Should teenagers have the same rights as adults under the Constitution? Several cases have dealt with this question. The answer is not always yes and the court has said, in fact, that in certain instances teenagers can be treated differently.
There are many instances where even the courts cannot agree. Lower court decisions have been overturned on appeal. In addition, many Supreme Court decisions are decided with strong dissenting opinions. When used in debate, these dissenting opinions and lower court decisions can be important in building a case for a particular position. It should be stressed by teachers, to students of debate, that the ruling of a court does not prove a particular position. Debaters should not assume that the majority rulings in the cases discussed are the most important factors in the debate or that they are the “correct” answers to the problem. The rulings are the judges opinions and debaters, like all citizens in a democracy, are entitled to have their own opinions regardless of what the judges say. Many court decisions, in fact, seem to contradict other court decisions. Opinions, court decisions, and other research information are merely tools in building a case. The debate is won or lost by how well these tools are used to form a comprehensive plan for a particular position and to refute the position presented by the opposing team.
The first part of this unit will discuss landmark cases affecting teenagers. These cases can form the basis for classroom debates or in preparation for state debate competition. The cases discussed relate to the question of whether or not teenagers are entitled to the same protection under the law as adults. The second category deals with substantive issues. It deals with cases that relate to the question of what teenagers can and cannot do in society. This category is divided into two sections. The first section deals with cases relating to the 1st Amendment rights of teenagers. The second section deals with Supreme Court rulings regarding the disciplining of teenagers. At the conclusion of each category, several questions will be asked to help initiate classroom debate.