Constitutional Law And the Criminal Justice System 6th Edition by J. Scott Harr – Test Bank

Complete Test Bank With Answers

 

 

Sample Questions Posted Below

 

1. The First Amendment specifically prohibits Congress from making any laws that restrict freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, and:

a. privacy. b. to petition the government.

c. the presumption of innocence. d. travel.

ANSWER: b

REFERENCES: 121

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.6 – 1

2. Protected forms of speech include all of the following, except:

a. burning the American flag.

b. protesting abortion clinics.

c. advocating the violent overthrow of the government.

d. swearing at a law enforcement officer.

ANSWER: c

REFERENCES: 140

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.36 – 1, 2, 5

3. Which of the following is a permissible restriction on speech?

a. Defamation. b. Political rhetoric

c. Criticism of the government d. Depictions of animal cruelty

ANSWER: a

REFERENCES: 142-143

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.15.1 – 6

4. As   , law enforcement officers’ speech is protected by the First Amendment only if it is a matter of

public concern or unrelated to employment.

a. officers of the court b. members of the Executive branch

c. public employees d. private citizens

ANSWER: c

REFERENCES: 150

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.5 – 9

5. The Supreme Court upheld prison regulations that are “reasonably related to legitimate penological interests” using

the:

a. clear and present danger test b. rational basis test

c. strict scrutiny test d. clear and probable danger test

ANSWER: b

REFERENCES: 160

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.10 – 11

6. Hamilton v. Regents of the University of California (1934), involving compulsory military training, was one of the earliest cases regarding:

a. freedom of the press. b. freedom of religion.

c. freedom of speech. d. freedom to assemble.

ANSWER: b

REFERENCES: 125

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.20 – 3

7. In Everson v. Board of Education (1947), the Supreme Court cited Thomas Jefferson, stating that the

  was intended to erect a “wall of separation between Church and State.”

a. establishment of religion clause

b. free exercise clause

c. separation of parochial and secular schools

d. ”excessive entanglement” test

ANSWER: a

REFERENCES: 132

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.37 – 1, 2, 4

8. Freedom of the press protects:

a. the right to publish information without governmental control.

b. magazine publishers from being told they can’t print obscene material.

c. the public from the publication of offensive material.

d. press premises from being searched by law enforcement.

ANSWER: a

REFERENCES: 152

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.17 – 10

9. The Espionage Act, passed by Congress in 1917:

a. empowered the President to expel “dangerous aliens.”

b. made it illegal to interfere with recruiting or drafting soldiers or any act that adversely affected military morale.

c. made it illegal to write or speak “with the intent to defame” the government.

d. made it illegal to provide material support to terrorist organizations.

10. The ‘Lemon’ test regarding separation of church and state required that any law challenged under the

establishment clause must meet all of the following criteria, except:

a. have a primary secular purpose.

b. have a principle effect that neither advances nor inhibits religion.

c. have a principle effect that either advances or inhibits religion.

d. not generate excessive entanglement between government and religion.

ANSWER: c

REFERENCES: 126

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.15 – 4

11. The right to peaceful assembly:

a. permits anyone to enter private property to assert protected speech.

b. involves the right to assemble in public places.

c. permits demonstrations on the property of private abortion clinics.

d. cannot be restricted under any circumstances.

ANSWER: b

REFERENCES: 157-158

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.38 – 1, 2

12. Which of the following is not subject to regulation by the state to protect societal interests under the free exercise clause?

a. Performance of autopsies.

b. Requiring Boy Scouts to promise to “Love God.”

c. Requiring Amish to put orange reflectors on their buggies.

d. Ingestion of illegal drugs in religious ceremonies.

ANSWER: b

REFERENCES: 128-129

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.39 – 2, 4

13. Control of the press during the Persian Gulf War was:

a. absolute. b. close to 100 percent.

c. fairly lax. d. nonexistent.

ANSWER: b

REFERENCES: 153

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.17 – 10

14. Under the First Amendment, there is an absolute freedom to:

a. speak b. act

c. protest d. believe

ANSWER: d

REFERENCES: 129

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.28 – 1, 2, 3

15. Judicial activism is:

a. unconstitutional.

b. when judges interpret the Constitution and its amendments

c. a violation of due process.

d. all of the above.

