Naturalization – A legal action conferring citizenship on an alien.
Dual citizenship – Citizenship in more than one nation.
Right of expatriation – The right to renounce one’s citizenship.
Property rights – The rights of an individual to own, use, rent, invest in, buy, and sell property.
Contract clause – Clause of the Constitution (Article I, Section 10) originally intended to prohibit state governments from modifying contracts made between individuals; for a while interpreted as prohibiting state governments from taking actions that adversely affect property rights; no longer interpreted so broadly and no longer constrains state governments from exercising their police powers.
Police powers – Inherent powers of state governments to pass laws to protect the public health, safety, and welfare; the national government has no directly granted police powers but accomplishes the same goals through other delegated powers.
Eminent domain – Power of a government to take private property for public use; the U.S. Constitution gives national and state governments this power and requires them to provide just compensation for property so taken.
Regulatory taking – Government regulation of property so extensive that government is deemed to have taken the property by the power of eminent domain, for which it must compensate the property owners.
Due process – Established rules and regulations that restrain government officials.
Though some laws in certain jurisdictions have slightly different interpretations of individual rights, they all prevent the government from harming a person without following the specified procedures of the law. This is known as “due process.” The Due Process Clause provides four basic areas of protection, all of which are overseen by the U.S. Supreme Court:
Procedural due process protects individuals during governmental proceedings, whether they are civil or criminal. Procedural due process also pertains to parole hearings, governmental benefit hearings, and full criminal trials. The rights afforded in this section include, but are not limited to:
Substantive due process - Constitutional requirement that governments act reasonably and that the substance of the laws themselves be fair and reasonable; limits what the government may do.
Search warrant – A writ issued by a magistrate that authorizes the police to search a particular place or person, specifying the place to be searched and the objects to be seized.
Racial profiling – Police targeting of racial minorities as potential suspects of criminal activities.
Exclusionary rule – Requirement that evidence unconstitutionally or illegally obtained be excluded from a criminal trial.
Immunity – Exemption from prosecution for a particular crime in return for testimony pertaining to the case.
Grand jury – A jury of 12 to 23 persons who, in private, hear evidence presented by the government to determine whether persons shall be required to stand trial. If the jury believes there is sufficient evidence that a crime was committed, it issues an indictment.
Indictment – A formal written statement from a grand jury charging an individual with an offense; also called a true bill.
Plea bargain – Agreement between a prosecutor and a defendant that the defendant will plead guilty to a lesser offense to avoid having to stand trial for more serious offense.
Petit jury – A jury of 6 to 12 persons that determines guilt or innocence in a civil or criminal action.
Double jeopardy – Trial or punishment for the same crime by the same government; forbidden by the Constitution.
Community policing – Assigning police to neighborhoods where they walk the beat and work with churches and other community groups to reduce crime and improve relations with minorities.
- It generally requires that the person (1) be staying in the adopted country for a specified minimum period (typically five years) and will make it his or her permanent residence, (2) is of good character and has not been in violation of immigration laws (or has been given amnesty), (3) has a sufficient knowledge of the local language, and (4) has taken an oath of allegiance to the adopted country.
Dual citizenship – Citizenship in more than one nation.
- Some countries (e.g., Canada, the United States of America and many other countries in the Americas) regard all children born there automatically to be citizens (jus soli) even if the parents are not legally present. There are exceptions, such as the child of a foreign diplomat living in the United States. Such a child would be eligible to become a lawful permanent resident, but not a citizen based on the U.S. birth. For example, a child born in the United States to Norwegian parents automatically has dual citizenship with the United States and Norway, even though Norway usually restricts or forbids dual citizenship.
Right of expatriation – The right to renounce one’s citizenship.
- President Andrew Johnson called on Congress in his Second Annual Message in December 1866 to assert "the principle so long maintained by the executive department that naturalization by one state fully exempts the native-born subject of any other state from the performance of military service under any foreign government". The problem was illustrated more acutely the following year when Britain charged naturalized Americans John Warren and Augustine Costello of the Fenian Brotherhood under the Treason Felony Act 1848. Johnson used this example to illustrate the urgency of the problem in his Third Annual Message in December 1867, stating that it "perplexes the public mind concerning the rights of naturalized citizens and impairs the national authority abroad".
