1. The Bill of Rights
Allison Barnette
CMS American History

2. How did we get the Bill of Rights?
 The Constitution was signed by the delegates in
Philadelphia on September 17, 1787(Constitution Day),
but all the states did not ratify the document until May of
1790.
 Federalists and Antifederalists agreed that basic rights
each citizen should expect would be added to the
Constitution immediately after it was ratified. The Bill of
Rights was ratified a year and a half later by ¾ of the
states December 15, 1791.
 These first 10 Amendments or changes to the
Constitution are known as the Bill of Rights.

3.  You may notice that each of the rights expressed in the
first 10 Amendments are freedoms that American citizens
felt were threatened under British rule.
 For example, some rights that were taken away by the
Intolerable Acts were among the first mentioned: The
right to peaceably assemble and the right to not have
soldiers quartered in their homes were in the first and
third amendments.
 As you read the Bill of Rights, reflect on the reasons that
citizens of that time felt these were the most important
rights of citizens, and think about how these rights are
still important today.

4. Amendment One
 Amendment One is often called the
Amendment of Expression. It includes 5 parts:
 Speech
 Press
 Religion
 Assembly
 Petition
 Although the ideas of each of these are not controversial in themselves, we do run
across times in which our own rights might be restricted in order to observe the
rights of others. For instance, our right to free speech is not protected if we yell,
“Fire!” in a crowded theater when there is no fire. In that case we are endangering
the lives of others unnecessarily.
 There are many ongoing discussions and court cases about this Amendment. As
our nation becomes more diverse, we want to preserve our freedom of expression
while being sensitive to the rights of others to have that same freedom. No doubt
you can think of at least one example of this.

5. Amendment Two
 There is a right to keep and bear arms.
 This has become one of the most controversial issues of our time. When the
Founding Fathers created the amendment, they were mindful of a tyrannical
government from which they needed to be able to protect themselves. Hopefully,
if such a tyrannical government should arise against us, it would never again be
our own.
 Yet, several questions arise about an individual citizen’s freedom to keep and
bear arms in a time when weapons are so advanced. One side says that guns do
not kill, people kill. The other side says that if weapons were not so easily
available, incidents of mass shootings would be greatly reduced. Due to recent
events, it has become a heated discussion, and we can look for new state and
federal laws to emerge.

6. Amendment Three
 Soldiersare not housed in the homes
of the people.
 You may not think of this so much, but you can bet this was
fresh on the minds of our Founding Fathers!

7. Amendment Four
 Searchand seizure of property can only
be performed with probable cause, and a
warrant should be issued.
 How many TV shows and movies have you watched wherein
the officer tells the suspect he is there to search the home,
and the suspect asks, “Do you have a warrant?”
 There are some times when a warrant is not needed, such
as when a highway patrolman suspects that a driver is
transporting drugs in a car. That is probable cause, and there
is reasonable expectation that an officer can check a vehicle
that can impact the safety of others.

8. Amendment Five
 Amendment Five has three main parts:
 1) No double jeopardy.
 You cannot be tried for the same capital crime more than once. For
instance, the famous football player and actor O. J. Simpson went on trial
in 1995 for killing Nicole Brown and Ronald Goldman. He was found not
guilty. The police “chase” and ensuing trial were watched by millions on
television, and most people had an opinion as to his guilt or innocence. If,
all of these years later, information surfaced that would prove beyond a
shadow of a doubt that he murdered these people, he could not be
charged with the same exact crime.
 However, what if someone is found innocent of a crime, and he or she is
in fact innocent? Doesn’t it make sense that the person would not have
to endure the heartache and embarrassment of another trial?

9. Amendment Five
 2) No Self-incrimination.
 You do not have to testify about yourself in a court of law unless it is
a Grand Jury or a military trial.
 There was a case in 1990 of a teen mom accused of murdering her
infant child. In his arguments to the jury, the District Attorney
suggested that because the girl did not take the stand to claim her
innocence, she should be found guilty. The jury did find her guilty, but
the decision was overturned on appeal, and the girl was acquitted and
released from prison.

10. Amendment Five
 3) Due Process.
 No one can deprive you of life, liberty, or
property without due process of the law.
 Remember habeas corpus? No one can hold you without arrest. It also
ensures, just as with the young lady in the previous example, that there
are rights of appeal. Plus, it criminalizes vigilante justice.
 Private property cannot be taken for public use
without proper compensation.
 This is often referred to as eminent domain. For instance, if a proposed
new interstate would cut across your land, you have to be paid fair market
value for it.

11. Amendment Six
 Amendment six is the right of the accused to have a
speedy trial and to have defense counsel.
 You often hear an arresting officer on TV read their
(Miranda)rights: “You have the right to remain silent. Anything
you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.”
That’s Amendment Five, not incriminating yourself.
 “You have a right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an
attorney, one will be appointed for you.” That’s Amendment Six.
 Also, an accused person should not have to be kept waiting
indefinitely for his or her day in court, since you are innocent
until proven guilty.

12. Amendment Seven
 There is a right to trial by jury in a civil case, if the
amount involved is $20 or more. Civil cases are usually
lawsuits involving individuals, companies, or government
entities.
 For instance, you might not want a jury trial for a divorce
proceeding, but you might want a public jury trial if you are
suing a large corporation for damages. In that case, you would
want the sympathy of your peers to direct the judgment.

13. Amendment Eight
 Amendment Eight has two parts:
 1) Excessive Bail.
 While the accused is awaiting trial, an amount of money that helps
ensure that you will return for your court date may be imposed. This
fee (bail)must reasonably be adjusted for the crime for which you are
accused and how much you can be trusted to show up on that day.
Your bail may be high if you are a repeat offender or if the alleged
crime is more serious. For example, someone arrested for murder
would have a higher bail than someone arrested for shoplifting. Bail is
expected not to be so much that a person cannot attain it if the crime
is not as serious.

14. Amendment Eight
 2) Cruel and Unusual Punishments.
 The meaning of this amendment has changed over the years. While
hanging might have been considered proper punishment for murder a
hundred years ago, we consider it a cruel and unusual punishment
today. Likewise, other methods of producing death, like the electric
chair and the gas chamber have also come under scrutiny. In fact,
whether to impose the death penalty at all is quite controversial.
There has been a short period of time in which it was outlawed
entirely.
 Also, as with the idea of a reasonable bail, we also have the idea that
terms of imprisonment should fit the crime for which one has been
convicted.

15. Amendment Nine
 There are other individual rights.
 The Founding Fathers did not want to leave the impression
that the preceding amendments were ALL of the rights a
person could expect; they wanted to be clear that there are
more freedoms, but we just do not list all of them.

16. Amendment Ten
 There are rights reserved to the
individual states.
 This has become an issue many times since our
country’s founding. How much power does a state
have to stand up to a federal law with which it
disagrees? Can states make laws that seem to go
against existing federal laws?
 Long ago, there were struggles over slavery. Now, there
are federal laws governing the way states provide
services, and states disagree. Also some states are
making laws, such as the ones allowing marijuana use,
and this goes against federal laws which outlaw it.