What is this civil liberty? What does it look like in action?

Our civil liberty is punishment. Punishment has looked many different ways. The civil liberty of

punishment is when someone is punished for a crime that he or she has committed. Punishment in action is the justice system making sure that people receive what is fair for the crime they

committed.

Punishment in action

Who has been and who is currently affected by this

civil liberty?

Any one who breaks the law, and is found guilty by a court.

A drunk man walking down a road decides that trash talking a police officer is a good thing to do. Though, he only gets arrested for being drunk in public.

A man who was arrested for child pornography is being held for trying to flee to Iran. He is being held until his court date.

Currently affected:

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How and when has this liberty been challenged and established? What significant court cases have contributed to this civil

liberty?

Below are the cases:

Case Study Format SheetI. Benton v. Maryland

II. Factsa. John Dalmer Benton and the state of Marylandb. John Dalmer Benton was tried on charges of larceny and burglary. He was acquitted of larceny but found guilty on the burglary count. The Supreme Court ruled that the second trial constituted double jeopardy. There was no protection against double jeopardy in Maryland, but the Court ruled that under the due process clause of the 14th amendment to the U.S. Constitution incorporated the Double Jeopardy Clause of the 5th amendment and made it enforceable against to the states. Because of this the Court overturned the larceny conviction.

c. How did the lower court decide on this case?

III. Issue (written as a question)Is the Fifth Amendment protection against double jeopardy enforceable against states that have no double jeopardy laws.

IV. Arguments for the Petitionera. What were the arguments for the petitioner?b. What precedents were cited?

V. Arguments for the Respondenta. What were the arguments for the respondent?b. What precedents were cited?

VI. Decisiona. What was the decision of the court?b. What was their reasoning?c. Were there any significant dissenting opinions?

Continued…

Case Study Format SheetI. Peralta v. Vasquez

II. Factsa. On May 16, 1998 Jose Peralta was accused of cutting another inmate several times with a razor-like weapon.

III. Issue (written as a question)Can we be sure that a prisoner’s commitment to abandon any claim he has respect to sanctions that affect the duration of his confinement will be enforced in later proceedings?

Why does this liberty matter?This civil liberty matters because with out it punishment would be unfair and unjust. Without Amendment V someone could go to trial for the same crime more than one time. That is called Double Jeopardy. They could be deprived of life, liberty or property without due

process. Due process is a course of formal judicial proceedings. With Amendment V private property cannot be taken for public use without a

fair compensation. Amendment V is a vital part in our criminal justice system, without it justice just would not be justice.

Credits

Brittney Yohe

Jessica Eberly

Sasha Harris