Landmark Decisions Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Landmark Decisions - Assignment Example The rulings were important in shaping application of the constitution in practical terms (Plessy v. Ferguson) and also in securing the rights of the accused person in protecting his or her innocence (Miranda v. Arizona). Introduction In the Plessy v. Ferguson case, Homer Plessy challenged the Louisiana law requiring that black and white people ride in separate coaches on trains. His argument was that the 14th Amendment of the constitution was meant to guarantee equal protection and due process under the law. However the Supreme Court ruled that segregation under state law was constitutional as long as the facilities provided for the different races were equal. This â€Å"separate but equal† ruling sets the stage for segregation laws that stayed in force for the next 60 years. In the Miranda v. The Arizona Supreme Court held that an accused person’s confession was not to be admitted in court if it was found that he or she was not informed of their right to counsel or hav ing themselves protected against self-incrimination. It forms the basis of the Miranda warnings that are issued up to the present day before any interrogation by an arrested person is initiated (Landmark Rulings of the United States Supreme Court, n.d.). 1. The Plessy v. ... In passing the ruling, Justice Henry Brown noted that the â€Å"Separate but equal† statute merely implied a legal distinction between black and white and that it did not violate the Amendment because it could not have been intended to abolish distinctions based on race or to enforce social equality. As far as the majority Justices were concerned, as long as the statute did not discriminate against the black population politically and merely sought to enforce social order then it was legal and constitutional. This very narrow interpretation of the constitution was entirely in line with the thinking at the time and was accepted and endorsed by all except one of the judges of the Supreme Court (Amar, 2011). In the Miranda v. Arizona ruling, the appellant had objected to the use of a confession that had been made without the accused being made aware of their Fifth Amendment rights (the right to not involuntarily incriminate oneself) and also on this Sixth Amendment right (the rig ht to legal counsel, provided free of charge if the accused cannot afford it). The Supreme Court ruling was a landmark in the way accused persons are questioned prior to being charged in court. It also made the reading of the accused’s rights a mandatory requirement. Initially there was fear that this decision would lead to as one of the justices said, the setting free of killers, rapists and other criminals who would then go out and commit crime again but it also emphasized the doctrine of presumption of innocence, a key constitutional right (Schauer, 2013). 1A. In the Plessy v. Ferguson ruling, the lone dissenting voice was of Associate Justice John Marshall Harlan of Kentucky who held that the constitution is color