exam 1 political science
The Texas Legislative Budget Board estimates that community health mental services cost about ______ per day, as compared to the $137 per day that incarceration costs.
$12
In Texas, children younger than ______ years of age cannot be prosecuted for a crime.
10
As of April 2018, how many operational units were under the jurisdiction of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice?
106
Legal aid services for low-income Texans often use ______ percent of the federal poverty threshold as their guidelines for free legal services. (The federal policy threshold for a single person under the age of 65 was $12,752 in 2017.)
125
Despite the Court's ruling in Brown v. Board of Education in 1954, by the 1970s ______ percent of Black children were still attending schools that were mostly or entirely Black.
95
In which 2014 case did the Supreme Court rule that companies that are "closely held" (only a few owners) are not required to provide their employees with birth control if they object on religious grounds?
Burwell v. Hobby Lobby
Which proposed amendment to the Constitution was passed by the Congress in the early 1970s but failed to receive the necessary three-fourths majority?
Equal Rights Amendment
How did Thomas Jefferson define the meaning of "all men are created equal"?
He did not believe there was a precise meaning.
In 1968 Congress passed a law, the ______, that granted Native Americans constitutional rights similar to those held by other Americans.
Indian Civil Rights Act
Which of the following is true of the granting of parole to prisoners in Texas?
It results in considerable cost savings to the state.
in loco parentis
Latin for "in the place of a parent"
Which of the following Native American nations have a majority who speak native languages at home?
Navajo Pueblo
What is at the heart of many civil rights struggles for equality in the United States?
People hold deep-seated prejudices based on such characteristics as race, color, and religion.
criminal law
Statutory law that defines both the violation and the penalty the state will seek to have imposed upon the defendant
The Supreme Court ruled that the forced busing of children for the purpose of achieving racially integrated schools was constitutional in ______.
Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg County
What was challenged by Lawrence v. Texas (2003)?
Texas's sodomy laws
In Schenck v. United States (1919), Justice Holmes used which analogy in upholding the government's right to restrict speech that poses a clear and present danger?
The First Amendment does not permit a person to falsely yell "Fire" in a crowded theater.
Texas Penal Code
The statutory law that defines criminal offenses and punishments in Texas
reprieve
The temporary 30-day stay of execution the governor may grant
Which of the following statements are accurate representations of the Hispanic population in the United States?
Their numbers have more than doubled in the past twenty years. The majority are immigrants from Mexico and the Caribbean islands.
What Sioux village has been the site of both a U.S. cavalry massacre of Native Americans and a modern protest?
Wounded Knee
The importance of listing individual rights in the Constitution is that it gives individuals who feel that their rights have been violated ______.
a basis for taking the alleged violation into a court of law for a ruling by a judge
In Texas, _____________ law applies when the government seeks punishment on behalf of society or a victim.
criminal
The Eighth Amendment protects people convicted of crimes from ______.
cruel and unusual punishment
The type of discrimination in which, despite legal protections, traditionally disadvantaged groups have fewer opportunities because of prejudice is ______.
de facto discrimination
Which practices were banned as a result of the Civil Rights Act of 1968?
discriminatory real estate practices such as steering African American families to certain neighborhoods discriminatory practices in housing discriminatory practices in mortgage lending
The Texas Code of Criminal Procedure states that the primary duty of a(n)__________________ ________________is not to convict, but to see that justice is done. (Watch your spelling!)
district:;attorney
Asian Americans emphasize _____ as a means of achieving upward mobility
education
Which of the following is likely to convince a judge that police should be issued a search warrant?
establishing probable cause for believing a crime has been committed
In Engle v. Vitale (1962), the Supreme Court ruled against the reciting of prayers in public schools on grounds it violates the ______
establishment clause
Compared to their numbers in the total population, ______ make up a disproportionate percentage of the prison and jail population.
ethnic minorities
Regarding freedom of the press, the Supreme Court has generally upheld the principle of no prior restraint. This principle means that ______.
government generally cannot stop the news media from reporting a story
As a result of changes in sentencing policies, the U.S. prison population, per capita, ______.
is the largest in the world
For most individuals, their first and often only point of contact with the criminal justice system is through ______.
law enforcement
The attempt to block the publication of material considered to be harmful is known as ______ restraint.
prior
The right of an individual to be left alone without any interference from others is known as the right to ______.
privacy
Free or reduced-fee legal representation for the poor is referred to as ______.
pro bono
Texas's move from a system that is more focused on punishment to one that is more focused on rehabilitation has resulted in which of the following?
