The Supreme Court plays a vital role in America and is the highest court in the United States of America. The supreme court serves as a last resort for people looking for justice to be served. It assures that the civils rights will be protected and that there are no violations of the constitution. In these three SCOTUS cases that we will cover, the importance and role of the SCOTUS will be recognized and show real-life examples of how the supreme court works and how it connects to our everyday lives.
The Gideon V. Wainwright case took place in 1963. Clarence Earl Gideon was charged in Florida state court with a felony for breaking and entering. Gideon requested that the court appoint a lawyer for him, but the judge refused. According to Florida state law during this time, an attorney would only be appointed to indigent defendants in capital cases. Gideon lost in court, without a lawyer and was sentenced to five years in prison. Gideon believed that the court not providing him with an attorney was unconstitutional and it violated his rights. Specifically, it infringed on his sixth amendment which sets forth rights related to criminal prosecutions and more specifically in this case. Gideon case was taken to the Supreme Court, the conclusion that the court came to was that the Sixth Amendment's guarantee of a right to the assistance of counsel applies to criminal defendants in state court by way of the Fourteenth Amendment. Therefore, the law in Florida that made it legal for the court to deny an attorney was found unconstitutional by the sixth amendment. Given that this vote was unanimous, everyone voted in Gideon's favor I would assume that this was a more liberal group of judges. The effect that this case has on Americans everyday life today is significant, it allows everyone to have a fair trial, that helps our country become more equal and helps levels the playing field for all Americans.
Chicago's handgun ban enacted in 1982 to reduce crime, this ban made registration for guns so complex that it basically prevented most Chicago citizens from purchasing a handgun. Some Chicago citizens believed that this ban violated their 14th amendment right (by means of the second amendment). This led to the case of Mcdonald V. Chicago. The somewhat conservative court with a 5-4 decision against the handgun ban the supreme court ruled that the second amendment for self-defense is applicable under the 14th amendment. The big takeaway from this case is that protections of the bill of rights have been selectively incorporated by way of the fourteenth amendment due process to prevent infringement on basic rights. This case ruled that the second amendment right to keep and bear arms for self-defense is applicable in all states. There still exists a lot of gun violence today, in Chicago specifically so this topic can be very controversial. For example, there has been a lot of mass shootings frequently, and Americans have split views on solutions to solving gun violence.
The Citizens United V. FEC case was the debate of whether big corporations should be allowed to spend money and advertise for political candidates. Citizens United, conservative non-for-profit organizations believe that the government should not be putting restrictions on what corporations. According to Citizens United section 203 of BCRA, which prevented corporations or labor unions from using their general treasuries to fund electioneering communications violated their constitutional rights. Under the first amendment, free speech. With a 5-4 from the Supreme Court, they concluded that section 203 of the BCRA was, in fact, unconditional by respect for the first amendment. Today, everywhere we look is advertisements. Political elections have become more of a social trend through propaganda and less about facts and plans for the future. For example, our recent 2016 presidential election was full of drama and name-calling that the media fed off of. Freedom of speech is obviously one of the many great things that allow America to be the great country it is. But it can be controversial when looking at the question, should a corporation have human rights?
Laws are put in place in order to have a well run, safe, and just America. When those laws are unjust, there are other laws to change those laws. The supreme court has a huge part in creating America and giving our citizens Justice.
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