Landmark Supreme Court Cases Questions and Answers Flashcards
7 cards from real FCLE practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Landmark Supreme Court Cases Questions and Answers flashcards as text
United States v. Nixon (1974) established the principle that:
Answer: Executive privilege exists but is not absolute and can be overridden by due process in criminal proceedings
The Court unanimously ruled that Nixon had to surrender the Watergate tapes, confirming that executive privilege yields to the needs of criminal justice.
Which Supreme Court case ruled that the death penalty for juveniles who committed crimes before age 18 is unconstitutional?
Answer: Roper v. Simmons (2005)
Roper v. Simmons held that executing those who were under 18 at the time of their crime violates the Eighth Amendment's ban on cruel and unusual punishment.
The Supreme Court case Obergefell v. Hodges (2015) ruled that:
Answer: Same-sex couples have a fundamental right to marry under the Fourteenth Amendment
The Court held 5-4 that the right to marry is a fundamental liberty under the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses, extending it to same-sex couples nationwide.
In District of Columbia v. Heller (2008), the Supreme Court held that the Second Amendment protects:
Answer: An individual's right to possess firearms for traditionally lawful purposes, such as self-defense at home
Heller was the first case to explicitly hold that the Second Amendment protects an individual right to keep and bear arms independent of militia service.
What did the Supreme Court decide in Mapp v. Ohio (1961)?
Answer: Evidence obtained through illegal searches cannot be used in state courts
Mapp v. Ohio applied the exclusionary rule to state courts, preventing illegally obtained evidence from being used in criminal prosecutions.
The Supreme Court case Reynolds v. United States (1879) established that the First Amendment's Free Exercise Clause does NOT protect:
Answer: Religious practices that violate general criminal laws
The Court distinguished between religious beliefs (absolutely protected) and religious practices (subject to regulation), upholding a ban on polygamy despite a religious justification.
In Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District (1969), what activity did the Supreme Court protect?
Answer: Students wearing black armbands to protest the Vietnam War
The Court held that students do not 'shed their constitutional rights at the schoolhouse gate' and that silent, passive political protest does not disrupt school operations.