reduced recidivism greater cost savings smaller prison populations
According to the establishment clause, the government is required to ______.
remain neutral toward all religions
Which of the following is a key result of the civil rights movement?
removing discrimination in voting requirements
The Texas governor can grant a 30-day temporary stay of execution called a(n) ______.
reprieve
The Supreme Court has ruled that the right of free assembly ______.
takes precedence over the mere possibility that the exercise of the right might have undesirable consequences
Which of the following amendments contribute to ensuring criminal due process?
the Fifth Amendment,the Sixth Amendment,the Eighth Amendment,the Fourth Amendment
In Hamdan v. Rumsfeld (2006), the Supreme Court ruled that enemy combatant detainees were protected by which of the following?
the Geneva Convention the U.S. Uniform Code of Military Justice
What Texas agency coordinates border security?
the Texas Rangers
The 1977 Supreme Court case that provided guidance on the allowable restrictions on freedom of speech and freedom of assembly upheld which of the following?
the right of an American Nazi Party group to hold a parade in Skokie, a city with a large Jewish population that included Holocaust survivors
Which of the following are included in the concept of equal rights, or civil rights?
the right of every person to equal protection under the law, equal access to the opportunities society provides, equal access to public facilities
The Second Amendment protects and supports which of the following?
the right to keep and bear arms,a well-regulated militia
Which of the following actions are examples of legal misconduct?
using intimidation tactics to steer witness testimony intentionally denying or hiding evidence from the defense encouraging or coaching witnesses to lie under oath
What percentage of those entering prison each year are sent back because of parole violations?
25 percent
Which of the following statements is true regarding freedom of the press?
Freedom of the press receives strong judicial protection.
According to one source, how many federal regulatory offenses are there, in addition to 4,000 federal criminal laws and 1,700 state crimes in Texas?
300,000
In which decade did the election of "tough on crime" candidates lead to state legislatures enacting stiffer penalties for crime while also limiting judges' abilities to reduce sentences for nonviolent crimes of first-time offenders?
1990s
In which year did the Supreme Court rule that forced busing violated student's constitutional right to equal protection under the law?
2007
According to United States government statistics, roughly ______ percent of Black children live in poverty, compared to ______ percent of white children.
35; 12
Of the 500 largest U.S. corporations, about ______ percent are headed by women.
5
How many people did the state of Texas execute in 2019?
9
equal-protection clause
A clause of the Fourteenth Amendment that forbids any state to deny equal protection of the laws to any individual within its jurisdiction.
Which of the following correctly describes the reality of the Texas courts' use of poverty assessments?
A disturbing number do not make these assessments.
What has the Supreme Court ruled concerning police use of modern technology, such as listening or thermal-imaging devices, to investigate a subject?
A search warrant is required, just as it would be for other circumstances.
felony
A serious criminal offense, punishable by death or incarceration
strict-scrutiny test
A test applied by courts to laws that attempt a racial or ethnic classification. In effect, the strict-scrutiny test eliminates race or ethnicity as legal classification when it places minority-group members at a disadvantage.
reasonable-basis test
A test applied by courts to laws that treat individuals unequally. Such a law may be deemed constitutional if its purpose is held to be "reasonably" related to a legitimate government interest.
England's Blank______ gave members of Protestant sects the right to worship freely and publicly. The first Amendment reflects this tradition.
Act of Toleration
The free-exercise clause has been interpreted to mean that ______.
Americans can hold any religious belief of their choosing Americans cannot always act on their religious beliefs if they conflict with other laws
de jure discrimination
Discrimination on the basis of race, sex, religion, ethnicity, and the like that results from a law
Which statement best describes the political engagement of most Asian Americans in the 1960s?
Asian Americans were not politically active to any great extent.
Which of the following was the 1954 landmark case that ended segregation in public schools?
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka
Which influential figure began civil rights work by organizing strikes by farmworkers to attain basic labor rights for migrant workers?
Cesar Chavez
de facto discrimination
Discrimination on the basis of race, sex, religion, ethnicity, and the like that results from social, economic, and cultural biases and conditions.
True or false: According to the Supreme Court, police can search a person's home merely on the basis of a hunch that the owner might be breaking the law.
False
True or false: In all cases in Texas, in order to be convicted of a crime, the accused must have intent or prior knowledge of doing something wrong.
False
True or false: The idea that "all men are created equal," as stated in the Declaration of Independence, has always been understood to include all people in the United States.
