Landmark Cases

Landmark Cases explores the case of a medical school applicant who claimed he was rejected in favor of less qualified minority applicants. The Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of affirmative action while rejecting the university’s quotas.

Landmark Cases explores the story of Troy Leon Gregg, a convicted armed robber and murderer who challenged his death sentence. The Supreme Court ruled against him in Gregg v. Georgia, but established guidelines for states using the death penalty.

Landmark Cases explores how The New York Times and Washington Post successfully challenged the Nixon Administration for the right to publish what came to be known as the "Pentagon Papers," a classified history of U.S. military activity in Vietnam.

Landmark Cases tells the story of five Des Moines, Iowa, students who wore black arm bands to school to protest the war in Vietnam, violating local school policies. The Supreme Court ruled students do not lose their 1st Amendment rights at school.

Landmark Cases presents Brandenburg v. Ohio, in which the Supreme Court overturned the hate speech conviction of Clarence Brandenburg, an Ohio Ku Klux Klan leader, on the grounds that the state law violated the 1st Amendment.

Landmark Cases explores the case of Charles Katz, a bookie recorded by the FBI transmitting illegal bets from a telephone booth. The Supreme Court’s decision in Katz v. United States expanded Americans' right to privacy under the 4th Amendment.

Landmark Cases highlights Griswold v. Connecticut, in which Planned Parenthood challenged an 1879 state law banning the use of birth control. The Supreme Court ruled the law to be unconstitutional and established a still-evolving right to privacy.

Landmark Cases tells the story of Clarence Earl Gideon, a petty thief who spent his time in jail studying the law. His case, Gideon v. Wainwright, established a right to counsel for all accused criminals

Landmark Cases explores Plessy v. Ferguson, which came about after Homer Plessy, an African American man, was arrested in New Orleans for taking a train seat reserved for whites. The Court’s decision established the "separate but equal" doctrine.

Landmark Cases explores Yick Wo v. Hopkins, a case in which a Chinese laundromat owner challenged a discriminatory city ordnance. The Supreme Court ruled that the 14th Amendment’s promise of equal protection extends to immigrants and citizens.

Landmark Cases takes a look at the Civil Rights Cases of 1883, in which the Supreme Court struck down the Civil Rights Act of 1875, a federal law that had granted all people access to public accommodations like trains and theaters, regardless of race.

Landmark Cases explores [McCulloch v. Maryland], a case that solidified the federal government's ability to take actions not explicitly mentioned in the Constitution and restricted state action against the legitimate use of this power.

Clarke Forsythe and Melissa Murray talk about the 1973 Supreme Court case [Roe v. Wade], in which the court ruled that women have a constitutional, but not absolute, right to terminate pregnancy based on the determined viability of the fetus.

Guests talk about the 1966 Supreme Court case [Miranda v. Arizona], in which the Court ruled that suspects must be informed of their right against self-incrimination and their right to consult with an attorney before being questioned by police.

Theodore Olson and Douglas Smith talk about the 1962 Supreme Court case [Baker v. Carr], in which the Court ruled that the drawing of election districts could be considered by the Federal Courts.

Professors Carolyn Long and Renee Hutchins talk about the 1961 Supreme Court case [Mapp v. Ohio], in which the Court applied Fourth Amendment protection against "unreasonable searches and seizures" to state criminal cases.

Jeffrey Rosen and Tomiko Brown-Nagin talk about the 1954 Supreme Court case [Brown v. Board of Education], in which the Court unanimously ruled that separate public schools were not equal, reversing previous court decisions.

Professors Michael Gerhardt and William Howell talk about the 1952 Supreme Court case [Youngstown Sheet and Tube v. Sawyer], in which the Court limited the power of the president to seize property.

Peter Irons, Karen Korematsu, and Eric Paul Fournier talk about the 1944 Supreme Court case [Korematsu V. United States], in which the court ruled that Japanese internment camps were necessary for the protection of all citizens during World War II.

Beverly Gage and Thomas Goldstein talk about the 1919 Supreme Court case [Schenck v. United States], in which the Court unanimously ruled that the Espionage Act of 1917 was constitutional.