinforce the free exercise clause.
E) reinforce the establishment clause.

Question 39

According to critics, barring sponsored prayers in public schools violates the individual expression of religion by students, demonstrating the tensions between

A) strict scrutiny and the general interest.
B) individual liberties and national security.
C) the establishment clause and the free exercise clause.
D) the First and Second Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
E) civil liberties and the First Amendment.

Question 40

Claims that prohibitions against prayer in public schools violate an individual's constitutional rights can be argued to be false because

A) the constitution specifically prohibits the establishment of a national religion but only suggests that the free exercise of religion is important.
B) under the Bill of Rights, individual liberties must always trump the collective will of society.
C) in a democracy, people will sacrifice for the collective good.
D) the prohibition against school prayer applies only to official endorsement of such prayer.
E) the Supreme Court has consistently upheld prayer in public schools.

Question 41

The clear and present danger test was established by the U.S. Supreme Court in its decision in the case of

A) Chaplinsky v. New Hampshire FCC v. Pacifica.
B) New York Times v. Sullivan.
C) Watts v. United States.
D) Virginia v. Black.
E) Schenck v. United States.

Question 42

In the famous majority opinion written in the case of Schenck v. United States, Oliver Wendell Holmes established the

A) clear and present danger test.
B) lemon test.
C) separate but equal doctrine.
D) right to bear arms.
E) legal protections for criminal due process.

Question 43

The U.S. Supreme Court decision in Brandenburg v. Ohio dealt with the issue of

A) the establishment clause.
B) the free exercise clause.
C) freedom of speech.
D) freedom of assembly.
E) freedom of the press.

Question 44

The form of speech typically viewed by the courts as least deserving of protection under the First Amendment is

A) political speech.
B) transformative speech.
C) commercial speech.
D) symbolic speech.
E) activist speech.

Question 45

The act of symbolic speech that led to the Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District case (1969) involved the

A) wearing of a black armband.
B) right of Nazis to march.
C) right of political speech.
D) burning of the American flag.
E) right of silent protest.

Question 46

Which of the following is NOT a limit on freedom of speech generally accepted by the courts as constitutional?

A) reasonable time
B) prior restraint
C) fighting words doctrine
D) reasonable place
E) manner restrictions

Question 47

In Texas v. Johnson, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that _____ was a constitutionally protected form of speech.

A) a march organized by the Ku Klux Klan
B) burning the American flag
C) wearing a black anti-war armband
D) yelling fire in a crowded theatre
E) calling for the overthrow of the U.S. government

Question 48

In what U.S. Supreme Court decision was the freedom of the press first included under the Fourteenth Amendment in an effort to protect individuals from actions by state and local officials?

A) Cantwell v. Connecticut
B) Near v. Minnesota
C) Hamilton v. Regents of the University of California
D) Gitlow v. New York
E) Tinker v. Des Moines

Question 49

The U.S. Supreme Court decision in Miller v. California dealt with the issue of

A) the establishment clause.
B) the free exercise clause.
C) freedom of speech.
D) freedom of assembly.
E) freedom of the press.

Question 50

The U.S. Supreme Court's majority opinion in the 1973 Miller v. California case was written by

A) Thurgood Marshall.
B) Lewis Powell.
C) William Rehnquist.
D) Warren Burger.
E) Sandra Day O'Connor.

Question 51

As a result of Miller v. California (1973), the current test for obscenity is based on

A) state law.
B) community standards.
C) legal precedent.
D) federal law.
E) opinions of Supreme Court justices.

Question 52

The agency charged with regulating television and radio broadcasts is the

A) U.S. Commerce Commission.
B) National Standards Agency.
C) Federal Telecommunications Bureau.
D) Federal Communications Commission.
E) National Broadcast Standards Agency.

Question 53

The exclusionary rule prevents

A) the prosecutor from using improperly obtained evidence.
B) criminal defendants from testifying against themselves.
C) the government from limiting freedom of speech.
D) the government from raising taxes without a 2/3 majority vote.
E) the Congress from overturning the acts of the Courts.

Question 54

The rule that prohibits illegally obtained evidence from being used against a criminal defendant is referred to as the

A) defendant protection act.
B) freedom of information act.
C) liberty protection rule.
D) exclusionary rule.
E) procedural justice rule.

Question 55

Before a judge will issue the police a warrant authorizing a search, the police must establish

A) the suspect's previous history of criminal activity.
B) that the evidence in question could not be obtained any other way.
C) clear evidence of a suspect's guilt.
D) probable cause.
E) that the evidence will inevitably be discovered.

Question 56

The Fifth Amendment protection against being tried twice of the same crime is generally referred to as the prohibition against

A) due process.
B) double jeopardy.
C) twin threats.
D) dual standing.
E) habeas corpus.

Question 57

The right to have an attorney present during police questioning while in custody emerged from the U.S. Supreme Court opinion in the case of

A) Chimel v. California.
B) Terry v. Ohio.
C) Miranda v. Arizona.
D) Cupp v. Murphy.
E) Lemon v. Kutzman.

Question 58

Criminal due process protections are found primarily in the

A) First Amendment.
B) Second Amendment.
C) Third Amendment.
D) Sixth Amendment.
E) Tenth Amendment.