ANSWER: b

REFERENCES: 132

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.38 – 1, 2

16. The Supreme Court struck down a law banning computer­generated or “virtual” child pornography in:

a. Prewitt v. State of Arizona ex rel. Eyman (1969).

b. Procunier v. Martinez (1974).

c. City of Ladue v. Gilleo (1994).

d. Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union (1997).

ANSWER: d

REFERENCES: 150

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.31 – 4, 5

17. The Supreme Court ruled that cities may not prohibit yard signs in:

a. Prewitt v. State of Arizona ex rel. Eyman (1969).

b. Procunier v. Martinez (1974).

c. City of Ladue v. Gilleo (1994).

d. Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union (1997).

ANSWER: c

REFERENCES: 138-139

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.40 – 5, 9

18. The Smith Act (1940):

a. banned nude dancing.

b. made it unlawful to advocate overthrowing the government by force.

c. established national standards for obscenity.

d. established the ‘clear and probable danger’ test.

19. In order for speech to be considered obscene, and thus not protected by the First Amendment, it must be all of the following except:

a. the work arouses erotic sexual interest.

b. the work taken as a whole appeals to the prurient interest in sex.

c. it portrays sexual conduct in a patently offensive way.

d. the work taken as a whole does not have a serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value.

ANSWER: a

REFERENCES: 146

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.15.1 – 6

20. Which of the following is not part of the three­part test in determining “imminent lawless action”?

a. The speaker subjectively intended incitement.

b. In context, the words used were likely to produce imminent, lawless action

c. the words used by the speaker objectively encouraged and urged incitement.

d. the words used by the speaker caused excitement.

ANSWER: d

REFERENCES: 141

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.11 – 7

21. Religious freedom includes all of the following, except:

a. the freedom to worship. b. freedom to print instructional material.

c. freedom to train teachers. d. prayer conducted in public schools.

ANSWER: d

REFERENCES: 125

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.20 – 3

22. Freedom of the press was made binding on the states through the Fourteenth Amendment in Near v. Minnesota

(1931), in which the Supreme Court ruled that:

a. no newspaper could be banned because of its contents, regardless how scandalous.

b. obscenity is not a constitutionally protected form of speech.

c. government may halt publication of books that endanger national security.

d. the press has no constitutional right to disregard promises of confidentiality.

ANSWER: a

23. “Whether the gravity of the evil discounted by its improbability, justifies such invasion of free speech as is necessary to avoid the danger” is called the:

a. clear and probable danger test b. clear and present danger test

c. imminent lawless action test d. imminent probable danger test

ANSWER: a

REFERENCES: 140

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.15.1 – 6

24. The Supreme Court justified the screening of inmate mail in:

a. Prewitt v. State of Arizona ex rel. Eyman (1969).

b. Procunier v. Martinez (1974).

c. City of Ladue v. Gilleo (1994).

d. Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union (1997).

ANSWER: a

REFERENCES: 161

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.10 – 11

25. The establishment clause of the First Amendment sets forth all of the following, except:

a. Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.

b. Congress is prohibited from establishing a national church.

c. Congress may establish a national church if three-fourths of the states vote to ratify.

d. government cannot show preference to any particular religion.

ANSWER: c

REFERENCES: 125

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.15 – 4

26. In the case of Texas v. Johnson (1989), the Supreme Court ruled: “If there is a bedrock principle underlying the First Amendment, it is that the government may not prohibit the expression of an idea simply because society finds the idea itself offensive or disagreeable.” This case involved:

a. child pornography b. flag burning

c. cross burning d. nude dancing

ANSWER: b

REFERENCES: 137

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.5 – 9

27. The Supreme Court placed restrictions on the censorship of inmate mail in:

a. Prewitt v. State of Arizona ex rel. Eyman (1969).

b. Procunier v. Martinez (1974).

c. City of Ladue v. Gilleo (1994).

d. Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union (1997).

ANSWER: b

REFERENCES: 161

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.10 – 11

28. The Supreme Court held that obscenity is not a constitutionally protected form of free speech in:

a. Near v. Minnesota. b. Cohen v. Cowles Media Company.

c. Roth v. United States. d. the Zenger case.

ANSWER: c

REFERENCES: 153

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.15.1 – 6

29. Standards to define obscenity were set forth in:

a. Near v. Minnesota. b. the Zenger case.

c. Edwards v. City of Goldsboro, NC. d. Miller v. California.

