The Idaho State Constitution vs. The US Constitution

The US Constitution provides detailed description of the structure of the national government and defines the scope of its powers, as well as its limitations. This is the most important document in the United States and other documents are based on it. The articles and amendments of the US Constitution establish constitutional law. However, state constitutions differ from the US Constitution in a number of ways. Idaho State Constitution is no exclusion. It differs from the US Constitution in the following parameters: length and presentation of the content. In other words, Idaho State Constitution is much longer than the US Constitution as it presents information in details.

The general similarities between Idaho State Constitution and the US Constitution are division of the documents into sections and articles, and outlining of the government’s structure of legislative, executive and judicial branches. The general differences between Idaho State Constitution and the US Constitution in terms of government and document structure include a large number of rights and detailed description of each right. In fact, Article I of the Idaho State Constitution contains 21 section (The Constitution of the State of Idaho). The rights listed in the Article I of the Idaho State Constitution (e.g. inalienable rights of man, political power inherent in the people, guarantee of religious liberty, etc.) do not duplicate the Bill of Rights of the US Constitution (e.g. religion and expression, bearing arms, search and seizure, rights of persons, etc.), although there is a close parallel between them. This fact means that the Idaho State Constitution includes description of different kinds of rights that are protected by law. Each of these rights can be compared with the protections provided by the US Bill of Rights because there are many identical rights that are relevant to basic constitutional rights of American citizens. For example, freedom of speech is a right listed in Section 9 of Article I of the Idaho State Constitution, while First Amendment to the US Constitution defines freedom of speech right in religion and expression section. Another example is the right to keep and bear arms listed in Section 11 of the Idaho State Constitution which is similar to the Second Amendment to the US Constitution entitled as bearing arms section.

Moreover, it is necessary to consider the specific right to privacy in both constitutions. In the US Constitution, the right to privacy is listed in the Fourth Amendment, which states, “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized” (The US Constitution). As a matter of fact, the US Constitution does not include an exact title of the right to privacy. However, the Bill of Rights provides protection of certain aspects of privacy. Hence, the First Amendment permits privacy of religious beliefs, the Third Amendment provides protection of privacy of homes, and the Fifth Amendment protects privacy of personal information.

The right to privacy is important because it allows a person to make decisions without pressure. The right to privacy helps to foster autonomy of a person and demonstrate his/her individuality. This fact means that the right to privacy has many benefits, including protection of identity, maintaining confidentiality, etc. The right to privacy is not explicitly mentioned in the Idaho State Constitution.  The exact words included in the state constitution are possessing and protecting property and life and liberty, found in Artcile I, Section 1 of the Idaho State Constitution. Actually, the scope of privacy protection offered in this Article is similar to that provided by the US Constitution.

Assessing the merit of explicit versus general constitutional language in the protection of rights, it is possible to conclude that the first one is more preferable than the second one. The language in the Idaho State Constitution is similar to the language in the US Constitution, although it is more appropriate for the general audience due to the use of simple structures and speech patterns. 

References

The Constitution of the State of Idaho. https://sos.idaho.gov/elect/stcon/index.html

The Constitution of the United States. http://constitution.findlaw.com/

The terms offer and acceptance. (2016, May 17). Retrieved from

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016.

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

freeessays.club (2016) The terms offer and acceptance [Online].
Available at:

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]
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