The civil liberties we
have today weren't created;
they evolved.
Inch by inch, technicality
by technicality, the British
system of law that once
allowed for the absolute
rule of the monarch gradually
became a system that respected
Parliament and, when it
was transplanted to the
United States, eliminated
the monarchy from the
equation entirely. The
Bill of Rights, once an
unenforceable series of
promises, has become the
centerpiece of our criminal
justice system. Here's
how it happened.
Year |
Event |
1215 |
The Magna
Carta restricts
the absolute
power of British
monarchs, holding
them accountable
to the rule
of law. |
1689 |
The English
Bill of Rights
guarantees free
speech to members
of Parliament,
bans cruel and
unusual punishment,
and supports
a limited right
to bear arms. |
1776 |
In the U.S.
Declaration
of Independence
from Britain,
Thomas Jefferson
argues that
the sole legitimate
purpose of government
is to protect
individual rights. |
1787 |
A new U.S.
Constitution
establishes
limited roles
for the President
and Congress,
but does not
yet grant significant
power to the
Supreme Court. |
1789 |
The U.S. Bill
of Rights protects
the natural
rights of U.S.
citizens from
infringement
by U.S. Congress,
but because
the Supreme
Court has no
power to strike
down legislation,
it is in effect
little more
than a statement
of principles.
At this point
in history it
applies exclusively
to the U.S.
government--and
not to U.S.
states, which
have their own,
separate bills
of rights. |
1803 |
In Marbury
v. Madison,
the Supreme
Court strikes
down its first
law and in so
doing establishes
its power to
strike down
unconstitutional
legislation. |
1868 |
The Fourteenth
Amendment is
ratified. Although
its original
purpose is to
limit the efforts
of Southern
states to severely
restrict the
rights of recently
freed slaves,
it effectively
makes individual
states accountable
to the human
rights standards
established
in the Bill
of Rights--though
it will be more
than a half
century before
the Supreme
Court comes
to that conclusion. |
1925 |
In Gitlow
v. New York,
the Supreme
Court holds
that states
are bound by
the U.S. Bill
of Rights by
way of the Fourteenth
Amendment. The
means by which
the Fourteenth
Amendment extends
the power of
the Bill of
Rights is most
commonly referred
to as the incorporation
doctrine. |
1965 |
In Griswold
v. Connecticut,
the Supreme
Court holds
that the Fourth,
Ninth, and Fourteenth
Amendments to
the U.S. Constitution
imply a right
to privacy.
This right to
privacy will
later be cited
in court rulings
legalizing abortion
(Roe v. Wade,
1973) and striking
down laws prohibiting
gay sex (Lawrence
v. Texas, 2003). |
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