ANSWER: d

REFERENCES: 153

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.17 – 10

30. The first guarantee to be made applicable to the states through incorporation was:

a. freedom of religion. b. freedom to assemble.

c. freedom of speech. d. freedom of the press.

ANSWER: c

REFERENCES: 133

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.6 – 1

31. Many states apply a higher fighting words standard to law enforcement officers because they are expected to exercise a higher degree of restraint than the average citizen.

a. True

b. False

ANSWER: True

REFERENCES: 146

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.11 – 7

32. In Virginia v. Black, the Supreme Court ruled the singular act of cross burning was not a form of free speech protected by the First Amendment.

a. True

b. False

ANSWER: False

REFERENCES: 138

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.5 – 9

33. The Supreme Court has ruled that states cannot require children to pledge allegiance to the United States each day.

a. True

b. False

ANSWER: True

REFERENCES: 129

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.41 – 1, 4

34. The Supreme Court has ruled that Americans have a free-speech right to pass out anonymous political pamphlets.

a. True

b. False

ANSWER: True

REFERENCES: 154

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.17 – 10

35. The United States has been a model of religious tolerance throughout history.

a. True

b. False

ANSWER: False

REFERENCES: 124

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.6 – 1

36. Any officer who speaks in public on an employment matter is not protected by the First Amendment.

a. True

b. False

ANSWER: True

REFERENCES: 148

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.2 – 8

37. In the 1999 case of Chicago v. Morales, the Supreme Court upheld an “anti­loitering” ordinance, stating that the definition of illegal loitering as “to remain in any one place with no apparent purpose” was not unconstitutionally vague.

a. True

b. False

ANSWER: False

REFERENCES: 158

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.6 – 1

38. The court has no duty to protect those who come before it from undue adverse publicity.

a. True

b. False

ANSWER: False

REFERENCES: 154

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.17 – 10

39. In Virginia v. Black (2003), the Supreme Court held that a law banning cross burning as a hate crime itself is unconstitutional because the law presumes hate is the purpose—without more evidence, cross burning is deemed a protected form of speech.

a. True

b. False

ANSWER: True

REFERENCES: 138

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.5 – 9

40. Government’s restriction of the press through use of prior restraint is rare in the United States and most other

democratic countries.

a. True

b. False

ANSWER: True

REFERENCES: 152

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.17 – 10

41. The First Amendment provision that prohibits the government from creating a national church is the

  clause.

ANSWER: establishment

REFERENCES: 125

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.15 – 4

42. The Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 was declared  by the Supreme Court.

ANSWER: unconstitutional

REFERENCES: 129-130

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.10 – 11

43. In upholding the free speech right of anonymous pamphleteering, the Supreme Court held that “Anonymity is a shield from the tyranny of the   .”

ANSWER: majority

REFERENCES: 154

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.17 – 10

44. In determining when speech should not be protected, the courts replaced the clear and present danger test with the  test.

ANSWER: imminent lawless action

REFERENCES: 141

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.11 – 7

45. No rights are absolute, so government can regulate them when  outweigh those of the individual.

ANSWER: social interests

REFERENCES: 123

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.13 – 2

46. The constitutionality of prison regulations that restrict prisoners’ First Amendment rights are judged by using a

  test.

ANSWER: rational basis

REFERENCES: 160

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.10 – 11

47. Balancing society’s need for law and order and for effective law enforcement against the   of

individuals is known as the balancing test.

ANSWER: privacy rights

REFERENCES: 141

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.11 – 7

48. The free exercise of religion involves both the freedom to believe and the freedom to  .

ANSWER: act

REFERENCES: 129

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.23 – 3, 4

49. Historically, freedom of the press has been attached to the general concept of  .

ANSWER: censorship

REFERENCES: 152

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.17 – 10

50. Rank the four basic freedoms guaranteed by the First Amendment in descending order of importance to you, then explain why you rank them as you do.

ANSWER: The four basic First Amendment freedoms addressed in this chapter include freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of the press and freedom of peaceable assembly. Students’ rankings and reasons will vary.

REFERENCES: 122

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.6 – 1

51. Discuss the delicate balance being struck by the Court in achieving the separation of church and state in schools.

ANSWER: Made applicable to the states in Everson v. Board of Education (1947), the Court ruled in this case that no constitutional violation occurred, as the reimbursement policy applied to parochial and public school students alike. Later cases ruled that reading Bible verses and moments of silence for meditation or voluntary prayer were unconstitutional. In the Lemon case, the Court found secular and religious education so tightly intertwined that supporting one without supporting the other would be

virtually impossible, Laws requiring the posting of the Ten Commandments have been struck down, but students have been given the right to hold religious meetings in

public high schools outside class hours. The issue is a case-by-case challenge to the Court and ultimately, no clear set of rules has been defined to determine the outcomes of these types of cases.

