Also known as: due process standards · due process
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A constitutional guarantee that protects individuals from arbitrary governmental deprivations of life, liberty, or property by requiring fair procedures before such deprivations occur. The guarantee also imposes substantive limits that prevent certain fundamental rights from being infringed without a compelling justification.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Federal prosecutors charged Diana Delgado with a serious felony without first obtaining an indictment from a grand jury. Delgado moved to dismiss the information. The court dismissed the charge because the government had bypassed the required grand jury process before depriving her of liberty.
State officials refused to issue a marriage license to Devon Drake and his partner of a different race under a statute banning interracial unions. Drake sued. The court struck down the statute because it infringed the fundamental right to marry without any legitimate purpose independent of racial discrimination.
State officials seized property belonging to Dolores Diaz without providing notice or an opportunity to be heard. Diaz filed suit claiming a violation. The court held that the state's action deprived her of property without due process of law under the Fourteenth Amendment.
State law required Dwight Dorsey, a convicted offender, to undergo sterilization as part of his sentence. Dorsey challenged the statute. The court invalidated the law because it violated the fundamental right to procreate without satisfying substantive due process requirements.
After the mother's death, state officials removed Delilah Duran's child from the custody of the unmarried father without any hearing. The father petitioned for relief. The court ruled that due process required a fair process to determine whether the parental relationship should be severed.
A trustee published notice of a trust accounting in a newspaper that was unlikely to reach known beneficiaries such as Diane Dawson. Dawson later challenged the settlement. The court held that publication alone failed to satisfy the due process requirement of reasonable notice under the circumstances.
A defendant is incompetent if, because of her present mental condition, she either lacks a rational and factual understanding of the charges and proceedings or lacks sufficient present ability to consult with her lawyer with a reasonable degree of understanding. This bar prevents trial until competency is restored.
Supporting sources
An identification violates due process when it is unnecessarily suggestive and creates a substantial likelihood of misidentification. Both elements must be shown, and the identification must be extremely suggestive to meet this difficult test.
…attuned to the majority opinion of Mr. Justice Peckham in that case. As in Lochner and similar cases applying substantive due process standards to economic and social welfare legislation, the adoption of the compelling state interest standard will inevitably require this Court to examine the legislative policies and pass on the…
…by the Fourteenth Amendment. This disposition makes unnecessary any discussion whether such segregation also violates the Due Process
…hearing at this stage conform with all the requirements of a criminal trial or even of the usual administrative proceeding the Due Process Clause does require application during the adjudicatory hearing of " the essentials of
…requirements of the Fourteenth Amendment and that by allowance of the account beneficiaries were deprived of property without due process
…in a pending criminal trial. The generalized assertion of presidential privilege must yield to the fundamental demands of due process
Supporting sources
Yes. The Due Process Clause requires the prosecution to prove every element of a criminal offense beyond a reasonable doubt in all criminal cases, including juvenile delinquency proceedings. Circumstantial evidence can satisfy the standard when it forms a logical chain that eliminates reasonable doubt.
Supporting sources
Yes. The record must affirmatively demonstrate the defendant's understanding of the rights waived by the plea, including the right to a jury trial, the right to confront witnesses, and the privilege against self-incrimination. A silent record is constitutionally inadequate even if other materials exist outside the courtroom.
Supporting sources