Реферат: Mitchell V Wisconsin Essay Research Paper

itself of questionable constitutionality, in that it allows the

sentencing judge to exercise excessive discretionary judgement based

on his view as to what constitutes acceptable and unacceptable

motives. However, even if this practice is held to be constitutional,

surpassing the existing maximum penalty with an additional statute

that specifically lists bigotry as an unacceptable motive, certainly

qualifies as being the same as imposing an additional penalty for

unpopular beliefs.

To illuatrate the dangers inherent in laws such as Wisconsin?s

penalty enhancement statute, we need only examine Texas v. Johnson, a

1989 Supreme Court case. The state?s flag desecration statute was

ruled unconstitutional by the Court. However, using Rehnquists logic

in Mitchell, the state of Texas could have easily achieved their goal

by prohibiting public burning, a legitimate exercise of their police

power, and enhancing the penalty for those convicted of violating the

statute if they did so in in opposition to the government (Gellman,

380). Therefore, penalty enhancement laws such as Wisconsin?s give

the government too much power to excessively punish what it deems

unacceptable.

Clearly, when the legislature enacts penalty enhancement laws with

the intent of suppressing unpopular ideas, the state violates both the

First and the Fouteenth Amendments. The state interferes with an

individual?s right to free speech by suppressing ideas not supported

by the government, and fails to provide equal protection to all its

citizens when it punishes an act more severely when committed by an

individual whose opinions are not shared by the state. Mitchell v.

Wisconsin is a clear example of majority will infringing upon minority

rights, and proves that the BIll of Rights works well, except in the

instances when it is most needed.