Question 59

In 1996, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that constitutional guarantees to trial by jury were required only in cases of a serious nature punishable by more than six months in prison. This decision was made in the case of

A) Ross v. Moffit.
B) Lewis v. United States.
C) Johnson v. Zerbst.
D) Gideon v. Wainwright.
E) Argersinger v. Hamlin.

Question 60

In what year did the U.S. Supreme Court in Duncan v. Louisiana incorporate the right to trial by jury to the states?

A) 1808
B) 1867
C) 1904
D) 1968
E) The right to trial by jury has never been incorporated.

Question 61

Since the decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in Lewis v. United States in 1996, the right to a trial by jury has been interpreted as being required only in cases that

A) are serious in nature and punishable by at least six months or more in prison.
B) are serious in nature and punishable by at least one year in prison.
C) are serious in nature and punishable by at least five years in prison.
D) involve the death of another individual.
E) the defendant demands such a trial.

Question 62

In ___________, the Supreme Court ruled that the government must provide attorneys for all indigent defendants facing serious criminal charges in federal court.

A) Ross v. Moffit
B) Johnson v. Zerbst
C) Gideon v. Wainwright
D) Argersinger v. Hamlin
E) Bush v. Gore

Question 63

Out of the following examples, the right to counsel applies

A) in cases appealed to state supreme courts.
B) to petitions to the U.S. Supreme Court.
C) in lawsuits between private individuals.
D) to civil rights lawsuits brought against the U.S. government.
E) to indigents facing serious criminal charges in federal court.

Question 64

In its 1976 decision in the case of _____, the United States Supreme Court reactivated the death penalty in the United States.

A) Gregg v. Georgia
B) Furman v. Georgia
C) McClesky v. Kemp
D) Roberts v. Louisiana
E) Fierro v. Gomez

Question 65

In its decision in Furman v. Georgia, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled _____ unconstitutional.

A) the death penalty
B) a federal income tax
C) any restriction on free speech
D) attempt to limit free exercise of religion
E) eminent domain

Question 66

In the case of criminal law, bifurcated proceedings refers to the separation of

A) prosecution and defense witnesses.
B) trial and appellate courts.
C) guilt and sentencing phases.
D) judges and juries.
E) individual criminal defendants.

Question 67

In _____, the Supreme Court ruled that the death penalty was unconstitutional.

A) Chimel v. California
B) California v. Acevedo
C) Furman v. Georgia
D) Michigan State Police v. Sitz
E) Mapp v. Ohio

Question 68

In order to be defined as "cruel and unusual," punishment must

A) violate contemporary standards.
B) be disproportionate to the underlying crime.
C) both violate contemporary standards and be disproportionate to the underlying crime.
D) be illegal in at least 2/3 of the states.
E) be approved by the voters for general use.

Question 69

What case, decided by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1976, led to the reinstatement of the death penalty?

A) Trop v. Dulles
B) Gregg v. Georgia
C) Robinson v. California
D) Ring v. Arizona.
E) Miranda v. Arizona

Question 70

Because of _________________, since the mid-1970s over 130 persons sentenced to death for murder have been exonerated and released from death row.

A) U.S. District Court decisions
B) Fierro v. Gomez
C) advances in DNA technology
D) a more lenient judiciary
E) presidential pardons

Question 71

The U.S. Supreme Court first explicitly recognized a right to privacy in the 1965 case of

A) Craig v. Missouri.
B) Bunting v. Oregon.
C) Stuart v. Liard.
D) Griswold v. Connecticut.
E) Roe v. Wade.

Question 72

The Supreme Court's decision in the case of Roe v. Wade was made by a

A) 5-4 majority.
B) 6-3 majority.
C) 7-2 majority.
D) 8-1 majority.
E) 9-0 majority.

Question 73

In its decision in the case of _____, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Constitution afforded no privacy protection for gays and lesbians, specifically for homosexuals who engage in sodomy.

A) Roe v. Wade.
B) Griswold v. Connecticut.
C) Bowers v. Hardwick.
D) Marbury v. Madison.
E) Loving v. Virginia.

Question 74

Who was appointed in 1993 to replace Byron White on the U.S. Supreme Court?

A) John Paul Stevens
B) Anthony Kennedy
C) Ruth Bader Ginsburg
D) Stephen Breyer
E) John Roberts

Question 75

In its decision in the Lawrence v. Texas case, the U.S. Supreme Court

A) established the right of individuals to carry concealed weapons.
B) overturned a law criminalizing sexual contact between people of the same gender.
C) blocked states from executing mentally retarded individuals.
D) partially overturned Roe v. Wade.
E) declared prior restraint unconstitutional.

Question 76

The free exercise clause is often thought of as protecting freedom from religion.

Question 77

In West Virginia v. Barnette, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled any restrictions imposed on the free exercise of religion by the government were necessarily unconstitutional.

Question 78

Justice Holmes wrote the majority opinion in West Virginia v. Barnette (1943).

Question 79

In general, the government may only interfere in the free exercise of religion when there is a compelling government interest.

Question 80

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that schools could impose dress codes restricting the political speech of students in Tinker v. Des Moines.