THE AMENDMENTS

The Bill of Rights

THE BILL OF RIGHTS

• As soon as Congress convened for the first time in 1789 the Congress submitted twelve amendments to the Constitution to the states for ratification.

• The amendment regarding representation in the House was never approved.

• The amendment dealing with Congressional salaries was approved in 1992.

BILL OF RIGHTS

• The ten amendments that were approved in 1791 are known as the Bill of Rights.

• Its purpose is to protect the rights of individual liberty, such as freedom of speech, and rights of persons accused of crimes, such as the right to trial by jury.

• Many people supported the ratification of the Constitution because they had been promised a bill of rights.

THE FIRST AMENDMENT

• “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.”

--First Amendment, 1791

THE FIRST AMENDMENT

• The 1st amendment protects individual speech, including ideas in newspapers, TV, radio, books, the internet, and, to an extent, the movies.

• The gov’t may not prevent newspapers from printing stories—this would be ‘prior restraint.’

• 1st amendment today

FREEDOM WITHIN LIMITS

• The freedoms in the 1st amendment are not unlimited, however.

• Slander, false speech intended to harm an individual, is not allowed.

• Libel is similar to slander except that it is written or published false speech.

• To hold a march or a rally government may require a permit and a small fee.

THE SECOND AMENDMENT

• Shotguns and semi-automatic weapons

• This amendment was in response to how the British had tried to prevent the colonists from arming themselves.

• The 2nd amendment gives the people the right to bear arms.

THE THIRD AMENDMENT

• This amendment prohibits the government from forcing citizens to house soldiers.

• This was a direct reaction to the Quartering Act implemented by the British in Boston.

• Coldstream Guards

THE FOURTH AMENDMENT

• The 4th Amendment reflects Americans’ desire to protect their privacy.

• The British had issued ‘writs of assistance’ which were general search warrants that allowed authorities to seek out smuggled goods.

• The amendment requires areason to search someone ortheir premises.

FOURTH AMENDMENT(con’t)

• Police cannot search hoping they’ll find something incriminating.

• A search or an arrest must be based on ‘probable cause,’ a reasonable basis to believe the person has committed a crime.

• A search or an arrest requires a search warrant or an arrest warrant, signed by a judge, that is specific to a place or person.

THE FIFTH AMENDMENT

• ‘The Hollywood Ten’

1948

• Protections for people accused of crimes:

1. No one may be tried for a serious crime unless a grand jury has decided there is enough evidence for a trial.

THE FIFTH AMENDMENT

2. A person who is found innocent of a crime may not be tried again for the same offense (double jeopardy).

3. No one may be forced to testify against himself or herself (it’s called ‘taking the Fifth’).

4. The government may not deprive anyone of life, liberty or property without due process of law.

EMINENT DOMAIN

• The 5th amendment also defines eminent domain, the right of the gov’t to take private property for the public good.

• The gov’t must go through legal channels a pay a fair price for your property.

Woodrow Wilson Bridge

THE SIXTH AMENDMENT

• This amendment protects the rights of individuals charged with federal crimes when defending themselves in a court trial.

1. People have the right to a speedy trial.

2. The trial must be held in public.

3. Provides for a trial by jury, although a defendant may ask for a trial by judge.

THE SIXTH AMENDMENT(con’t)

• Trial by jury 4. A change of venue ( a new location for the trial) may be granted if the local jury pool may be prejudiced.

5. A defendant has the right to know the charges and who’s making them.

6. The right to an attorney.

THE SEVENTH AMENDMENT

• The 7th amendment guarantees a jury trial for all civil cases above the value of $20.00

• Both parties, however, may agree to a judge-only trial.

• Judge Judy

THE EIGHTH AMENDMENT

• Prohibits excessive bail. Bail is an amount of money set by the judge to ensure that the defendant returns to court for trial.

• Prohibits excessive fines.

• Prohibits cruel and unusual punishment.

A monk and a lady

in stocks.

THE NINTH AND TENTH AMENDMENTS

• The 9th amendment says that all other rights not spelled out in the Constitution are ‘retained by the people.’ (natural rights)

• The 10TH amendment says that all rights not given to the national government are reserved to the states and the people themselves.

ELEVENTH AMENDMENT

• The 11th amendment (1795) states that a state cannot be sued in federal court by citizens of another state or country.

• This amendment came about because citizens from South Carolina and Georgia sued in federal court over land seized during the revolution.