REFERENCES: 125-128

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.23 – 3, 4

52. Discuss the constitutionality of flag burning. Explain your feelings about this symbolic act and whether it should be constitutionally protected.

ANSWER:

Although highly controversial, flag burning is not unconstitutional. Proposed constitutional amendments to ban flag desecration have been narrowly defeated several times. In its landmark Texas v. Johnson (1989) ruling, the Supreme Court held that burning an American flag as a political protest is “symbolic speech” protected by the First and Fourteenth Amendments. In response Congress passed the Flag Protection Act of 1989 which, in United States v. Eichman (1990), the Court struck down on the grounds set forth in Johnson. Students’ opinions on this issue will vary.

REFERENCES: 137

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.5 – 9

53. Discuss the evolution of the “imminent lawless action” test.

ANSWER: Restrictions on freedom of speech began with the Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798.

There followed the Espionage Act of 1917, and the Court’s application of a “clear and present danger” test in 1925 and a “clear and probable danger” test in 1951. Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969) led to adoption of the “imminent lawless action” test, a three-part test to determine whether certain communication intentionally urges incitement and, thus, is not protected by the First Amendment. The approach has

also been called the balancing test. Such a test might be used to determine if statements or other speech were used so as to create a threat to public safety or to incite others to commit lawless acts.

REFERENCES: 141

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.11 – 7

54. Discuss how protestors are protected and restricted by the First Amendment.

ANSWER: The First Amendment protects protestors’ right to speak out about issues and to gather peacefully, on public or quasi-public property, to demonstrate their causes. It restricts their ability to infringe on others’ privacy rights, to interfere with public access to businesses, or to engage in any unlawful activity in support of their demonstration (vandalism, noise ordinances, harassment, assault, etc.; refer to Table

6.2.)

REFERENCES: 142-143

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:  CLCJ.HAHE.14.42 – 1, 5, 6

55. Why is Snyder v. Phelps (2012) an important First Amendment case?

ANSWER: The case shows: (1) the First Amendment to protect someone from state court liability for what they have said, (2) matters of “public concern” which are defined as those relating to issues of social, legal, or other community concerns, hold a high price in the protected speech area, and (3) how contextual free speech issues are when determining what can and cannot be restricted in reference to time, place, and manner.

REFERENCES:  143

56. Freedom of the press is the first right set forth in the Bill of Rights because of the suppression of newspapers in the early American colonies.

a. True

b. False

ANSWER: False

REFERENCES:  124

57. Religious freedom includes the freedom to print instructional materials to train religious teachers and to organize religious schools.

a. True

b. False

ANSWER: True

REFERENCES:  125

58. Conscientious objection to military service based on religious beliefs is not a constitutional issue since everyone has a duty to serve their country.

a. True

b. False

ANSWER: False

REFERENCES:  125

59. Everson v. Board of Education made the separation of church and state, as well as the Establishment Clause, applicable to the states.

a. True

b. False

ANSWER: True

REFERENCES:  126

60. Van Orden v. Perry and McCreary County v. ACLU were similar cases dealing with the Establishment Clause in

2004, but yielded vastly different rulings. a. True

b. False

ANSWER: True

REFERENCES:  127

61.

separated.

championed the theory that government and religion need not, and in fact cannot, be completely

ANSWER: Van Orden v. Perry

REFERENCES:  128

62. Lynch v. Donnelly dealt with issues involving the  Clause of the United States Constitution.

ANSWER: Free Exercise

REFERENCES:  129

63. The Supreme Court has consistently held that offensive.

ANSWER: speech

REFERENCES:  133

may not be prohibited simply because some find it

64. Freedom of speech is subject to the legal standard of

compelling government interest that justifies the law impacting it.

