The Amendment that contains the famous due process clause, “nor shall any person be
deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law,” is the:
a. Fifth Amendment
b. Sixth Amendment
c. Fourth Amendment
d. Eighth Amendment
A(n) ______________ is a situation where the police take someone in for questioning
in a manner that is, in reality, an arrest:
a. pretext arrest
b. ulterior motive seizure
c. de facto arrest
d. material witness seizure
Selective incorporation is:
a. incapable of precise constitutional definition.
b. the concept used to apply certain amendments to state government.
c. outlined in the Fourteenth Amendment.
d. the means by which the Constitution applies to the states.
The first state to pass a victims’ rights constitutional amendment was:
a. Texas.
b. Florida.
c. Massachusetts.
d. California.
In which scenario would Miranda warnings be required?
a. Suspect in custody for an unrelated offense.
b. When suspect appears to testify before grand jury.
c. undercover officer poses as inmate and asks incriminating questions.
d. during line-ups, show-ups, and photographic identifications.
The central controversy over the Second Amendment is whether people have a right to
bear arms as individuals rather than only as part of a militia.
How many justices sit on the Supreme Court?
a. five
b. seven
c. eight
d. nine
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.
The following statements are true about both torts and crimes, except:
a. Both could result from the same single act.
b. Both differ by who is considered the victim.
c. Both must be heard separately by the court(s).
d. Both are subject to the same standard of proof in court.
Robbins v. California specified all of the following justifications for warrantless vehicle
searches, except:
a. mobility produces exigent circumstances.
b. vehicles occupants are in plain view.
c. diminished expectation of privacy in a vehicle.
d. vehicle searches do not require the probable cause necessary for a warrant.
When government agents are lawfully executing a warrant they:
a. must obtain another warrant if they find additional illegal items.
b. can seize any contraband, even if not specified in the warrant.
c. can continue searching the premises after what was specified in the warrant is found.
d. can take anything they want for any reason.
During the colonial period, the militia was considered to be:
a. the Continental Army.
b. enlisted minutemen.
c. the entire male populace of a state.
d. the entire national population.
In United States v. Banks, the Court held that officers must wait a reasonable amount of
time after knocking and before forcible entry and that, in this case, a ________ wait
satisfied the Fourth Amendment.
a. 1 to 2 minute
b. 30 seconds to 1 minute
c. 15 to 20 second
d. 5 to 10 second
Control of the press during the Persian Gulf War was:
a. absolute.
b. close to 100 percent.
c. fairly lax.
d. nonexistent.
All of the following delineate the point at which an arrest has actually occurred, except:
a. intending to take the person into custody.
b. exercising the authority to do so.
c. detaining or restraining the person to be arrested.
d. informing the arrestee of their rights.
The most commonly used method to determine reasonableness is the case-by-case
method, which:
a. considers the totality of circumstances in each individual case.
b. assigns points to each indicia of reasonableness.
c. compares a case to other similar cases.
d. considers a specific rule that applies to all cases.
“Due process of law” means:
a. all state citizens have the right to a grand jury indictment.
b. fairness of government actions.
c. states must treat all citizens equally.
d. federal law cannot usurp state rights.
Though in the past some states have approved of executing offenders as young as 15,
the Supreme Court has held that no one who was under ____ when they committed a
capital offense shall be sentenced to death.
a. 16
b. 17
c. 18
d. 19
The Supreme Court made the exclusionary rule applicable to the states, holding that “all
evidence obtained by searches and seizures in violation of the Constitution are by the
same authority inadmissible in state court” in:
a. Mapp v. Ohio
b. Weeks v. U.S.
c. United States v. Leon
d. Wolf v. Colorado
Ineffective assistance of counsel claims can be based on the:
a. gravity of the offense charged.
b. accessibility of witnesses for the defense.
c. failure to take normal and routine steps before trial.
d. counsel’s inexperience compared to the complexity of the case.
One Sixth Amendment guarantee is:
a. the defendant’s right to confront adverse witnesses.
b. having all court proceedings on the record.
c. having an independent investigation.
d. indictment by a grand jury.
