Barron v. Baltimore
BARRON V. BALTIMORE
BARRON V. BALTIMORE, 7 Pet. 32 U.S. 243 (1833), 7–0. Barron claimed that the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution forbade the taking of his property by Baltimore without just compensation. When Baltimore refused to pay, Barron brought suit. Chief Justice John Marshall's opinion held that the Bill of Rights (the first ten amendments) was intended only to restrain the federal government. The holding in effect was overturned by decisions of the Court in the twentieth century that the Fourteenth Amendment was intended to "incorporate" various provisions of the Bill of Rights to prevent any state or locality from denying its citizens due process or the equal protection of the laws.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Amar, Akhil Reed. The Bill of Rights: Creation and Reconstruction. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 1998.
Presser, Stephen B. Recapturing the Constitution: Race, Religion, and Abortion Reconsidered. Washington, D.C.: Regnery, 1994.
Stephen B.Presser
