Vagueness In Law Enforcement

The originally Bill of Rights protected the rights of citizens from infringement by the federal government, but made no mention of the states. The Fourteen Amendment, adopted shortly after the Civil War, protected citizenship and individual rights from infringement by state governments. Under the Fourteenth Amendment’s due process clause, the United States Supreme Court began to apply the most important rights guaranteed in the Bill of Rights against the states. This process began in the early 1900s and is known as the doctrine of selective incorporation. Duncan versus Louisiana was the landmark case in which the court incorporated the Sixth Amendment right to a jury trial against the states.

The Due Process Clause was interpreted differently by various Justices in the Court who were using different theories for understanding the Constitution. There are three major theories for Constitutional interpretation. The first is textualism, which is the theory that the “ordinary meaning” of a law should be used for its interpretation, rather than the reason it was written or the problem it was meant to solve. The second is originalism, which says that the interpretation of a law should be decided based on the original meaning or purpose the law had when it was written. The third is literalism, which is rather self explanatory and, as the name implies, means interpeting the text of a law as literally as possible. I

A landmark case that shifted the attention to due process was Miranda vs. Arizona. In this historical landmark case the Miranda Rights got there famous name from this man Ernesto Miranda. The attention shifted to due process because of the fact that Miranda pled his rights were not read to him, therefore he did not know he could not self-incriminate himself. He claimed she was coerced to giving his confession (Miranda v. Arizona). From then on the criminal justice system new they had to do something about criminals trying to flee from the law by saying their rights were not read to them. Police departments everywhere new something had to be done. Therefore the Miranda rights were born all criminals were being arrested had to be read their Miranda Rights, therefore they could not plead that their rights were not read to them that is why the Miranda Rights is an important part of the due process. It is not fair to the suspect to arrest him and not to let them know why they are being detained, or

When the Fourth Amendment first became part of the Constitution, however, it was originally only applied to the federal government. Later on, it was applied to the states through the Due Process Clause of the 14th Amendment (“THE HISTORY BEHIND THE 4TH AMENDMENT”).

Due Process of law can be defined as a right guaranteed in the 5th and 14th amendments of the U.S.

The Due process in the 14th amendment is the same as the due process in the fifth but it regards the states. “It acts as a safeguard from arbitrary denial of life, liberty, or property by the Government outside the sanction of law” (Madison 2010). The due process clause has been upheld and seen in many Supreme Court cases. The most influential and infamous was Roe v. Wade which said the right of privacy under the due process clause of the14th Amendment extended to a woman's decision to have an abortion. Due process upholds citizens’ rights and does not let the government take them away. This clause is important so the people can be protected from the government, which has been a fear for

Some of these rights are the right to be assumed innocent until proven guilty, the right against arrest without probable cause, the right against self-incrimination, the right to an attorney, and the right to fair questioning by the police. All of this is part of the Due Process Model but one thing the Due Process Model calls into question is, do the rights of the individual outweigh the rights of the many? (Perron)

Rules: The Supreme Court uses the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment in rendering its decision.

Because of this language, the Fourteenth Amendment appears to be — and to some extent is — simply the application of the Fifth Amendment, and through selective incorporation, the rest of the Bill of Rights. To that end, the Fourteenth Amendment possesses a fortuitous expansion to the simple due process right: the right to equal protection of the laws. Laws that appear to violate the Equal Protection Clause thusly receive the same kind of scrutiny that other fundamental rights are given.

In 1791, the Bill of Rights was added to the Constitution to guarantee a limited government and protect the rights of the American people from the federal government. The 14th amendment was added later in 1868 in order to ensure due process for all and equal protection under the law. Many people have debated the effectiveness of these documents and called into question whether the freedoms of Americans are being protected. However, they have remained throughout the years as a steadfast guide for the basic freedoms we as Americans hold. The Bill of Rights and 14th amendment are effective because they have created a framework for court cases that have further refined and protected our freedoms, inspired action by the president and Congress to

Congress and Abraham Lincoln were able to pass the 13th Amendment, but shortly after the end of the war Abraham Lincoln was shot while attending a play at a theater. After Abraham Lincoln passed away Congress had a more difficult time under Andrew Johnson who tried to veto a Republican bill. Congress retaliated by voting to impeach the Andrew Johnson. Afterward Congress was able to pass the 14th and 15th Amendments. The 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments changed the United States by increasing the federal government’s power over the States and this had an affect across society.

The 14th Amendment was added to the Constitution in order to guarantee equal treatment and to forbid any state to deny someone the right to receive a fair chance with issues of life, property and due process. (p 30). Today, the 14th Amendment continues to represents as one of the most historically significant building blocks to our nation's democracy. It still symbolizes our country's promise that everybody is created equally under the law regardless of gender, race, orientation or nationality. The relevance of the 14th Amendment outlined in the United States Constitution shapes the origin and growth of our nation.

It was not until after the Civil War that the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth amendments were enacted and began protecting individuals against the states. The Fourteenth Amendment has been the principal means by which this protection has been accomplished. It reads, in part, “No State shall...deprive any person of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.” The Supreme Court had interpreted this guarantee of liberty to embrace the fundamental liberties in the Bill of Rights, meaning that the state governments must observe and protect them to the same extent as the federal government this is also known called incorporation. The amendments in the Bill of Rights are said to be incorporated against the states through the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. There has been an ongoing debate on the Supreme Court about the extent of incorporation, and whether the entire Bill of Rights, or only some of it’s guarantees, should be incorporated against the states.

In our government today we have due process of law. Due process of law simply means that we have protection against a chance deprivation of life, liberty or property. Within the due process law, if you are to be accused of something it has to be under fair and reasonable circumstances. If we are ever to be arrested of something, under due process it commands that we are taken to court and showed a cause. It is very important that we have due process in the law for the people of the United States. Law enforcement always requires the balancing of two competing social concerns: on one hand, is the government's interest in protecting its citizens and prosecuting criminal conduct; on the other hand, is the right of

The two types of due process is the procedural due process and the substantive due process. Procedural due process is that government officials must follow procedures and not act without a reason when making laws. It requires the government to act in particular ways before regulating or taking away the life, liberty, or property of someone. The proceedings must be clear by stating the charges that the person have done and fair where they have a jury and the right to bring witnesses. Substantive due process is the Constitution prohibits some laws, no matter how popular those laws may be with legislatures, executives, or the people. It is based on the idea that some rights are important to the point that the government must have a reason to change