Also known as: bills of rights · U.S. Bill of Rights · first ten amendments
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
The first ten amendments to the United States Constitution that enumerate specific protections for individual liberties against federal governmental power. Most of these protections apply to state and local governments through selective incorporation under the Fourteenth Amendment Due Process Clause.
Bernard Bass and his wife visit a pharmacy seeking contraceptives for use within their marriage. State officials enforce a law banning such sales to married couples on grounds of marital stability. The couple sues, claiming the law intrudes on a protected zone of privacy. The court applies heightened scrutiny and invalidates the restriction.
Brenda Booth keeps a handgun in her residence for self-defense. A city ordinance prohibits all firearms in homes containing certain manufacturing equipment. She sues the city after citation. The court holds that the incorporated Second Amendment right binds the locality and strikes down the ban.
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Barbara Bennett's apartment is searched without a warrant by federal narcotics agents. She files a damages action directly under the Fourth Amendment. The court recognizes an implied cause of action to vindicate the constitutional interest.
Bobby Brady is charged in juvenile court with an act that would be a crime if committed by an adult. The prosecution seeks to prove the charge by a preponderance of the evidence. The court requires proof beyond a reasonable doubt to satisfy due process.
Blake Butler and his partner apply for a marriage license in a state that limits marriage to opposite-sex couples. They sue after denial. The court recognizes a fundamental liberty interest in marriage protected by the Due Process Clause.
Bianca Blanco lives with her grandson in a single-family zone that restricts households to nuclear families. City officials issue a citation and seek eviction. The court holds that the zoning ordinance impermissibly burdens protected family interests.
The Bill of Rights originally limited only the federal government. Through selective incorporation under the Fourteenth Amendment Due Process Clause, most of its protections now apply to the states as well.
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The right arises from penumbras of several Bill of Rights guarantees, including the First, Third, Fourth, Fifth, and Ninth Amendments. State laws that directly interfere with married couples' intimate decisions about contraception are subject to heightened scrutiny.
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The Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms for self-defense in the home is incorporated against the states and their political subdivisions through the Fourteenth Amendment. Municipal ordinances that burden this core right are subject to constitutional challenge.
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Several amendments impose direct limits on the criminal process, including protections against unreasonable searches, compelled self-incrimination, and cruel and unusual punishment. These guarantees apply to federal proceedings by their terms and to state proceedings through incorporation.
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…the Fourteenth Amendment's Due Process Clause; or in personal, marital, familial, and sexual privacy said to be protected by the Bill of Rights or its penumbras, see Griswold v. Connecticut , 381 U.S. 479 (1965); Eisenstadt v. Baird , 405 U.S. 438 (1972); or among those rights reserved to the people by the Ninth Amendment,…