Hello and welcome to our Constitutional Law page. This class is an elective and will meet your 'G' requirement for admittance to a CSU or UC. I hope that you enjoy this course and learn some important information that can help you through life. For some, it might open your eyes to a profession that you may have not considered. Please check back frequently to see which assignments we will be doing.
Week of April 9 |
The Death Penalty Debate Cont.This week we will discuss:
We will finish up our death penalty questions. Please read and answer the questions on Furman vs. Georgia 1. Do you agree with the Supreme Court ruling in Furman v. Georgia? Why or why not? 2. Consider Justice Stewart's comparison of the sentences to being struck by lightning. What is "cruel and unusual" about being struck by lightning? What is capricious and freakish about the three sentences of death? What makes the sentences "wantonly imposed"?Also read and answer the questions for Gregg vs. Georgia1. Why did the Supreme Court find that the death penalty was not "cruel and unusual"? 2. What happened between 1972 and 1976 that produced a different Supreme Court ruling? 3. Does Justice Stewart contradict himself in the 1972 and 1976 rulings? If so, how? If not, why not? Innocence Project Part 1: Please write a 1-2 page paper to discuss your position on the death penalty. You are to:
Please email your response by this Friday. Make sure you use oyez.org. This link will take you to the Capital Punishment cases. Part 2: Please go to the Innocence Project website and find out about the organization. 1. Make sure you spend at least 20 minutes on the website and take notes about what you find. 2. What is their mission? 3. What have they accomplished? 4. How do they benefit American society? In addition, go to this part of the website and select one individual that they have helped. Write down what they did for the person and what crime was committed. Be prepared to share your information with others. |
Friday
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Death Penalty
Today we will discuss...
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Wednesday
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The 8th Amendment & Me...
Today we will:
Finally we will listen to an NPR report dealing with this question. The report focuses in on a case that will affect 78 juvenile offenders who are currently serving life sentences without parole across this country. The USSC will decide if these inmates should be allowed to receive parole. You can listen to the report here. Assignment: You are a US Supreme Court Justice and you must decide whether giving a juvenile a life sentence without parole violates the 8th Amendment's clause of cruel and unusual punishment? Please tell me what you think and what is your rationale. Your response should be at least 1/2 page to 1 page in length. You will email your response by Friday 3/22/2012 at 10:00 pm. Thank you. |
Tues & Thurs
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Tuesday: Guest Speaker/ Thurs: Debrief and AR
On Tuesday we:
On Thursday we:
Part 1: Think back to each of the three scenarios we saw in the video. Please write down three tips for each of the scenarios that you would share with someone. The three scenarios are a) police stop you in a vehicle b) police stop you on street c) police come to your home Part 2: Please interview a relative or friend that has been stopped by the police. You are to ask the individual: 1. Why were you stopped? 2. What happened during the stop? 3. How was it resolved? 4. Then review the tips and share with the interviewee and ask them if any of the tips you wrote about would have helped them. Make sure you get interviewee to sign your notes for credit. Make sure you e-mail part 1, but part 2 stays in your folder/notes. |
Wed
3/7/2012
Aldo Out Today...
Worked on 4th Amendment questions and did AR Reading.
Thursday
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"A Better Life"?
Today we will:
Please email me your answers to the following questions:
Thank you Rosa Solache for bringing in the film. EXTRA CREDIT OPPORTUNITY Read the following link to an article about the gardeners who have dies cutting palm trees. |
Tuesday
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Day Laborers Continued...
Today we discussed:
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Friday
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6th Amendment: Rights of the Accused
Today we discussed:
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Wednesday
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Solamente Quiero Trabajar: Redondo Beach vs. Comite de Jornaleros, 11-760Today we discussed:
The questions for Roe v. Wade need to be emailed by this Friday (2/24/2012). Read the files below to answer questions on file 3. Although we finished up our questions on Roe vs. Wade, most of today's discussion focused on the USSC not hearing a case having to do with day laborers in Redondo Beach, California. The bulk of today's time was spent on a decision made earlier today by the USSC to not hear a case regarding the 1st Amendment's Free Speech Clause. The article to this story can be found here. Although we briefly discussed this story today, we will finish up this topic on our next meeting. Please read the article and answer the following:
Please email responses by next Tuesday (2/28/2012). If you are a true nerd like me, click here to read the decision made by the US Court of Appeals 9th Circuit. If you would like to understand this better, see me during Flex, Nutrition or Lunch and I will explain the format to you. |
Friday 2/17/2012 |
Roe vs. Wade DecisionToday class will focus on:
Did not finish questions...continue on next class meeting. |
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Thursday 2/9/2012 |
Obama: Take Politics Out Of Religion?Today we discussed:
http://religiousfreedom.lib.virginia.edu/court/ You need to:
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Tues
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Syllabus Discussed
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Mon
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Opening Day |