False
free-exercise clause
Glossary free-exercise clause
prior restraint
Government prohibition of speech or publication before the fact, which is presumed by the courts to be unconstitutional unless the justification for it is overwhelming.
pardon
Grants forgiveness by the state for a conviction and requires that the convicted receive no punishment; does not erase the criminal record
Which sociologist authored the book An American Dilemma?
Gunnar Myrdal
Which of the following are among the legacies of the practice of redlining?
Hispanics and African Americans still have difficulty obtaining mortgages (compared to whites). Segregated neighborhoods still exist.
Which of the following cities had the most custodial deaths in Texas in 2005-2015?
Houston
In 1964, how did the federal government respond to demands for equal rights for African Americans?
It passed the Civil Rights Act, which entitles all persons to equal access to public accommodations.
Which of the following statements are true concerning the right of assembly?
Individuals cannot hold an assembly at a busy intersection during rush hour. Regulations of public assemblies must be applied fairly to all groups. Public officials can regulate the time and place of assemblies.
What did the Voting Rights Act of 1965 entail?
It banned discriminatory voter registration practices. ,It allowed federal intervention in voter registration in states with a history of discriminating against Black voters.
The Public Safety Commission has five members. How does one become a member?
It is a gubernatorial appointment.
Within the past 10 years, Supreme Court decisions have expanded LGBTQ rights in which of the following ways?
LGBTQ people are now protected from job discrimination under the 1964 Civil Rights Act. LGBTQ couples now have the right to marry throughout the United States.
parens patriae
Latin for "parent of the fatherland"
suspect classifications
Legal classifications, such as race and national origin, that have invidious discrimination as their purpose and therefore are unconstitutional.
misdemeanor
Less serious criminal offense, punishable by fine, incarceration, or both fine and incarceration
About half of all Hispanics in the United States were born in ______.
Mexico or have Mexican ancestry
Which of the following cases established that law enforcement officers must advise detainees of their rights, including the right to remain silent and the right to an attorney, before beginning questioning in a criminal investigation?
Miranda v. Arizona (1966)
Which of the following statements about African American children in the United States is true?
More than half grow up in a single-parent family.
Which of the following Supreme Court cases was also known as the "Pentagon Papers" case?
New York Times Co. v. United States
Which 2015 Supreme Court decision removed the ban on same-sex marriage, citing it violated the Fourteenth Amendment's equal protection and due process clauses?
Obergefell v. Hodges
commute
The reduction in punishment for an individual convicted of a crime
affirmative action
Programs designed to ensure that women, minorities, and other traditionally disadvantaged groups have full and equal opportunities in employment, education, and other areas of life.
graded penalties
Punishments that differ based upon the seriousness of the crime
Which of the following is true of legal aid services for low-income Texans?
Ten of thousands of low-income Texans do not receive adequate legal aid.
In Texas, which entity determines if an offender has been sufficiently rehabilitated to be paroled?
Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles
Which of the following accurately describes Texas's prison population?
Texas has the largest prison population of any state.
establishment clause
The First Amendment provision stating that government may not favor one religion over another or favor religion over no religion and prohibiting Congress from passing laws respecting the establishment of religion.
Which of the following are true about women's equality in the workplace?
The average pay for women workers is only 82 percent of the amount earned by male workers. Jobs traditionally held by women pay less than many of the jobs traditionally held by men.
procedural due process
The constitutional requirement that government must follow proper legal procedures before a person can be legitimately punished for an alleged offense.
A ______ is a reduction in punishment for an individual convicted of a crime (but not an erasure of the criminal record).
commute
The Supreme Court decision in Schenck v. United States established which principle?
The federal government can restrict free expression but it does not have unlimited authority to do so.
civil liberties
The fundamental individual rights of a free society, such as freedom of speech and the right to a jury trial, which in the United States are protected by the Bill of Rights.
What unique circumstance existed at the time of the Korematsu v. United States decision?
The nation was at war.
Which of the statements below are true of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program?
The program was established by the Obama administration in 2012. The Trump administration's attempt to rescind the program was invalidated by the Supreme Court.
What happened when the privately run Willacy County Correctional Center, also known as "Tent City," was shut down after reports of physical and sexual abuse and inmate rioting?
The resulting budget shortfall in Willacy County required layoffs of county employees.
equal rights (civil rights)
The right of every person to equal protection under the laws and equal access to society's opportunities and public facilities.
