Also known as: Fourteenth Amendment Due Process Clause · 14th Amendment Due Process Clause · 14th Amendment Due Process · Fourteenth Amendment due process
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A constitutional command in the Fourteenth Amendment that bars states from depriving any person of life, liberty, or property without fair procedures such as notice and an opportunity to be heard. The clause also incorporates most Bill of Rights protections against the states.
Diane Dawson is arrested on suspicion of theft and questioned for twelve hours without food, rest, or access to counsel. Officers obtain a signed statement after repeated accusations. At trial the prosecution offers the statement. The court applies the Due Process Clause to decide whether the statement may be admitted by weighing the length of the interrogation, Dawson's physical condition, and the absence of any break or warning.
Devon Drake lives in a city-run apartment complex and keeps a handgun for self-defense. The housing authority adopts a lease clause banning all firearms. Drake sues to enjoin enforcement. The court invokes the Due Process Clause to determine whether the Second Amendment right recognized in Heller applies to the city and therefore invalidates the ban.
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The Due Process Clause requires an evidentiary hearing before termination of need-based benefits when the recipient has a protected property interest. The hearing must include timely notice, the right to confront witnesses, and an impartial decisionmaker.
The Due Process Clause incorporates the core Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms for self-defense in the home, making that right enforceable against state and local governments.
The Due Process Clause permits pre-seizure action when the property is movable and the government shows an immediate risk of dissipation or harm, provided post-seizure process is available.
Voluntariness is assessed under the totality of the circumstances, including the suspect's age, education, mental and physical condition, and the length and manner of interrogation.