Property rights – The rights of an individual to own, use, rent, invest in, buy, and sell property.
Contract clause – Clause of the Constitution (Article I, Section 10) originally intended to prohibit state governments from modifying contracts made between individuals; for a while interpreted as prohibiting state governments from taking actions that adversely affect property rights; no longer interpreted so broadly and no longer constrains state governments from exercising their police powers.
- Example: a state could not pass a law that declares all debts to be null and void
Police powers – Inherent powers of state governments to pass laws to protect the public health, safety, and welfare; the national government has no directly granted police powers but accomplishes the same goals through other delegated powers.
- Some examples of police power are the right to tax, the right to regulate land use through a general plan and zoning, the right to require persons selling real estate to be licensed, the right to regulate pollution, environmental control, and rent control.
Eminent domain – Power of a government to take private property for public use; the U.S. Constitution gives national and state governments this power and requires them to provide just compensation for property so taken.
- One of the most famous eminent domain cases took place in 1978. In Penn Central Transportation Co. v. New York City, the Penn Central Transportation Company wanted to construct an office tower above Grand Central Terminal. The company's plans were denied by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission, which was called on to approve the addition because Grand Central Terminal was considered a landmark. Penn Central attempted to sue the Commission saying that they should be entitled to compensation under eminent domain rules, as the Commission was essentially taking their right to the property for public use. The Supreme Court ruled against Penn Central.
- In a 1992 case, Lucas v. South Carolina Coastal Council, the Supreme Court ruled that preventing a landowner from gaining economic benefit from land subject to eminent domain had the same effect as actually taking the land, thus entitling the landowner to compensation. This particular case addressed coastal land. The government's acquisition deprived the owner of any economic benefit from the land.
Regulatory taking – Government regulation of property so extensive that government is deemed to have taken the property by the power of eminent domain, for which it must compensate the property owners.
Due process – Established rules and regulations that restrain government officials.
Though some laws in certain jurisdictions have slightly different interpretations of individual rights, they all prevent the government from harming a person without following the specified procedures of the law. This is known as “due process.” The Due Process Clause provides four basic areas of protection, all of which are overseen by the U.S. Supreme Court:
- Substantive due process
- Procedural due process
- Prohibition against vague laws
- As a means to incorporate the Bill of Rights
Procedural due process protects individuals during governmental proceedings, whether they are civil or criminal. Procedural due process also pertains to parole hearings, governmental benefit hearings, and full criminal trials. The rights afforded in this section include, but are not limited to:
- The right to an unbiased trial
- The right to be given notice of the proposed trial and the reason for it
- The right of the individual to be aware of evidence against him
- The right to cross-examine witnesses for the opposition
- The right to present evidence and call witnesses
- The right to be represented by counsel
Substantive due process - Constitutional requirement that governments act reasonably and that the substance of the laws themselves be fair and reasonable; limits what the government may do.
- Substantive Due Process pertains to those rights not listed specifically in the U.S. Constitution, but which are recognized as an important part of an individual’s liberty. Substantive due process is often related to areas such as voting, minorities, and the rights of children. When determining whether the government has violated a person’s substantive due process rights, the judicial system first determines whether the issue at hand was a fundamental right.
Search warrant – A writ issued by a magistrate that authorizes the police to search a particular place or person, specifying the place to be searched and the objects to be seized.
- For example, a warrant may authorize the search of “the premises at 11359 Happy Glade Avenue between the hours of 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.,” and direct the police to search for and seize “cash, betting slips, record books, and every other means used in connection with placing bets on horse races and other sporting events.”
Racial profiling – Police targeting of racial minorities as potential suspects of criminal activities.
- Examples of racial profiling are the use of race to determine which drivers to stop for minor traffic violations (commonly referred to as "driving while black or brown"), or the use of race to determine which pedestrians to search for illegal contraband.
- Another example of racial profiling is the targeting, ongoing since the September 11th attacks, of Arabs, Muslims and South Asians for detention on minor immigrant violations in the absence of any connection to the attacks on the World Trade Center or the Pentagon.
