The Supreme Court and you: does it really matter who becomes a Supreme Court Justice?* OBJECTIVE Students should understand * that Supreme Court rulings can affect everyday life. * what factors Supreme Court Justices consider in making their decisions. * BACKGROUND Note: For the Supreme Court's decisions in the cases presented on p. 11 of the student issue, see p. T-8 of this Teacher's Edition. * What's in a Name: The v. in a court case's name stands for "versus" (against). Before the u. is the name of the petitioner--the person or group asking the Court to settle an issue. After the v. is the name of the respondent--the person or group accused of violating constitutional standards. * Order in the Court: Justices always sit or stand with the Chief in the center and the others in order of seniority. The Justice at the Chief's right has served on the Court the longest. The Justice on the Chief's left has served second-longest. Then back to the right, then left, alternating up to the most recent member. * CRITICAL THINKING MAKING CONNECTIONS: Which branch of the federal government must approve Supreme Court nominees? (legislative--the Senate) COMPREHENSION: When a new Justice is confirmed, how many members will the Supreme Court have? (Still nine; O'Connor will step down.) * ACTIVITY JUDGMENT DAY: Divide the class into odd-numbered "courts" to debate and decide the cases on p. 11. Does every group reach the same conclusion? What is the reasoning behind each decision? How do the kids' and the Court's decisions (see p. T-8) compare? STANDARDS SOCIAL STUDIES, GRADES 5-8 * Individuals, groups, and institutions: The Supreme Court plays a key role in the balance of federal power. * Civic ideals and practices: How Supreme Court rulings affect the lives of all Americans. RESOURCES * Billitteri, Thomas J., The Gault n. 1. (Geol.) A series of beds of clay and marl in the South of England, between the upper and lower greensand of the Cretaceous period. Case: Legal Rights for Young People (Enslow Publishers, 2000). Grades 6-12. * Herda, D. J., New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of Times v. United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. : National Security and Censorship (Enslow Publishers, 1994). Grades 6-12. WEB SITES * Federal courts teachers' info www.uscourts.gov/outreach /topics/index.html * Oyez [French, Hear ye.] A word used in some courts by the public crier to indicate that a proclamation is about to be made and to command attention to it. OYEZ, practice. Hear; do you hear. : Supreme Court info & audio www.oyez.org Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor Sandra Day O'Connor (born March 26 1930) is an American jurist who served as the first female Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1981 to 2006. She was considered a strict constructionist. is retiring. Will Judge Samuel A. Alito Jr. take her place? Only if he is confirmed (approved) by the Senate. Alito's confirmation hearings are due to begin on January 9. Right now, people all over the country are debating the nomination of Alito, who is known to have conservative views. You may wonder why his nomination matters so much. After all, what does the Supreme Court have to do with your everyday life? Probably more than you realize. It's Your Court Too Do you go to a public or private school? The Supreme Court protected your right to choose with its ruling in Pierce v. Society of Sisters Pierce v. Society of Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary, , was an early 20th century United States Supreme Court decision which significantly expanded coverage of the Due Process Clause in the Fourteenth (1925). The Court declared an Oregon law requiring children to attend public schools to be unconstitutional. If you are ever arrested and can't afford to hire a defense lawyer, the state must provide you with one. That was guaranteed by the ruling in Gideon v. Wainwright Gideon v. Wainwright, case decided in 1963 by the U.S. Supreme Court. Clarence Earl Gideon was convicted of a felony in a Florida court. He had defended himself after being denied a request for free counsel. (1963). For the first time in 11 years, there are changes in the Court's membership. How the Court rules in years to come is likely to affect your life in many ways. Can you think of some? Your Turn On p. 11, you will find basic information about two recent Supreme Court cases. (The actual arguments were more complex.) Read them, then make your ruling. * Remember: Base your decisions as much as possible on the Constitution, not on personal preferences or opinions. Case 1: MGM MGM in full Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc. U.S. corporation and film studio. It was formed when the film distributor Marcus Loew, who bought Metro Pictures in 1920, merged it with the Goldwyn production company in 