Constitutional Law - Patrice's

1. Privileges and Immunities Clause-“No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States”;
2. Due Process Clause-“nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty or property without due process of law;
3. Equal Protection Clause-“nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws”.

“Congress shall have power to enforce by appropriate legislation the provisions of this article.

1. To encourage absolute equality of the two races before the law
2. The amend. did not intend to abolish distinctions based on color or to enforce social as distinguished from political equality or a commingling of the two races upon terms unsatisfactory to either.
1. E.g. Political Equality-Protected-Jury Exclusion Laws (Strauder)
2. E.g. Social Equality-Unprotected-Blacks and White associating

1. The Supreme Court read § 1 narrowly. Limitation of the privileges or immunities clause to rights distinctive to national citizenship such as interstate travel. Rejected Framer’s intent of the to protect civil rights such as common law rights to hold property and enter contracts.

1. Court overturned a West Virginia statute excluding any but “white male persons” from juries.
2. The law of the States shall be the same for the black as for the white; all persons regardless of color shall stand equal before the laws of the States.
3. The amend. was primarily designed to protect the “colored race”.
4. The exclusion of blacks from juries was unconstitutional because the exclusion branded an assertion of inferiority.

1. Facts. The Supreme Court invalidated as beyond the power of Congress the 1875 Civil Rights Act’s federal remedy for private racial discrimination.
2. Holding. The 14^th amend. was aimed at discriminatory state laws not discriminatory private action.

1. Two Fold Meaning of Plessy:
1. The States have more power
1. States were allowed to exercise their police power
2. Federal Government has less power
2. Importance of Plessy:
1. The 14^th amend. gives political equality
2. J.Brown -distinguished between laws interfering with political equality of the negro such as jury exclusion (Strauder) and those requiring the separation of the two races in schools, theatres and railway carriages.
3. J.Brown- Inferiority-constructed by the race
4. Two Possible Outcomes When a State Creates a Statute
1. (1) Supreme Court-the State defines a person’s race (2) the State can decide which races will associate
5. Harlan’s Dissent
1. “Our Constitution is color-blind, and neither knows nor tolerates classes among citizens”
2. Plessy encourages inferiority amongst the races.
3. The statute was meant to segregate blacks from railway cars occupied by whites and interferes with the personal freedom of citizens
4. The law is not supposed to have a distinction on the basis of color

1. Plessy and Brown-At what point does the court begin to act like the King?
2. Brown

Classification. Facially Racial Holding. The 14^th amend. forbids States to use their governmental powers to bar children on racial grounds from attending schools where there is a state participation through any arrangement, management, funds or property.Holding. In the field of education, the doctrine of “separate but equal” has no place and thus separate facilities are inherently unequal.

Court found that a segregated law school for Negroes could not provide them equal educational opportunities and relied on “those qualities which are incapable of objective measurement but which make for greatness in a law school

Holding. Racial segregation in the public schools of the D.C. is a denial of the due process of law guaranteed by the 5th amends. Rationale. In view of decision that the Constitution prohibits the states from maintaining racially segregated public schools, it would be unthinkable that the same Constitution would apply a lesser duty on the Federal Government.

1. One of the five cases decided along with Brown, where P argued that school segregation in D.C. was per se unconstitutional.
2. Supreme Court ruled on this case in a separate opinion.
3. 5^th amend. is applicable to D.C but does not have an equal protection and due process clause.

1. To assert the application of the 5^th amend. in a similar case as the 14^th amend., the due process clause of the 14^th amend was dragged into the 5^th amend. and therefore due process clause applied to the federal government. ‘Liberty’ was not limited to freedom from bodily restraint.
2. ‘Liberty’ under law extends to the full range of conduct which the individual is free to pursue and cannot be restricted except for proper governmental objective.
3. Segregation in public education is not reasonably related to any proper governmental objective and thus imposes on Negro children in D.C. a deprivation of their liberty.

1. Marbury v. Madison. Holding. Supreme Court has the power to declare statutes unconstitutional.
1. The Concept of Judicial Review: It is the duty of the judicial department to do what the law is. The judiciary is supreme in the exposition of the Constitution.
2. The major perception behind judicial review: A law repugnant to the constitution is void and courts, as well as other departments, are bound by the instrument.

1. Cooper v. Aaron. Holding. Judicial interpretation of the Constitution binds the parties to the case and also the executive branch by whatever enforcement is necessary. Doctrinal Point. Decision was signed by all nine justices and there was similarity to Marbury in the checks and balances.

1. Brown II .Holding. School desegregation should be implemented by the lower federal court with all deliberate speed.
2. Martin v. Hunter’s Lessee.Facts. Hunter claimed ownership of a parcel of land than had been confiscated and Martin claimed that the confiscation by Virginia was ineffective based on treaties between the United States and England. Case was appealed and Supreme Court gave instructions to Virginia Court of Appeals to rule in favor of Martin but the court refused to comply? Holding. You have to listen to the Supreme Court

1. The Federal Government
1. Has it acted within the confines of its assigned role?
2. Has it bolstered legitimacy?
2. Interpretation
1. Where should it look to for guidance?
2. We are concerned with interpretation because we have a quest for legitimacy for a countermajoritarian basis for decision-making.
3. The court provides the countermajoritarian check