HIS/301: United States Constitution

Wk 4 – Signature Assignment: Supreme Court Decisions on the Bill of Rights [due Mon]

Assignment Content

1. This assignment is designed to help you analyze civil liberties found in the U.S. Bill of Rights (i.e., the first ten amendments) and the role of the U.S. Supreme Court in upholding them through landmark cases. A landmark case is one where the Supreme Court’s ruling has historical significance because it defines what the amendment means/how it is applied. _____________________________
   ASSIGNMENT
   • From the list below pick one topic as the primary subject of your assignment: Freedom of Speech, Freedom of Religion, or Privacy/Law Enforcement Warrants.
   • Within your selected topic, choose *three* of the landmark cases/rulings listed.
   • Analyze how the three cases apply to the topic.
   • Topic: First Amendment – Freedom of Speech and Free Expression
   • Iancu v. Brunetti (2019)
   • Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission (2018)
   • Matal v. Tam (2017)
   • Elonis v. United States (2015)
   • Reed v. Town of Gilbert (2015)
   • United States v. Alvarez (2012)
   • Virginia v. Black (2003)
   • Texas v. Johnson (1989) 
   • Brandenburg v. Ohio (1968)
   • Topic: First Amendment – Freedom of Religion
   • American Legion v. American Humanist Association (2019)
   • Holt v. Hobbs (2015)
   • Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. (2014)
   • Engel v. Vitale (1962)
   • Everson v. Board of Education (1947)
   • West Virginia Board of Education v. Barnette (1943)
   • Minersville School District v. Gobitis (1940)
   • Topic: Fourth Amendment & Privacy / Law Enforcement Warrants
   • Mitchell v. Wisconsin (2019)
   • Carpenter v. United States (2018)
   • United States v. Jones (2012)
   • Kyllo v. United States (2001)
   • United States v. Knotts (1982)
   • Terry v. Ohio (1968)
   • Katz v. United States (1967)
   • Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)
   • Mapp v. Ohio (1961)
   • Olmstead v. United States (1928)
   • Choose Submission Format – select one
   • Create a 10- to 12 slide presentation (Microsoft® PowerPoint® or a program of your choice) with speaker notes in a separate word document. Do not put your speaker’s notes into the notes section of PowerPoint; Blackboard’s inline grading feature cannot read them and therefore I cannot see them.
   • Write an 875-word paper.
   • Argument Structure
   • Introduction – what topic is your presentation or paper about? What topic and three cases will you analyze?
   • Summarize the details of the cases chosen. What happened? Who sued and why? How did the cases reach the Supreme Court?
   • Explain which of the U.S. Bill of Rights applied to the facts of the cases.
   • Evaluate how the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in each case and why. What is it about each case that makes it a landmark ruling? Discuss whether or not you think the Court’s interpretation of the specific amendment from the U.S. Bill of Rights was correct in the rulings, and why.
   • Discuss how the three cases relate to the topic, do they work together to limit a right or protect a right?
   • Conclusion – summarize the main points of your presentation or paper.
   • Reference list – list the sources you used in your presentation or paper.