Texas Code of Criminal Procedure
The rules created by the Texas Supreme Court to govern the proceedings of trials in Texas
Which of the following organizations is responsible for oversight of the approximately 350 municipal jails throughout the state?
There is no regulatory body to oversee their operations.
Which of the following accurately describes Native Americans today?
They are less than half as likely as other Americans to have completed college. Casino gambling has raised Native Americans' average income level, but it is still far below the national average.
What is the purpose of the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments?
They provide that no person can be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.
True or false: The Civil Rights Act of 1964, which banned segregation in public accommodations such as restaurants and movie theaters, is based on Congress's power to regulate commerce.
True
Passed by Congress soon after the 9/11 attacks, the law that allows the FBI and other intelligence agencies to access personal information and records without consent from targeted individuals is known as the ______.
USA Patriot Act
Which of the following are examples of de jure discrimination?
Women are not allowed to vote in federal elections. A state requires separate public bathrooms for Black and white people.
As part of what movement did advocates for women's suffrage (voting rights) become active on a large scale?
abolitionist movement
Which of the following was the subject under consideration in Roe v. Wade (1973)?
abortion rights
A company that has a contract with the federal government to construct a road on federal land institutes policies that ensure that its hiring practices are fair and do not exclude members of minority groups. In this way, the company is complying with _____ requirements.
affirmative action
In the case of Korematsu v. United States (1944), the courts ______.
allowed government polices during wartime that would not be allowed in times of peace
In the unanimous decision in Brown v. Board of Education (1954), the Supreme Court found that segregated schools made Black students feel like they had _____ in the community and were thus "inherently unequal."
an inferior status
In Lawrence v. Texas (2003), the Supreme Court ruled that states cannot lawfully ______.
ban sexual relations between consenting same-sex adults
The landmark case of Lau v. Nichols (1974) resulted in many states offering ______ education in their public schools.
bilingual
Among the laws giving women greater equality in the workplace were laws prohibiting ______.
certain employers from paying women less than men for doing the same job
Despite the state's reputation as tough on crime, which of the following justice reform efforts recently emerged?
changes to the juvenile justice system
Which of the following allows police to seize—and then keep or sell—any property they allege is involved in a crime?
civil asset forfeiture
Which term refers to the rights and privileges guaranteed to all citizens under the equal protection and due process clauses of the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments?
civil rights
The USA Patriot Act was passed in order to:
combat terrorism.
The movement of mentally ill individuals out of large, state-run psychiatric hospitals in the latter half of the twentieth century has been termed ______.
deinstitutionalization
Which of the following is a type of juvenile offense in Texas that if committed by an adult would result in imprisonment?
delinquent conduct
What is "America's curse," according to the author of An American Dilemma?
discrimination
Which of the following is a provision of the federal Fair Sentencing Act (FSA)?
elimination of a mandatory minimum sentence for simple possession of crack cocaine
In order to expand employment opportunities for traditionally disadvantaged groups, the federal government requires agencies and businesses that receive federal funds or contracts to ______.
establish policies aimed at ensuring that all job applicants are treated fairly
The official absolution of a false criminal conviction, which may involve release from prison or jail, is referred to a(n) ______.
exoneration
In terms of the number of death sentences handed out and the number of prisoners executed, Texas ranks ______ among the states.
first
Asian Americans are more likely than other minority groups to ______
have a high median income be college educated
Studies specifically comparing recidivism in public and private prisons ______.
have been criticized for design flaws
American television crime dramas present the investigation and prosecution of criminals ______ as compared to the realities.
in an unrealistic way
Which of the following refers to the power of the state to act in the place of the parent to protect the interests of a child?
in loco parentis
The Supreme Court has ruled that prisoners should generally appeal their cases first ______.
in state courts
A 2016 Harvard Law School study that examined Texas counties with a high output of death penalty sentences for people of color laid the blame on ______.
inadequate defense overzealous prosecutors racial bias
According to data, which of the following factors have contributed to the growth in Texas's prison population?
increases in state population rising crime rates recidivism
Those who support reform of excessive bail and pretrial confinement argue that it conflicts with what judicial principle?
innocent until proven guilty
Constitutional guarantees that protect citizens' individual rights are known as civil
liberties
The Sedition Act of 1798 attempted to:
make it a crime to publish stories that are harshly critical of the president.