1924 and with Louis B. Mayer Pictures in 1925. v. Grokster The situation: By law, only copyright holders can profit from copyrighted works, or give permission for their use. P2P See peer-to-peer and point-to-point. software makes it easy for people to download and share music and movies. (P2P is short for "peer-to-peer.") MGM and 27 other multimedia companies sued Grokster and other software companies to protect their copyrights. Arguments for MGM: Grokster encourages people to use P2P software. Grokster makes money by selling ads seen by people using its program. Most P2P users like sharing movies and music, much of which is copyrighted. Grokster should not be allowed to encourage and benefit from violations of copyright law. Arguments for Grokster: P2P software can be used legally as well as illegally. Good ways of file-sharing outweigh the bad. Grokster should not be held responsible for people who misuse its software. If that happens, free expression on the Internet will be limited. Fear of lawsuits will keep software companies from creating new programs for public use. The Constitution says: "[Congress has the power to] promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts Useful arts are concerned with the skills and methods of practical subjects such as manufacture and craftsmanship. The term "Useful Arts" is used in the United States Constitution, which is the basis of United States patent law: , by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive right to their ... Writings and Discoveries." * "Congress shall make no law ... abridging [cutting short] the freedom of speech, or of the press." You decide: Is a company that distributes and profits from file-sharing software legally responsible when users break copyright laws? Case 2: Rasul v. Bush Rasul v. Bush, 542 U.S. 466 (2004), is a landmark United States Supreme Court decision establishing that the U.S. court system has the authority to decide whether foreign nationals (non-U.S. citizens) held in Guantanamo Bay were rightfully imprisoned. The situation: During the 2001 U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, the U.S. military captured foreign nationals. They were transferred to a prison at Guantanamo Bay Noun 1. Guantanamo Bay - an inlet of the Caribbean Sea; a United States naval station was established on the bay in 1903 bay, embayment - an indentation of a shoreline larger than a cove but smaller than a gulf (Gitmo, for short). That is an area of Cuba controlled by the U.S. since 1903. Three Gitmo prisoners sued the U.S. government for holding them without formal charges, access to lawyers, and the right to a trial. One of the prisoners was a British citizen named Shafiq Rasul Shafiq Rasul (born April 15, 1977, in Dudley, West Midlands, England) is best known for being a detainee held at Guantanamo Bay by the United States, which treated him an unlawful combatant. His detainee ID number was 86. . Arguments for Rasul: U.S. law applies to everyone at Gitmo because, by treaty, the U.S. military controls that area. Foreign nationals have the same habeas corpus habeas corpus (hā`bēəs kôr`pəs) [Lat.,=you should have the body], writ directed by a judge to some person who is detaining another, commanding him to bring the body of the person in his custody at a specified time to a rights as U.S. citizens while in U.S. territory. The U.S. military must obey U.S. law. Arguments for Bush: Gitmo is in Cuba, so U.S. law doesn't apply. Miens held on foreign territory do not have the same rights under U.S. law as citizens. In wartime, the U.S. military must sometimes operate without being limited by U.S. courts. The Constitution says: "The Privilege of ... Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion [of the U.S.] the public Safety may require it." * "The Trial of all Crimes ... shall be by Jury; and ... held in the State where the said Crimes shall have been committed; but when not committed within any State, the Trial shall be at such Place or Places as the Congress may by Law have directed." You decide: Should the U.S. military observe U.S. laws when dealing with foreign nationals in its custody? Participating in both decisions: Chief Justice William Rehnquist Noun 1. William Rehnquist - United States jurist who served as an associate justice on the United States Supreme Court from 1972 until 1986, when he was appointed chief justice (born in 1924) Rehnquist, William Hubbs Rehnquist ; Associate Justices John Paul Stevens John Paul Stevens (born April 20, 1920) is currently the most senior Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. He joined the Court in 1975 and is the oldest and longest serving incumbent member of the Court. , Sandra Day O'Connor, Antonin Scalia, Anthony Kennedy This article is about the Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. For the Maryland senator, see