1St Amendment - Article 1 Guarantees Or Protects Five Freedoms

Amendment Study Guide

Amendments 1-10: The Bill of Rights, ratified in 1791

1st Amendment - Article 1 guarantees or protects five freedoms:

 freedom of religion--people can practice any religion they want and Congress cannot establish a religion for the country  freedom of speech  freedom of the press  the right to assemble peacefully  the right to petition the government

2nd Amendment - The right to bear arms. The federal government cannot take away the right of people to have guns.

3rd Amendment - Housing of soldiers. People cannot be forced to feed and shelter soldiers in their homes.

4th Amendment - Search and seizure. People must be safe from police searches and arrests in their homes. To search a home, to arrest someone, or to remove evidence, a court order or warrant must be issued by a judge. A judge can only issue a warrant with good reason. Evidence that is seized (taken) in violation of this amendment cannot be used in court.

5th Amendment - Rights in criminal cases. People accused of serious crimes must first be indicted by a grand jury before being tried. People cannot be forced to testify against themselves. Once declared not guilty, a person cannot be tried again for the same crime (double jeopardy). Accused people have the right to due process; they must receive fair treatment according to the law.

6th Amendment - Right to a fair trial. People accused of a crime: 1. must be told what crimes they have been charged with, 2. have the right to a speedy and public trial, 3. have the right to a lawyer, and 4. have the right to question witnesses.

7th Amendment - Rights in civil cases. People have the right to a jury trial in civil cases in federal courts. Civil cases are about non-criminal problems, for example a divorce, damages in a car crash, or somebody suing somebody else.

8th Amendment - Bail, fines and punishment. A person found guilty can not receive cruel or unusual punishment. Excessive bail and excessive fines cannot be charged. 9th Amendment - Other rights not mentioned. People have many other rights that are not listed in the Constitution. Even if not listed, people still have these rights.

10th Amendment - Powers reserved to the states. Powers not given to the federal government and not kept from the states belong to the state governments and to the people.

11th Amendment – 1795 - Lawsuits against states. A state cannot be sued by a citizen from a different state or a foreign country.

12th Amendment – 1804 - Presidential elections. This amendment made rules for the electoral college and explained how the president and vice president were to be elected.

13th Amendment – 1865 - End of slavery. This amendment ended slavery in the United States. Slavery was no longer legal in the U.S. or any land that belonged to the U.S.

14th Amendment – 1868 - Due process and rights of citizens. All persons born in the U.S. are citizens. This amendment gave citizenship to African Americans and Native Americans. The rights of citizens cannot be taken away by states. States must give all citizens equal protection under the law and due process.

15th Amendment – 1870 - Right of blacks to vote. People (men) have the right to vote no matter what race or color. This amendment gave former slaves the right to vote. Women did not yet have the right to vote.

16th Amendment – 1913 - Income tax. Congress can collect taxes on income.

17th Amendment – 1913 - Election of senators. This amendment changed the way senators were elected. It said that people of the state would vote directly for senators.

18th Amendment – 1919 - Prohibition of liquor. This amendment made all alcoholic drinks illegal and the selling, making, importing, and exporting of liquor illegal. (This amendment was repealed by Amendment 21.)

19th Amendment – 1920 - Right of women to vote. Women have the right to vote.

20th Amendment – 1933 - Beginning and ending dates for elected officials. The terms of the president and vice president end on January 20. The terms of Congress end at noon on January 3. The new Congress meets on January 3 at noon. 21st Amendment – 1933 - Repeal of Prohibition. Amendment 18 was repealed. Alcoholic drinks were no longer illegal.

22nd Amendment – 1951 - President limited to two terms. No one can be elected to be president more than twice.

23rd Amendment – 1961 - Voting in Washington, D. C. People living in Washington, D.C. can vote for the president and vice president. Washington D.C. can have electoral college votes.

24th Amendment – 1964 - End to poll taxes. People cannot be charged a poll tax or any other tax to vote.

25th Amendment – 1967 - Presidential succession. If the president dies, the vice president becomes president. If the office of vice president becomes empty, the president nominates someone to become vice president. That person must then be approved by a majority of both houses of Congress.

26th Amendment – 1971 - Voting at age 18. The voting age for all elections was lowered from 21 to 18.

27th Amendment – 1992 - Congressional pay. Salary increases for members of Congress can not go into effect until after the next congressional election.