Term | Definition |
civil liberties | freedom to think and act without government interference or fear of unfair legal treatment |
censorship | the banning of printed materials or films due to alarming or offensive ideas |
petition | a formal request for government action |
slander | spoken untruths that are harmful to someones reputation |
libel | written untruths that are harmful to someones reputation |
search warrant | a court order allowing law enforcement officers to search a suspects home or business and take specific items as evidence |
indictment | a formal charge by the grand jury |
grand jury | a group of citizens that decide whether there is sufficient evidence to accuse someone of a crime |
double jeopardy | putting someone on trial for a crime of which he or she was previously acquitted |
due process | following established legal procedures |
eminent domain | the right of government to take private property for public use |
bail | sum of money used as a security deposit to ensure that an accused person returns for his or her trial |
suffrage | the right to vote |
poll tax | a sum of money required of voters before they are permitted to cast a ballot |
discrimination | unfair treatment based on prejudice against a certain group |
segregation | the social separation of the voters |
civil rights | the rights of full citizenship and equality under the law |
affirmative action | programs intended to make up for past discrimination by helping minority groups and women access to jobs and opportunities |
racial profiling | singling out an individual as a suspect due to appearance of ethnicity |