Required Resources
Read/review the following resources for this activity:
Textbook: Chapter 11, 12
Lesson
Minimum of 2 scholarly sources in addition to the textbook.
Instructions
This assignment is comprised of 2 parts, the first of which is due this week. Part II will be due in Week 7.
In Part I this week, choose a case from your state that involves civil rights or civil liberties that wound its way up to the United States Supreme Court. If your state does not have a case that ended up in the United States Supreme Court, choose a civil rights case from another state that ended up in the Supreme Court of the United States.
Here is a brief description of civil rights and civil liberties: Civil rights refers to equal social opportunities under the law. It gives you these freedoms such as the right to vote, the right to public education, or a fair trial, among other things, regardless of your wealth or race. Civil liberties mean freedom of religion, equal treatment and due process under the law, and the right to privacy.
You should be able to go online and look up your state and famous cases that ended up in the Supreme Court. For example, Brown v Board of Education (1951) started in Topeka, Kansas and ended up in the Supreme Court of the United States. Another example would be Calvary Chapel Dayton Valley v Steve Sisolak, Governor of Nevada (2020) that started in Nevada and ended up the United States Supreme Court.
Research your court case and write an outline of the case that you will be using to prepare a presentation, which will either be a narrated PowerPoint, a Kaltura Video, or some other format as approved by your instructor. Be sure to verify the presentation format with your instructor before starting work on this assignment.
This week’s assignment should include (a) summary of the case, and (b) a case outline
A. Summary of the Case
In one or two paragraphs, provide a general overview of the case that serves as a snapshot of what the case is about and how it ended up in your state high court. A summary is using your words to write a brief history of the case. Do not give your opinion or your interpretation but stick to the facts only.
B: Case Outline
Your court case outline should include:
Title: Name of the case
Facts of the case: Provide key facts involving the case.
History of the case: What legal action was taken based on what your state laws say about this case?
Legal questions: What were the legal issues the court had to decide?
Decision or holdings: Did the court decide for the plaintiff or the defendant? Explain the reason behind the decision?
Verdict and opinion (judgement): What were the concurring and dissenting opinions? How many judges decided for the defendant and how many justices decided against the defendant? What was the final verdict from the judge or the jury, if it was a jury trial?
Summary: What was the resulting impact of the ruling? How did the citizens of your state benefit from it? Make sure to not give our opinion but stick to the facts only. This summary just gives a brief rundown of the case and conclusion only, just the
Writing Requirements (APA format)
The length of your outline will vary. Usually an outline is anywhere from 1-3 pages long. Make sure to write full sentences to explain your case. It is a concise list to be used as a reference for you during the presentation.
Using the outline, you will be describing the court case in your presentation and the scenario around the court case. The use of Wikipedia as a primary source of information is to be avoided – it is not a reliable source of information.
Search for an example of a case outline in the Internet. Without going into much detail at this state, each of the items listed above has a subject sentence with 3-6 bullet points that can help you expand on the topic.
For Week 8, you will be creating a narrated PowerPoint, or a video as approved by your instructor, from this week’s outline.
This assignment is worth 200 points.
1-inch margins
Double spaced
12-point Times New Roman font
Title page
References page (minimum of 2 scholarly sources in addition to textbook if cited)
Grading
This activity will be graded based on the Written Assignment Grading Rubric.
Course Outcomes (CO): 1, 5, 6
Due Date: By 11:59 p.m. MT on Sunday
Rubric
Week 6 – Part I: How the Courts Address or Respect Our Rights as Citizens – Outline
Week 6 – Part I: How the Courts Address or Respect Our Rights as Citizens – Outline
Criteria Ratings Pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeSummary
30 pts
Includes a stellar summary that accurately describes the critical components of the case.
26 pts
Includes a good summary that describes the critical components of the case but omits 1 or 2 minor parts.
23 pts
Includes a summary that has the case details but omits 1 or 2 major parts.
20 pts
Includes a summary that has some case details only.
0 pts
No effort
30 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeTitle and Facts of the Case
30 pts
There are at least three key facts related to the case, including the parties involved. Answer includes the case title and name.
26 pts
There are no more than two key facts related to the case, including the parties involved. Answer contains both the case title and name.
23 pts
There is only one key fact about the case. Answer contains either the title or the case name, but not both.
20 pts
The answer does not contain key facts about the case. Answer contains either the title or the case name.
0 pts
No effort
30 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeHistory of the Case
40 pts
The outline covers a sufficient level of case history to make the legal actions surrounding the case clear and detailed.
35 pts
The outline demonstrates points of case history surrounding the legal actions of the course case.
31 pts
The outline provides brief points of case history surrounding the legal actions of the course case.
27 pts
The outline provides such a minimal number of points of case history surrounding the legal actions that the history of the case is not clear.
0 pts
No effort
40 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeLegal Questions
30 pts
The outline clearly points to the specific civil liberty issues that the courts had to determine to issue a verdict.
26 pts
The outline points to the general civil liberty issues that the courts had to determine to issue a verdict.
23 pts
The outline provides some information regarding the general civil liberty issues that the courts had to determine to issue a verdict.
20 pts
The outline is not clear regarding the general civil liberty issues that the courts had to determine to issue a verdict.
0 pts
No effort
30 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeHoldings and Court Conditions
20 pts
Holdings or court imposed conditions are clearly explained.
17 pts
Holdings or court imposed conditions are not clearly explained.
15 pts
Omits any holdings or court imposed conditions.
13 pts
Holdings or court imposed conditions are also omitted.
0 pts
No effort
20 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeVerdict and Opinion
30 pts
Includes court verdict, and the legal basis for the verdict is well explained. Reference cases are listed too.
30 pts
Includes court verdict, but the legal basis for the verdict has room for improvement. Reference cases are listed too.
23 pts
Includes court verdict, but the legal basis for the verdict is inaccurate. Reference cases missing.
20 pts
Only includes the court verdict.
0 pts
No effort
30 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeWriting: Mechanics and Usage
10 pts
The writing is concise, free of errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
8 pts
The writing is free of errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
7 pts
The writing contains some errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
6 pts
The student presents information that is not clear, logical, professional or organized to the point that the reader has difficulty understanding the message
0 pts
No effort
10 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeCitations
10 pts
The references are provided in accurate APA format.
8 pts
The references contain a few minor error in APA format.
7 pts
The references contain several minor errors in APA format.
6 pts
The references contain major errors in APA format.
0 pts
No effort
10 pts
Total Points: 200