Anthony Kennedy (Maryland). Anthony McLeod Kennedy (born July 23, 1936) has been an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court since 1988. , David Souter, Clarence Thomas Clarence Thomas (born June 23, 1948) is an American jurist and has been an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States since 1991. He is the second African American to serve on the nation's highest court, after Justice Thurgood Marshall. , Ruth Bader Ginsburg Ruth Joan Bader Ginsburg (born March 15 1933, Brooklyn, New York) is an Associate Justice on the U.S. Supreme Court. Having spent 13 years as a federal judge, but not being a career jurist, she is unique as a Supreme Court justice, having spent the majority of her career as an , Stephen Breyer Stephen Gerald Breyer (born August 15, 1938) is an American attorney, political figure, and jurist. Since 1994, he has served as an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. MGM v. GROKSTER Full/formal case name: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. et al. v. Grokster, Ltd., et al. Argued: March 29, 2005 * Decided: June 27, 2005 Vote: 9 to 0 in favor of MGM. Justice Souter delivered the decision. (Two lower courts had ruled in favor of Grokster.) What the Supreme Court said: "One who distributes a device with the object of promoting its use to infringe copyright, ... going beyond mere distribution with knowledge of third-party action, is liable for the resulting acts of infringement by third parties using the device, regardless of the device's lawful uses." What it means: Although the software has legal uses as well as illegal ones, Grokster did not merely make it available. Grokster promoted and benefited from widespread use of its product in ways that encouraged copyright infringement Noun 1. copyright infringement - a violation of the rights secured by a copyright infringement of copyright plagiarisation, plagiarization, piracy, plagiarism - the act of plagiarizing; taking someone's words or ideas as if they were your own . Therefore, it can be held legally responsible for the costs of widespread infringement. Effect of the ruling: Grokster settled with MGM and its fellow petitioners, paying $50 million. It has shut down until, as part of the agreement, it comes up with a version of its product that will be licensed and legal. (Note." Products like iTunes and iPods are not affected by this ruling, because Apple and many other music-sharing sites made arrangements with music companies to distribute music legally, and encourage legal use.) RASUL v. BUSH Full/formal case name: Rasul et al. v. Bush, President of the United States The head of the Executive Branch, one of the three branches of the federal government. The U.S. Constitution sets relatively strict requirements about who may serve as president and for how long. , et al. Argued: April 20, 2004 * Decided: June 28, 2004 Vote: 6 to 3 in favor of Rasul. Justice Stevens delivered the decision. (Rehnquist, Scalia, and Thomas dissented.) What the Supreme Court said: "United States courts "United States courts" may refer to:
in·car·cer·at·ed adj. Confined or trapped, as a hernia. at Guantanamo Bay." What it means: The U.S. has "complete jurisdiction and control" over Guantanamo Bay, so U.S. laws apply there. Noncitizens as well as citizens have habeas corpus rights. Gitmo detainees must be allowed access to U.S. courts. Effect of the ruling: Rasul had been released before the case reached the Supreme Court, but the ruling still enforces legal rights for other foreign-national detainees. Words to Know * foreign national: citizen of a country other than the U.S, * habeas corpus (HAY-bee-us KOR-pus): A legal order that an arrested person must he brought before a court and either charged with a crime or set free. (Habeas corpus is Latin for "you should have the body.") USA/WE THE PEOPLE: THE SUPREME COURT AND YOU, PAGES 10-11 * In each sentence below, change the boldfaced word or phrase to another one that will make the statement correct. 11. Samuel A. Alito, like any other Supreme Court nominee, cannot become a Justice unless approved by the President. 12. After being nominated to the Supreme Court, a person takes part in conversation hearings. 13. The Supreme Court's ruling in Gideon v. Wainright guarantees a trial to everyone who is arrested. 14. In the case of Roberts v. Bush, the Supreme Court had to rule on legal rights of foreign nationals in U.S. custody. 15. A basic legal standard called habeas crumpet crum·pet n. A small flat round of bread, baked on a griddle and usually served toasted. [Possibly from Middle English crompid (cake), curled (cake), probably past participle of requires arrested persons to be presented before a court or released. ANSWER 11. Senate 12. confirmation 13. lawyer 14. Rasul 15. corpus |
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