Lecture 18-2

Religious Freedom

Religion and the Constitution

• The United States is a religiously diverse nation

• The Constitution protects religious freedom primarily through the establishment and free exercise clauses

Aid to Sectarian Schools

• The Supreme Court uses the Lemon test to judge whether state aid to sectarian school violated the Constitution Lemon v. Kurtzman

• Under the Lemon test, a policy must have:

Under the Lemon Test, a Policy Must Have:

• Secular purpose

• Neutral effect

• No excessive entanglement

Aid to Sectarian Schools

• Lemon v. Kurtzman

• Secular Purpose, Neutral Effect, No Excessive Entanglement

• Child Benefit Theory

Prayer in the Public Schools

• In several decisions the Supreme Court has maintained its opposition to religious exercises in the public school

– Engle v. Vitale (1962)

– Abington School Dist v. Schempp (1963)

• A law setting aside a moment of silence for prayer and meditation was also found to be a constitutional violation

Free Exercise of Religion

• Modern-day free exercise cases usually arise from a law that seems to have nothing to do with religion but that works a hardship as applied to a particular religious faith

• In such cases, the Supreme Court, until 1990, required that the law serve a compelling public purpose before one’s liberty could be infringed

Free Exercise of Religion

• A 1990 decision, however, indicated that the Court would no longer require religious exemption from the operation of criminal laws

Free Exercise Versus Nonestablishment of Religion

• Sometimes the values for free exercises and non establishment conflict

• Rigorous enforcement of one clause would probably involve a violation of the other

A Government of Laws

• The American system of criminal justice insists not simply that a person be proved guilty but that the guilt be proved in the legally prescribed way

• This is the concept of legal guilt

Criminal Procedure

• Rules guiding police, prosecutors, and judges strike a balance between the liberty and the safety of each citizen

• They include several basic principles, the precise definition of which change over time

Criminal Procedure

• They include several basic principles, the precise definition of which change over time

– Presumption of innocence

– Notice of charges (6^th)

– Limits on searches and arrests (4^th)

– Protection against self-incrimination (5^th)

– Assistance of counsel (6^th)

– Limits on punishment (8^th)

Search and Seizure

4^th Amendment

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized

Search and Seizure Cases

• Mapp v. Ohio (1961)

– Exclusionary Rule applied to the States

• Terry v. Ohio (1968)

– “Stop and frisk”

• Katz v. United States (1967)

– Warrants required for wiretapping

Cases

• Miranda v. Arizona

• Gregg v. Georgia

• Mapp v. Ohio

Right to Privacy

• Griswold v. Connecticut

• The abortion cases

– Roe v. Wade (1973),

– Webster v. Reproductive Health Services (1989)

Continuing Controversy

• The concept of privacy includes rights other than abortion

• But the Supreme Court still permits the states to ban certain kinds of intimate behavior