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Constitutional Law Keyed to Barnett
United States v. Stevens
Citation:
449 U.S. 460 (2010)Only StudyBuddy Pro offers the complete Case Brief Anatomy*
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*Case Brief Anatomy includes: Brief Prologue, Complete Case Brief, Brief Epilogue
- The Brief Prologue provides necessary case brief introductory information and includes:
- Topic: Identifies the topic of law and where this case fits within your course outline.
- Parties: Identifies the cast of characters involved in the case.
- Procedural Posture & History: Shares the case history with how lower courts have ruled on the matter.
- Case Key Terms, Acts, Doctrines, etc.: A case specific Legal Term Dictionary.
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- The Case Brief is the complete case summarized and authored in the traditional Law School I.R.A.C. format. The Pro case brief includes:
- Brief Facts: A Synopsis of the Facts of the case.
- Rule of Law: Identifies the Legal Principle the Court used in deciding the case.
- Facts: What are the factual circumstances that gave rise to the civil or criminal case? What is the relationship of the Parties that are involved in the case. Review the Facts of this case here:
Congress passed a law that established a criminal penalty of up to five years for the commercial creation, sale, or possession of depictions of animal cruelty. The statute itself did not address the underlying harmful acts to animals, only portrayals of that conduct, because all 50 states and the federal government already prohibited acts of animal cruelty. The law contained an exception for depictions which had “serious religious, political, scientific, educational, journalistic, historical, or artistic value.” The law was intended to criminalize the production of “crush” videos, where an animal is harmed for the sexual arousal of the viewer. Respondent Stevens was prosecuted under the law for selling (online) videos of pit bulls engaged in dogfights and attacking other animals.
- Issue(s): Lists the Questions of Law that are raised by the Facts of the case.
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- Policy: Identifies the Policy if any that has been established by the case.
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