THE TWELFTH AMENDMENT

• Thomas Jefferson & Aaron Burr

• Originally, presidential electors voted without distinction between the presidential and vice presidential candidates. Whoever got the largest number of votes became president and number two became vice president.

THE TWELFTH AMENDMENT

• This was not a problem for the first two elections, where all the electors voted for Washington, making him president, and with the rest of the votes split, Adams became vice president.

• In 1796, the number one candidate was Adams, but number two was Jefferson, who was an opponent of Adams.

THE TWELFTH AMENDMENT

• In 1800, all the electors who voted for Jefferson also voted for Aaron Burr. This resulted in a tie vote for president.

• In the case of a tie, the House of Representatives votes to break the tie.

• In 1801, Alexander Hamilton worked to get Jefferson elected president; Hamilton didn’t like Jefferson but he hated Burr.

• Burr never got over what Hamilton had done.

THE TWELFTH AMENDMENT

• The 12th amendment, added in 1804, provided for the separate election of the president and vice president.

• FOOTNOTE: The bad blood between Burr and Hamilton ultimately resulted in a duel wherein Burr shot and killed Hamilton.

• Hamilton-Burr duel, Weehawken, NJ,

July 11, 1804

CIVIL WAR AMENDMENTS

• In 1865 the 13th amendment was added, ending slavery and involuntary servitude.

• In 1868 the 14th amendment was added to protect the rights of citizens by prohibiting the state from depriving any person of ‘life, liberty, or property’ without ‘due process of law’.

• It also guarantees that all citizens have the right to ‘equal protection under the law.’

THE CIVIL WAR AMENDMENTS

• The 15th amendment was added to prohibit the government from denying a person the right to vote on the basis of race.

• African-American Civil War veterans voting

PROGRESSIVE ERA AMENDMENTS

• The sixteenth amendment (1913) gave Congress the power to levy an income tax.

• The seventeenth amendment (1913) changed the election of senators from the state legislatures to direct election by the people.

• The eighteenth amendment (1919) prohibits the manufacture, sale or transportation of alcholic beverages.

PROGRESSIVE AMENDMENTS (con’t)

• The Progressive Amendments

NINETEENTH AMENDMENT

• The 19th amendment granted women's’ suffrage (voting).

• This had first been advocated at the Seneca Falls convention in 1848.

• Susan B. Anthony, a leader of the womens’ suffrage movement

THE TWENTIETH AMENDMENT

• The 20th amendment sets the start of Congress on January 3rd of the odd years.

• Also, the president’s inauguration day was moved from March 4th to January 20th.

THE TWENTY-FIRST AMENDMENT

• The end of prohibition was greeted with ‘cheers’ by many people.

• The 21st amendment repealed the 18th (prohibition) amendment. This is the only amendment so far that has repealed another one.

THE TWENTY-SECOND AMENDMENT

• FDR

(1933-1945)

• The 22nd amendment (1951) limited a president to two full four year terms, or two terms and up to two years of another person’s term, for a maximum of ten years.

TWENTY-THIRD AND TWENTY-FOURTH AMENDMENTS

• The 23rd amendment (1961) ALLOWS District of Columbia residents to vote for president.

• The 24th amendment (1964) prohibits a poll tax, a fee required to vote. This device was used in the South to reduce African-American voting.

THE TWENTY-FIFTH AMENDMENT

• The 25th amendment clarified presidential successions. A president who is temporarily incapacitated can turn over his duties to the vice president and resume his duties when he (the president) recovers.

• Woodrow Wilson, after his stroke, being assisted down the steps of his home on P Street, Washington.

TWENTY-FIFTH AMENDMENT (con’t)

• The 25th amendment also added a provision for replacing the vice president if that office becomes vacant.

• The president nominates a replacement who takes office after confirmation by both Houses of Congress.

• This occurred in 1973 after the resignation of Vice President Spiro Agnew and in 1974 when Vice President Ford became president.

THE APPLICATION OF THE TWENTY-FIFTH AMENDMENT

• 1973-Agnew resigns as VP due to charges of tax evasion; replaced by Gerald Ford.

• 1974-Ford becomes president when Nixon resigns; Ford appoints Nelson A. Rockefeller as his replacement as VP.

TWENTY-SIXTH AND TWENTY-SEVENTH AMENDMENTS

• 26th amendment lowers the voting age to eighteen.

• 27th amendment makes Congressional pay raises effective after the next election (first proposed in 1789).

• The 1960s and 1970s