CONSTITUTIONAL LAW

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CHAPTER 5

• CONSTITUTIONAL LAW
• Part II

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FREEDOM OF RELIGION

• The Establishment Clause refers to part of the
  First Amendment, Congress shall make no law
  respecting an establishment of religion
• The separation of church and state is derived
  from this clause.

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FREEDOM OF RELIGION (CONT.)

• The Free Exercise Clause refers to part of the
  First Amendment, Congress shall make no
  lawreligion, or prohibiting the free exercise
  thereof
• Unless it impedes public policy, the government
  must accommodate an individuals religious
  beliefs.

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SELF-INCRIMINATION

• Location Fifth Amendment
• Wording No person shall be compelled to be a
  witness against himself.
• Purpose In a federal proceeding, an accused
  person need not subject himself to criminal
  prosecution through his own testimony.
• Are corporations protected under the Fifth
  Amendment?

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SELF-INCRIMINATION (CONT.)

• No, because they are legal entities, and not
  natural persons.
• Are the business records of partnerships
  protected under the Fifth Amendment?
• No, however, sole proprietorships are
  protected because they function in only one
  capacity there is no separate business entity.
• Example Case 5.2, Verniero v. Beverly Hills
  Ltd., Inc.

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SEARCHES AND SEIZURES

• Location Fourth Amendment
• Wording right of the people to be secure in
  their persons, houses, papers, and effects.
• Purpose Protects individuals from search and
  seizure of their private property without
  probable cause.
• What is probable cause?

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PROBABLE CAUSE

• Requirement of law enforcement officials to
  have trustworthy evidence convincing a reasonable
  person that the proposed search or seizure is
  more likely justified, than not.
• That is, law enforcement officials must
  furnish probable cause to obtain a search
  warrant, an order from a judge or other public
  official authorizing the search or seizure.

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SEARCHES AND SEIZURES IN THE BUSINESS CONTEXT

• Can government inspectors search business
  premises without a warrant?
• No, however, the standard of probable cause is
  significantly less, than for an individual.
• Exceptions do exist the seizure of spoiled
  or contaminated food. Also, warrants are not
  required in highly regulated industries liquor,
  guns, and strip mining.

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THE PRIVILEDGES AND IMMUNITIES CLAUSE

• Location Article IV, Section 2
• Wording Citizens of each State shall be
  entitled to all Priviledges and Immunities of
  Citizens in the several States.
• Purpose A foreign state must have a substantial
  reason to treat a nonresident differently from
  its own residents.

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FULL FAITH AND CREDIT CLAUSE

• Location Article IV, Section 1
• Wording Full Faith and Credit shall be given
  in each State to the public Acts, Records, and
  judicial Proceedings of every other State.
• Purpose Ensures rights established under deeds,
  wills, contracts, and the like in one state will
  be honored by other states and any judicial
  decision with respect to such property rights
  will be honored and enforced in all states.

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DUE PROCESS

• Location Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments
• Wording no person shall be deprived of life,
  liberty, or property without due process of law.
• Breadth Corporations, as well as natural persons

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PROCEDURAL DUE PROCESS

• Requirement that any government decision to
  take life, liberty, or property must be made
  equitably.

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SUBSTANTIVE DUE PROCESS

• Requirement that a compelling or overriding
  state interest must exist for a law or government
  action to limit fundamental rights, such as
  interstate travel, privacy, voting, and all First
  Amendment rights.

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EQUAL PROTECTION

• Location Fourteenth Amendment
• Wording A state may not deny to any person
  within its jurisdiction the equal protection of
  the laws.
• Breadth State governments the Fifth Amendment
  covers equal protection by the federal government
• Purpose Instructs government to treat similarly
  situated individuals in a similar manner.

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EQUAL PROTECTION (CONT.)

• If a law or action prohibits or inhibits some
  persons from exercising a fundamental right, it
  is subject to strict scrutiny.
• Strict Scrutiny A standard that
  classification must be necessary to promote a
  compelling state interest. If this is based on a
  suspect trait (race, national origin, or
  citizenship status) it must still promote a
  compelling state interest.
• Compelling State Interest a remedy for past
  unconstitutional or illegal discrimination not
  a correction of the general effects of
  societys discrimination.

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EQUAL PROTECTION (CONT.)

• Intermediate Scrutiny A standard applied in
  cases involving discrimination based on gender or
  legitimacy requiring laws using these
  classifications to be substantially related to
  important government objectives.
• Rational Basis Test In matters of economic
  or social welfare, the classification will be
  considered valid if there is any conceivable
  rational basis on which the classification might
  relate to a legitimate government interest.
• Example Case 5.3, WHS Realty Co. v. Town of
  Morristown

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PRIVACY RIGHTS

• Where are privacy rights found in the
  Constitution?
• Nowhere, the Constitution affords no specific
  guarantee of a right to privacy. This right is
  derived from the First, Third, Fourth, Fifth, and
  Ninth Amendments.
• Under civil law, invasion of anothers privacy
  is a tort or civil wrong.