The police may not make a nonconsensual warrantless arrest inside a person’s home or
arrest a guest within that home without:
a. reasonable suspicion.
b. information that meets the two-pronged test for reliability.
c. justification under the community caretaker exception.
d. exigent circumstances.
The Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act of 2004, which allows off-duty officers and
retired officers to carry concealed weapons throughout the country:
a. was ruled unconstitutional in U.S. v. Miller.
b. was strongly supported by the International Association of Chiefs of Police.
c. was strongly opposed by the International Association of Chiefs of Police.
d. provides for nationwide standards of use-of-force and firearms training.
In prisoners’ rights cases the Fifth Amendment arises:
a. infrequently.
b. quite often, involving nearly half of all lawsuits filed by prisoners.
c. very often, involving more than 80 percent of all lawsuits filed by prisoners.
d. neverprisoners are not protected by the Fifth Amendment.
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.
The Supreme Court applied Sixth Amendment rights to juveniles in:
a. In re Winship
b. California v. Hodari D
c. In re Gault
d. Brewer v. Williams
Justice Scalia noted that “the right”is not unlimited…Nothing in our opinion should be
taken to cast doubt on longstanding prohibitions on the possession of firearms by felons
and the mentally ill, or laws forbidding the carrying of firearms in sensitive places”or
laws imposing conditions and qualifications on the commercial sale of arms” in:
a. United States v. Miller
b. District of Columbia v. Heller
c. Presser v. Illinois
d. Stevens v. United States
If police officers make a stop for a traffic violation and are reasonably suspicious that
the situation is dangerous, they:
a. can order driver and passenger(s) out of the car, but not frisk them.
b. cannot order driver or passenger(s) out of the car or frisk them.
c. can order driver and passenger(s) out of the car and frisk them.
d. can order driver and passenger(s) out of the car; can frisk driver, but not passengers.
The Bail Reform Act of 1984 established the practice of:
a. preventive detention for people deemed a threat or likely to flee.
b. assigning lawyers with the responsibility of seeing to it that their clients appear when
directed.
c. permitting a property bond in lieu of cash.
d. third-party custody.
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.
Literature is written for people interested in theory, research, statistical analysis and the
like is called:
a. Popular literature
b. Professional literature
c. Technical literature
d. Scholarly literature
The Second Amendment was drafted in a time when fear of tyranny from a strong
central government was very strong.
Probable cause to arrest means officers reasonably believe that a crime has been
committed by the person whom they seek to arrest.
The percentage of _______ who have been executed far exceeds their proportion of the
general population.
Explain asset forfeiture. Why is it considered in a discussion of the Eighth Amendment?
The balance of power was established by creating three separate branches of
government, all of which work completely independently of each other.
Furtive conduct may not be considered part of the totality of circumstances when
establishing probable cause.
Even after Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, slavery remained entrenched
in the states.
The Articles of Confederation established a Congress to conduct the necessary tasks of
a central government.
Suits at common law are legal controversies arising out of criminal law rather than civil
law.
Individuals may appear in court without an attorney, representing themselves, the Latin
term for which is _______.
No rights are absolute, so government can regulate them when __________ outweigh
those of the individual.
False confession cases in which the suspect acquiesces to escape from a stressful
situation, to avoid punishment, or gain a promised or implied reward are called
______________ confessions.
Stare decisis is a common law doctrine requiring that ____________ set in one case
shall be followed in all cases having the same or similar circumstances.
Explain the events leading up to the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment and how
effective it was.
The Fourth Amendment also requires that any search or arrest warrant be based on
____________ .
Due to its strict conformance to stare decisis, the Supreme Court cannot overrule itself.
The ________________ Amendment prohibits excessive bail, excessive fines and cruel
and unusual punishment.
The Bill of Rights was originally meant to apply only to the states, not the national
government.
The ________ Amendment embodies the principle of federalism.
Discuss the evolution of the “imminent lawless action” test.