Research Report
BCJ 3950, Constitutional Law for Criminal Justice 1
Course Learning Outcomes for Unit VII Upon completion of this unit, students should be able to:
3. Relate property rights to rules of search and seizure. 3.1 Explain an individual’s property rights and the rules of search and seizure as they relate to civil
and criminal laws. 3.2 Describe how property rights and the rules of search and seizure have influenced the American
criminal justice system.
4. Explain protections of arrest and the right to counsel. 4.1 Analyze protections of arrest and the right to counsel as they relate to civil and criminal laws. 4.2 Describe how protections of arrest and the right to counsel have influenced the American
criminal justice system.
Reading Assignment Chapter 11: Substantive Due Process, Privacy, and Other Liberties, pp. 404-436 Chapter 12: Equal Protection, pp. 439-487
Unit Lesson We are now coming down to the last two units in this course. Each unit should be new information to you, and your constitutional knowledge and awareness should start to take shape. In Chapter 11 of your textbook, “Substantive Due Process, Privacy, and Other Liberties,” we will explore the Due Process Clause as it relates to our U.S. constitutional rights and protections in detail. If you remember in Chapter 8, we briefly explored the Due Process Clause; however, we will now further analyze the Due Process Clause providing for a two- dimension approach and analysis. The Due Process Clause can be broken down into two processes: procedural due process and substantive due process. Procedural due process requires the government both at the federal and state levels to treat persons fairly, while it attempts to interfere with their liberty interests and requires the government to process and safeguard individuals and their claims (Hall & Feldmeier, 2012). So what does this actually mean? The government should allow for a timeframe compatible and suitable for individuals to respond to a claim, provide for an appeals process, and ensure all claims are handled in a fair, balanced, and objective manner. Now, substantive due process is the second dimension of the Due Process Clause found in the Fifth (federal law) and Fourteenth (state law) Amendments to the U.S. Constitution. Substantive due process concerns the type of substance of behavior that is included as a “liberty” under the Due Process Clause, and examines the activities and protections, which are included under “liberty” (Hall & Feldmeier, 2012). Take a minute to think about the word liberty. In your perspective or definition, what does liberty mean to you? Each person sees liberty through their own personal lens and experiences in life. What should be noted is that the word liberty is not defined in the U.S. Constitution. Therefore, interpretation is left up to the U.S. Supreme Court. You should have noticed by this point in the course, the interpretation of the U.S. Constitution is often left up to the U.S. Supreme Court. The meaning of the word liberty may change and shift as America moves into the 21st century. Can the term liberty mean the same thing today as it did 200 years ago? Activities that were not protected in the past may nevertheless be deemed protected liberty interests today because modern society has come to expect protection for these activities (Hall & Feldmeier, 2012). Some of these revisions of liberties include but are not
UNIT VII STUDY GUIDE
Due Process & Equality
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limited to: a right to privacy, adult choices as it relates to sexual activity, parental decisions on how to raise children, travel, and one of the most controversial topics is a woman’s right to choose and decide her reproduction and pregnancy choices. The U.S. Supreme Court has not provided for certain liberties as it relates to the Due Process Clause in physician-assisted suicide, right to die, and the private use and consumption of illegal narcotics. However, as we move into the 21st century, one liberty that has been approved at the state level in some states (the use and production of marijuana). Give some time to think about this particular issue. Do you agree with legalizing marijuana? If so, did you think the legalization of marijuana would fall under the Due Process Class of the U.S. Constitution and American liberties? Moving onto Chapter 12, we will explore Equal Protection at the federal and state levels of government. Let’s first answer the following questions. Are all men created equal? Is there an inherent problem with how the question is presented? Keep these questions in mind as your read through this chapter in your textbook. According to the textbook, equality is the third primary value promoted by the U.S. Constitution, chiefly by the Due Process Clause and Equal Protection Clause, and provides for the nation that similarly situated persons ought to be treated similarly (Hall and Feldmeier, 2012). When we examine U.S. history, we can learn this has not always been the case or truth. Women and minorities were not considered equal; therefore, they did not have equal protection under federal or state law. If you read pages 442-433 of your textbook, you will learn how the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, Fifteenth, Nineteenth, Twenty-Fourth and Twenty-Sixth Amendments were ratified throughout U.S. history to include more well-rounded equal protection laws at the federal and state levels of government (Hall and Feldmeier, 2012). Think of a current issue that is happening in America today. Are there still groups and members of society not provided equal protection under the law? One possible example is the LBGT (lesbian, bisexual, gay, transgender) community. Is this segment of American society afforded equal protection under federal and state law? Some would argue yes, while others would disagree. Again, an individual’s perspective and religious beliefs often play a crucial role on how you view equality and protection under the law. When the U.S. Supreme Court hears and examines an equal protection case, there are three categories or classifications to determine discrimination: suspect classification, semi-suspect classification, and non- suspect classification. Suspect classification includes a type of discrimination that is highly questionable and deserves the highest form of judicial scrutiny (Hall & Feldmeier, 2012). Examples would include race and alienation as it relates to voting and/or marriage. Semi-suspect classification is discrimination that is partially or somewhat suspicious under the U.S. Constitution and deserves heightened scrutiny (Hall & Feldmeier, 2012). Examples include sex-based discrimination and discrimination based solely on legitimate or illegitimate children status. The third discrimination, non-suspect classification, is deemed “clean smelling” and is not suspicious under the U.S. Constitution and requires minimal scrutiny (Hall & Feldmeier, 2012). Examples include discrimination based on wealth, age, sexual orientation, education availability, welfare, and housing equality. To read in greater detail about classification as it relates to discrimination, please refer to pages 450- 451 of your textbook (Hall and Feldmeier, 2012). In your research report for Unit VII, you will examine some of these liberties and protections provided for in the U.S. Constitution, both at the civil level and criminal justice level. Please make sure you read both Chapters 11 and 12 so you can provide for a compelling and strong research report.
Reference Hall, D. E., & Feldmeier, J. P. (2012). Constitutional law: Governmental powers and individual freedoms (2nd
ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
Suggested Reading The following article discusses search and seizure in regards to privacy as was discussed in textbook and lesson. You are encouraged to review this information.
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In order to access the resource below, you must first log into the myCSU Student Portal and access the Academic Search Complete database within the CSU Online Library. Yeager, D. B. (1993). Search, seizure and the positive law: Expectations of privacy outside the Fourth
Amendment. Journal Of Criminal Law & Criminology, 84(2), 249-309. Review the PowerPoint presentations on Chapter 11 and Chapter 12 to supplement the textbook reading and lesson content. Chapter 11: Substantive Due Process, Privacy, and Other Liberties Click here to access the Chapter 11 PowerPoint presentation. Click here for the PDF version. Chapter 12: Equal Protection Click here to access the Chapter 12 PowerPoint presentation. Click here for the PDF version.
Learning Activities (Nongraded) Nongraded Learning Activities are provided to aid students in their course of study. You do not have to submit them. If you have questions, contact your instructor for further guidance and information. Choose one of the three assignments located under “Constitutional Law in Action” on pages 488-489 of your textbook. Complete the assignment.