The trend for police departments to increasingly use military vehicles, weapons, gear, and tactics is referred to as police ______.
militarization
The Timothy Cole Act addresses the issue of ______.
monetary compensation for wrongfully incarcerated people
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, which of the following are reasons for the higher death rate for Black Americans?
more limited access to medical care higher housing density higher incidence of comorbidity factors such as hypertension
The Bill of Rights protects a number of civil liberties, including freedom ______.
of the press,of speech,of assembly
The Supreme Court has generally held that those convicted in state courts and who appeal on the grounds that their federal constitutional rights were violated are limited to ______.
one appeal
As of 2019, approximately what portion of the Texas population was under 18 years of age?
one-quarter
What chronic problem faced by the state prison system was addressed in the case of Ruiz v. Estelle?
overcrowding
Which of the following are duties of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice?
oversight of parolees and those on probation detention and supervision of inmates operation of state prisons and jails
Which of the following refers to the inherent power of the state to protect persons legally incapable of protecting themselves before the law?
parens patriae
According to the TDCJ, ______ is defined as "the release of an offender...to serve the remainder of his or her sentence under supervision in the community."
parole
Southern states used a number of devices to prevent African Americans from voting, including which of the following?
poll taxes whites-only primaries literacy tests
Which of the following is the solution forwarded by the Texas Commission on Jail Standards to attempt to lower its prisoner suicide rate?
pre-incarceration "health tagging"
Which of the following are purposes served by the Texas criminal justice system?
promotion of public safety punishment of criminal activity compensation of victims deterrence of potential criminal activity rehabilitation of offenders
Law enforcement officials sometimes controversially rely on the practice of ____________ ______________ the assumption that certain groups of people are more likely to commit particular crimes.
racially,profiling
Which legal test gives government considerable leeway in treating people differently, such as imposing a higher tax rate on upper-income Americans?
reasonable-basis test
In Plessy v. Ferguson, the Supreme Court declared that "______________" but equal facilities do not violate the Fourteenth Amendment's equal protection clause.
seperate
A Texas citizen is no longer considered a juvenile once which of the following birthdays is reached?
seventeenth
In a 2010 CNN survey, 2 in 5 Americans stated that individuals arrested by police on suspicion of terrorism ______.
should not be read their Miranda rights
The right to legal counsel is a ______ Amendment protection.
sixths
According to the Supreme Court, laws that discriminate between people based on their race or ethnicity are laws that make use of ______.
suspect classifications
What 2013 Texas legislation requires that all evidence pertaining to a criminal case (whether or not it is perceived as relevant to guilt or punishment) is disclosed to the defense?
the Michael Morton Act
What was the name of the 1798 law that criminalized any speech or writings critical of the government, Congress, or the president?
the Sedition Act
Which of the following resulted in a change in jail practices in Waller County?
the death of Sandra Bland while in police custody
The Supreme Court has recently employed the Eighth Amendment to ban which of the following?
the death penalty for the mentally ill life sentences without parole for juveniles the death penalty for juveniles
What are the religious clauses in the First Amendment?
the establishment clause,the free-exercise clause
In the 1963 Gideon case, the Supreme Court established that ______.
the government must provide lawyers to individuals who cannot afford their own attorney
In Texas, who can grant a pardon to someone convicted of a crime?
the governor, on recommendation from the Board of Pardons and Paroles
What do experts propose to explain why suicide rates are much higher in city and county jails than in state prisons?
the initial shock of confinement
Which of the following people or organizations officially governs the Texas Department of Criminal Justice?
the nine-member Texas Board of Criminal Justice
the rights that the federal government is obliged to protect according to the Bill of Rights.
the right to a jury trial,protection from self-incrimination,protection from unreasonable searches,the right to an attorney
Griswold v. Connecticut was a case dealing with ______.
the right to privacy
Which of the following constitutional protections were at issue in the Supreme Court decision in Miranda v. Arizona (1966)
the right to remain silent the right to an attorney
What are comparable worth policies?
those that give women and men equal hourly pay for jobs that require similar training and education
Identify a purpose of the Texas Forensic Science Commission.
to ensure that the most up-to-date scientific knowledge drives the investigation and analysis of evidence
What was the intention of the Plessy v. Ferguson ruling?
to maintain segregation while claiming equality
In Hamden v. Rumsfeld, the Supreme Court ruled that the use of secret military tribunals to try detainees accused of terrorism was ______, as detainees were entitled to a trial affording all the guarantees contained in the Constitution.
unconstitutional
In Planned Parenthood v. Casey, the Supreme Court ruled that restrictions on abortion were legal so long as they didn't place an ______ on a woman's right to obtain an abortion.
undue burden
What demographic group is most likely to support same-sex marriage?
younger adults