ANSWER: strict scrutiny

REFERENCES:  134

in which the state must establish it has a

65. A form of speech that expresses an idea or emotion without the use of words is known as .

ANSWER: symbolic speech

REFERENCES:  135

66. The case of Texas v. Johnson found that  was protected speech. a. burning the United States flag

b. burning a cross

c. burning a draft card d. shouting at a judge

ANSWER: a

REFERENCES:  137

67. In Barnes v. Glen Theater, it was found that nude dancing a. enjoyed some First Amendment protection.

b. laws were subject to a strict scrutiny test. c. had no First Amendment protections.

d. constituted obscenity.

ANSWER: a

REFERENCES:  138

68. The Supreme Court in R.A.V. v. City of St. Paul found that burning a cross was a. a hate crime.

b. subject to First Amendment protection. c. unconstitutional.

d. none of the above.

ANSWER: b

REFERENCES:  138

69. In the City of Ladue v. Gilleo, the Supreme Court found that  involve free speech protections. a. nude dancing

b. campaign ads c. yard signs

d. bumper stickers

ANSWER: c

REFERENCES:  139

70. The “clear and present danger test”

a. is used to test when speech should not be protected by the First Amendment. b. has been replaced by the “imminent lawless action” test.

c. involves Constitutional cases involving foreign countries. d. demands obedience to the government.

ANSWER:  b

71. Should prisoners have the same rights under the First Amendment as law abiding citizens? Why or why not?

ANSWER: Prisoners’ rights based on the First Amendment involve censorship of mail, expression within the institution, association within the institution, religion, appearance, and visitation rights. All of these have been somewhat limited by Supreme Court decisions, as long as they are reasonably related to legitimate penological interests. Students may advocate for even stricter reductions because the individual is a criminal.

REFERENCES:  160-161

72. You represent a famous journalist who has been incarcerated for failure to disclose a confidential source to a prosecutor working on a murder case in your town. The prosecutor insists she needs all available information to convict a loathsome murderer. How would you argue to the judge that your client should not be imprisoned?

ANSWER: Freedom of the press is important for a free society, but criminals must be prosecuted. The court needs to balance the interests of the journalist with the need to support law enforcement. There is a clear tension between the constitutional right of the journalist and law enforcement desires. It is important for the student to recognize that the journalist has a right that must be respected and should not be casually infringed merely to improve the case of the prosecutor. Unless the information is relevant and crucial to the prosecution, the student should argue to the judge that the journalist has a right worth protecting under the Constitution.

REFERENCES:  152-154

73. A young man told a few people that he had served in Afghanistan and was awarded the Silver Star. Unfortunately, one of these people told a newspaper reporter that she suspected he was being untruthful and the young man found himself on the cover of the newspaper with the headline, “Liar!”  The local prosecutor intends to prosecute your client under a law forbidding lying about military service. Everyone in town is angry about the case.  This young man has come into your legal office asking you to represent him. He has been rejected by many attorneys in town.

Would you take the case? Why or why not?

ANSWER: This scenario asks the student to step in the shoes of an attorney asked to represent a person who is being charged with a reprehensible offense.  Taking the case would certainly make the students a target for unhappy citizens and might hurt his or her standing in the community. On the other hand, the student should recognize the importance of defending an individual, especially in the circumstances. The free-speech rights of the young man are arguably at issue here and the attorney could make a good argument that the law is overreaching, since the young man has not really made any profit from it and this would not be fraud. Additionally, it could have been a bit of bragging that went a bit too far. All these arguments are possible if the student is willing to act in the best interest of the client and the justice system at large.

REFERENCES:  148

74. A group of women who are mothers of young children killed by handguns has decided to protest. The local police chief refuses to enforce any gun control or gun violence legislation in her county, because she feels it won’t work and infringes on the Second Amendment. The women’s group decides they will protest at an upcoming policeman’s funeral. Do you think that the protesters should be subject to arrest? Why or why not?

ANSWER: This raises many questions about freedom of speech and right to peaceful assembly, so the student should be able to articulate several arguments in support of the protesters.

REFERENCES:  158

75. A student at a local high school insists on wearing a T-Shirt, some say advocates white supremacy ideologies, in a predominantly African-American school.  Using the preferred freedoms approach, convince the school board to allow the student to wear the shirt to class.

ANSWER: This approach stresses that civil liberties have a preferred position among other constitutional values. The burden lies on the government or school to show the clear and present danger that exists when the freedom is exercised.  Here, the student would argue that upsetting other students does not create a clear and present danger.  Wearing an offensive T-Shirt, under this approach, must be tolerated to have a democracy.

REFERENCES:  141