Exclusionary rule – Requirement that evidence unconstitutionally or illegally obtained be excluded from a criminal trial.
- The Supreme Court dramatically changed Fourth Amendment jurisprudence when it handed down its decision in Weeks v. United States, 232 U.S. 383 (1914). Weeks involved the appeal of a defendant who had been convicted based on evidence that had been seized by a federal agent without a warrant or other constitutional justification. The Supreme Court reversed the defendant's conviction, thereby creating what is known as the "exclusionary rule." In Mapp v. Ohio, 367 U.S. 643 (1961), the Supreme Court made the exclusionary rule applicable to the states
Immunity – Exemption from prosecution for a particular crime in return for testimony pertaining to the case.
- Example: one defendant gives testimony in order to bring down someone higher up in gang, the first defendant may then be exempt from prosecution.
Grand jury – A jury of 12 to 23 persons who, in private, hear evidence presented by the government to determine whether persons shall be required to stand trial. If the jury believes there is sufficient evidence that a crime was committed, it issues an indictment.
- An example of a grand jury is the group, lead by Ken Starr, that investigated president Bill Clinton.
Indictment – A formal written statement from a grand jury charging an individual with an offense; also called a true bill.
- An example of indictment is the accusation which caused Nazi war criminals to be tried in the Nuremberg Trials.
Plea bargain – Agreement between a prosecutor and a defendant that the defendant will plead guilty to a lesser offense to avoid having to stand trial for more serious offense.
- Charge bargaining. The defendant pleads to a crime that’s less serious than the original charge, or than the most serious of the charges. Example: The prosecution charges Andrew with burglary, but he pleads guilty to trespassing and the prosecution dismisses the burglary charge.
- Count bargaining. Many consider count bargaining to fall under charge bargaining. Here, the defendant pleads to only one or more of the original charges, and the prosecution drops the rest. Example: The prosecution charges Joey with both robbery and simple assault. The parties agree that Joey will plead to the assault charge, and that the prosecution will dismiss the robbery charge.
- Sentence bargaining. The defendant takes a guilty or no contest plea after the sides agree what sentence the prosecution will recommend. Example: Max agrees to plead to the charge of misdemeanor resisting arrest, and the prosecution agrees to recommend that the judge not sentence him to jail time.
- Fact bargaining. The defendant pleads in exchange for the prosecutor’s stipulation that certain facts led to the conviction. The omitted facts would have increased the sentence because of sentencing guidelines. Example: The government files an indictment against Cole for drug trafficking. Federal agents caught him with over five kilograms of cocaine. Five kilograms triggers a sentence involving many years in prison, so Cole agrees to plead guilty to the offense in exchange for the prosecution’s stipulation that he possessed less than five kilograms.
Petit jury – A jury of 6 to 12 persons that determines guilt or innocence in a civil or criminal action.
- In England the petit jury is obsolete in civil cases other than defamation claims. In England and the United States a jury trial in both criminal and civil cases garners wide public support. Proponents argue that the trial jury is a bulwark against tyranny, being drawn from the populace at large. Detractors insist the system is inconvenient and clumsy and that modern legal complexities are beyond the competence of most petit jurors.
Double jeopardy – Trial or punishment for the same crime by the same government; forbidden by the Constitution.
- An example of implementation of double jeopardy laws occurred in 2013 when Sharone Brown avoided murder charges after previously accepting a guilty plea for misdemeanor assault, reports The Dallas Morning News. Double jeopardy laws protect a defendant from being tried multiple times for the same alleged crime.
Community policing – Assigning police to neighborhoods where they walk the beat and work with churches and other community groups to reduce crime and improve relations with minorities.
- Community-Police Council. The Dayton CPC is comprised of representatives of neighborhoods, businesses, churches, community agencies, youth groups, law enforcement, and local government. The CPC is responsible for developing, overseeing, and assisting with implementing effective strategies to reduce crime and disorder, change perceptions and facilitate positive engagement and increased trust between Dayton PD and the neighborhoods they serve by implementing community-police relations groups to provide venues for the community to have the ability to speak, be heard, and have their perspective considered.