As an assessment to our unit on the Judicial Branch, I'd like you to further examine the case of Korematsu v. the United States. In 1944, the Supreme Court ruled, in a 6-3 ruling, that the United States had acted constitutionally in its interment of Fred Korematsu (the court hearing-bringing party) and some 120,000 other Japanese-Americans during World War II.
In 1983, however, a much older Korematsu brought the case to a California District Court, where he received partial retribution and restitution (formal apology and "apology" money).
You are going to trace the journey of the Korematsu case through the legal system, from its beginning to its end. You will be defining terms, predicting next stage events, and evaluating decisions. This will be worth 25 points.
PART 1 - Korematsu v. the United States (1944)
Fred Korematsu, at a young age.
In 1942, Fred Korematsu started his grievances (anger) with the government by going to court. In which court do you think he started? (1 POINT)
- A city court?
- A county court?
- A state court?
- A District court?
- An Appellate court?
- The Supreme Court?
When he was arrested in 1942, for resisting forced relocation to the internment camps, he claimed to be of Mexican-American descent. The first court found him guilty of "being in a place from which all persons of Japanese ancestry were excluded." The first court found him guilty.
Fred Korematsu later "appealed" to a higher court. What is an appeal? (2 POINTS)
In his brief, Korematsu would state the following. Firstly, what is a brief? (2 POINTS)
His brief reads below:
"By subjecting Japanese and Japanese Americans to internment as a group, the United States has denied us due process of law and equal protection under the law. Proper due process requires individuals to be proven guilty through individual, established procedures."
Create a brief for the opposing view. Why did the government feel the need to intern the Japanese? (4 POINTS)
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Fred Korematsu lost in this court as well. Eventually he was able to secure an additional appeal that the Supreme Court would hear. Korematsu still believed his 6th Amendment (Due Process) and 14th Amendment (Equal Protection) rights were violated.
The Supreme Court ruled in a 6-3 majority against Korematsu.
Justice Hugo Black wrote the "majority opinion." What is a majority opinion? (2 POINTS)
Justice Black wrote the following:
"...We are unable to conclude that it was beyond the war power of Congress and the Executive to exclude those of Japanese ancestry from the West Coast war area at the time they did."
Remember, justices must hold judicial restraint in controversial cases. Remember Minersville v. Gobitis? Many judges had to hold judicial restraint there too! What is judicial restraint? (2 POINTS)
PART 2 - Korematsu v. the United States (1983)
Fred Korematsu, in 1983, with his legal team, attempting to reverse a 39-year-old decision.
In 1983, an older, but still discouraged, Fred Korematsu, attempted reverse the Court's decision that had occurred 39 years earlier.
Korematsu filed a writ of coram nobis (translation: "the error before us") in attempt to overturn the previous ruling. He was granted writ of certiorari by the District Court of Northern California. What is the writ of certiorari? (2 POINTS)
One of the oral arguments in the 1983 case was the following:
"As long as my record stands in federal court, any American citizen can be held in prison or concentration camps without trial or hearing. I would like to see the government admit they were wrong and do something about it, so this will never happen again to any American citizen of any race, creed, or color."
What is the difference between a brief and an oral argument? (4 POINTS)
The 1983 Court overturned and overruled the 1944 Court on the grounds that the Court had used "falsehood" information in their conviction of Korematsu. At the time, it was believed that,
"When our shores are threatened by hostile forces, the power to protect should be commensurate with the threatened danger."
The Court found that there had been false reports of radio transmissions from Japanese-American citizens to Japan among other things. These reports were made up by General John DeWitt and other members of the War Relocation Authority.
Fred Korematsu, in 1990, with his formal redress (apology letter) and compensation (payment) check.
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This "overturning" seems to happen a lot. Give an example where a Supreme Court case has been overturned later in history. (4 POINTS)
Now, the lasting impact of this case is that one person can change the legal system. But this would never happen without the right of the Supreme Court's power of judicial review. What is judicial review? (2 POINTS)
According to President Clinton,
"In the long history of our country's constant search for justice, some names of ordinary citizens stand for millions of souls. Plessy. Brown. Parks. To that distinguished list, today we add the name of Fred Korematsu."
Fred Korematsu, in 1994, receiving a formal apology from President Clinton.
