Civil Liberties and Public Policy

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Civil Liberties and Public Policy
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Introduction

• Politics and government matter.
• Americans are apathetic about politics and
  government.
• Political decisions impact your daily life in
  some way, shape or form.

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Introduction

• The American Youth
• Few keep up with politics.
• Less likely to be informed.

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Introduction
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Government Politics

• Government
• The institutions and processes through which
  public policies are made for society.
• Politics
• How we elect our leaders and what our leaders do
  with government.

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The Policymaking System

• The process by which policy comes into being and
  evolves over time.
• Policymaking begins and ends with the people!
• Figure 1.4

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Linkage Institutions

• The institutions that LINK the American people
  it their government!
• Political Parties
• Elections
• News Entertainment Media
• Interest Groups
• Linkage systems often provide the push in cases
  with significant impact on community!

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Policy Agenda

• Political Issues
• These arise when people disagree about a problem
  and how to fix it.
• Some issues will be considered, and others will
  not.
• A governments policy agenda changes regularly.
• Taking issues to the Supreme Court, identifies
  political issues our society feels are important.

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Policymaking Institutions

• Legislature
• Congress
• House of Representatives
• Senate
• Executive
• President
• Cabinet Executive Offices
• Courts
• Federal and State
• Bureaucracies
• Federal and State

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Policy Impacts People

• Impacts of Policies
• Does it solve the problem?
• Does it create more problems?

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The Bill of RightsThen and Now

• Civil Liberties
• The legal constitutional protections against the
  government.
• The Bill of Rights and the States
• Written to restrict the national government.
• Most are incorporated into state and local
  laws.

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The Bill of RightsThen and Now
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The Bill of RightsThen and Now
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Freedom of Religion

• The Establishment Clause
• Congress shall make no law respecting the
  establishment of religion.
• The Free Exercise Clause
• Prohibits government from interfering with the
  practice of religion
• Some religious practices may conflict with other
  rights, and then be denied or punished

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Freedom of Expression

• Prior Restraint
• A government preventing material from being
  published.
• Censorship.
• May be permissible during wartime.
• Alien Sedition Acts of 1789.
• Espionage Act of 1917.
• May be punished after something is published.
• New York Times v. US 1971

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Freedom of Expression

• Free Speech and Public Order
• Limited if it presents a clear and present
  danger
• Defamation
• Fighting Words
• Speech in Special Places
• Permissible to advocate the violent overthrow of
  government in abstract, but not to incite anyone
  to imminent lawless action
• Limited if on private property, like a shopping
  center

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Freedom of Expression

• Free Press and Fair Trials
• The public has a right to know what happens.
• The press own information may not be protected.
• Shield Laws

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Freedom of Expression

• Obscenity
• No clear definition on what constitutes
  obscenity.
• Miller v. California stated that materials were
  obscene if the work
• appeals to a prurient interest in sex
• showed patently offensive sexual conduct
• lacks serious literary, artistic, political or
  scientific value

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Freedom of Expression

• Libel and Slander
• Libel
• The publication of false or malicious statements
  that damage someones reputation.
• Slander
• The same thing, only spoken instead of printed.
• Different standards
• private individuals v. public (politicians,
  celebrities) individuals
• Difficult to prove

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Freedom of Expression

• Symbolic Speech
• Nonverbal communication, such as burning a flag
  or wearing an armband.
• Generally protected speech.
• Constitutional to burn a flag (Texas v. Johnson).
• Form of protest
• Unconstitutional to burn a draft card.
• Defacing government property

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Freedom of Expression

• Commercial Speech
• Communication in the form of advertising.
• Generally the most restricted and regulated form
  of speech.
• License Plates government cannot make us mobile
  billboards.
• Regulation of the Public Airwaves
• Broadcast stations must follow FCC rules.
• Cable / satellite has blurred the lines.
• Ties in with obscenity.

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Freedom of Expression

• Freedom of Assembly
• Right to Assemble
• Generally permissible, but must meet reasonable
  local standards.
• Balance between freedom to assemble and order in
  society.
• Right to Associate
• Freedom to join groups / associations without
  government interference.
• Government cannot deny association due to
  societal norms.
• Communists organizations during 1950s, White
  Supremacy groups today.

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Defendants Rights

• Interpreting Defendants Rights
• Law enforcements are limited
• Bill of Rights
• Colonial Experience.
• Failure to follow the rules usually invalidates a
  conviction.
• Mapp v. Ohio exclusionary rule
• Miranda v. Arizona self-incrimination/attorney
  
• Gideon v. Wainwright right to counsel
• Courts continually rule on what is constitutional
  and what is not.

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Defendants Rights
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Defendants Rights

• Searches and Seizures
• Probable Cause
• The situation occurring when the police have
  reason to believe that a person should be
  arrested.
• This is more than a hunch!
• Unreasonable searches and seizures
• Evidence is obtained in a haphazard or random
  manner.
• Reasonable searches seizures
• Exclusionary Rule
• The rule that evidence, no matter how
  incriminating, cannot be introduced into trial if
  it was not constitutionally obtained.
• Mapp v. Ohio

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Defendants Rights

• Self-Incrimination
• The situation occurring when an individual
  accused of a crime is compelled to be a witness
  against himself or herself in court.
• Fifth Amendment
• Miranda warnings
• Entrapments may be overturned

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Defendants Rights

• The Right to Counsel
• The state must provide lawyers in most criminal
  cases.
• Sixth Amendment
• Gideon v. Wainwright
• Trials
• Plea bargaining
• An actual bargain between the prosecution and
  defense.
• Juries generally consist of 12 people
• Unanimity is not always needed to convict.

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Defendants Rights

• Cruel and Unusual Punishment
• Unreasonable Bail/Fines
• Bail Reform Act of 1984
• United States v. Salerno
• The Death Penalty
• Varies from state to state
• Cannot be mandatory
• Seen as constitutional
• Furman v. Georgia (1972)
• Gregg v. Georgia (1976)

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The Right to Privacy

• Is There a Right to Privacy?
• The right to a private personal live free from
  the intrusion of government.
• Not explicitly stated in the Constitution
• Implied by the Fourth Ninth Amendment
• Very debatable
• Griswold v. Connecticut marital privacy v.
  Bowers v. Hardwick sexual privacy
• Lawerence v. Texas changed precedent!

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The Right to Privacy

• Controversy over Abortion
• Roe v. Wade (1973)
• Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992)
• Protections of those seeking an abortion
• Rights of protesters

When should abortions be legal?
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Understanding Civil Liberties

• Civil Liberties and Democracy
• People need the right to express themselves.
• Courts continue to define the limits of civil
  liberties.
• Civil Liberties and the Scope of Government
• Must decide the line between freedom order
• Civil liberties limit the scope of government