The Supreme Court and Constitutional Law
Rulings on American Government and Society, Fourth Edition
by Jack Fruchtman
978-1-930398-05-4  © 2025  $43.00  ($34.40 to bookstores)

 
1   The Constitution, American Democracy, and the Supreme Court 1
The Development of the Constitution 2
The Place of the Judiciary 4
  Box 1.1 Appealing a Case to the Supreme Court 5
The Constitution, Constitutional Law, the Supreme Court 8
  Box 1.2 Judicial Philosophies 13
Opinions of the Court 17
  Box 1.3 Locating Judicial Opinions 18
The Court and the Issues of the Day 19
Judicial Review, Judicial Restraint, Judicial Activism: Cases 21
  1.1 Marbury v. Madison (1803) 24
  1.2 Griswold v. Connecticut (1965) 29
  Rulings in Context: the Constitution, American Democracy, and the Supreme Court 33
  Box 1.4 Recent Developments: Public Opinion, the "Emergency Docket" 34
Voting Rights: Cases 36
  1.3 Baker v. Carr (1962) 38
  1.4 Shaw v. Reno (1993) 42
  1.5 Shelby County v. Holder (2013)
  Rulings in Context: Voting Rights 46
 
2   Organizing Government and Sharing Powers 59
The Science of Federalism 59
Separation of Powers 63
Federalism and the Commerce Clause: Foundation Cases 64
  2.1 McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) 65
  2.2 Gibbons v. Ogden (1824) 72
Federalism and the Commerce Clause: New Deal and Civil Rights Cases 75
  2.3 National Labor Relations Board v. Jones & Laughlin Steel Corp. (1937) 75
  2.4 United States v. Darby Lumber Co. (1941) 80
  2.5 Heart of Atlanta Motel v. United States (1964) and Katzenbach v. McClung (1964) 85
Federalism and the Commerce Clause: Contemporary Cases 89
  2.6 United States v. Lopez (1995) 90
  2.7 National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius (2012) 96
  Rulings in Context: Federalism 105
The Separation of Powers: Cases 108
  2.8 Ex Parte Milligan (1866) 108
  2.9 Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer (1952) 112
  2.10 Biden v. Nebraska (2023) 119
  2.11 Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo (2024)
  2.12 Trump v. United States (2024) 131
  Rulings in Context: The Separation of Powers 142
 
3   The Religion Clauses 147
  Box 3.1 A Note on Incorporation 149
The Free Exercise of Religion: Cases 150
  3.1 Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972) 150
  3.2 Employment Division, Deptartment of Human Resources, Oregon. v. Smith (1990) 154
  3.3 Fulton v. Philadelphia (2021) 161
  Rulings in Context: The Free Exercise of Religion 166
The Establishment Clause: Cases 170
  3.4 Everson v. Board of Education of Ewing Township (1947) 170
  3.5 Engel v. Vitale (1962) 174
  3.6 McCreary v. ACLU (2005) 177
  Rulings in Context: The Establishment Clause 185
Religion as Speech: Cases 186
  3.7 Kennedy v. Bremerton School District (2022) 186
  3.8 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis (2023) 191
  Rulings in Context: Religious Liberty and Free Speech 196
 
4   Free Speech, A Free Press, Free Expression 199
Free Expression: Cases 202
  4.1 Schenck v. United States (1919) 202
  4.2 Gitlow v. New York (1925)
  4.3 Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969) 204
  4.4 Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District (1969) 211
  4.5 Texas v. Johnson (1989) 213
  4.6 Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010) 220
Free Press: Cases 224
  4.7 New York Times v. Sullivan (1964) 225
  4.8 New York Times Co. v. United States (1971) 228
  Rulings in Context: Free Speech, Expression, and the Press 230
 
5   Equal Protection of the Laws 233
The Meaning and Intention of the Fourteenth Amendment 234
Integration, Affirmative Action, and the Court 237
  Box 5.1 Three Judicial Tests for Deciding Equal Protection and Fundamental Rights Cases 241
Protection and Fundamental Rights Cases 241
Segregation and Desegregation: Cases 245
  5.1 Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) 245
  5.2 Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas (1954) 254
  Rulings in Context: Segregation and Desegregation 258
Affirmative Action and Race: Cases 260
  5.3 Adarand Constructors, Inc. v. Pena (1995)
  5.4 Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College and Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. University of North Carolina (2023) 268
  Rulings in Context: Affirmative Action and Race 276
Sex Discrimination: Case 278
  5.5 United States v. Virginia (1996) 279
  Rulings in Context: Non-Racial Classifications 283
 
6   Due Process of Law and Rights of the Accused 287
Procedural Due Process 287
Substantive Due Process 289
Due Process: Cases 290
  6.1 Lochner v. New York (1905) 291
  6.2 Gideon v. Wainwright (1963) 296
  6.3 Miranda v. Arizona (1968) 299
  6.4 Kyllo v. United States (2001) 304
Capital Punishment: Cases 309
  6.5 Atkins v. Virginia (2002) 309
  6.6 Roper v. Simmons (2005) 316
  6.7 Glossip v. Gross (2015) 324
The Right to Bear Arms: Cases 335
  6.8 McDonald v. City of Chicago (2010)
  6.9 New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen (2022) 343
  6.8 United States v. Rahimi (2024) 349
  Rulings in Context: The Right to Bear Arms 336
 
7   Privacy 357
"Discovering" Privacy in the Constitution 358
Abortion: Cases 361
  7.1 Roe v. Wade (1973) 361
  7.2 Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (2022) 369
  Rulings in Context: Abortion Rights 380
Right to Die: Case 383
  7.3 Gonzales v. Oregon (2006) 384
  Rulings in Context: Right to Die 388
Gay and Lesbian Rights: Cases 388
  7.4 Lawrence v. Texas (2003) 389
  7.5 Obergefell v. Hodges (2015) 397
  Rulings in Context: Gay and Lesbian Rights 404
 
Appendix: The United States Constitution A-1
 
Table of Cases C-1
 
Subject Index I-1
 
 
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