Which case stated that the Bill of Rights does not apply to the states, setting Barron v. Baltimore as a limitation?

• A. Munn v. Illinois (1877)
• B. Barron v. Baltimore (1833)
• C. United States v. Windsor (2013)
• D. Gitlow v. New York (1925)

Answer: (B)

Barron v. Baltimore is the case that established that the Bill of Rights limits the federal government, not the states. Because of that decision, the protections in the first ten amendments did not automatically constrain state laws or actions at that time, creating a boundary between federal rights and state action. This set a limitation that lasted until the incorporation process began under the Fourteenth Amendment, which gradually bound the states to many of those rights. A pivotal later step was Gitlow v. New York, which started applying First Amendment protections to the states, signaling that the Bill of Rights could restrict state action; however, Barron is the case that originally set the limitation. The other cases don’t address whether the Bill of Rights binds the states: Munn v. Illinois concerns state regulation of business and police power, United States v. Windsor concerns federal recognition of same-sex marriage, and Gitlow v. New York is about incorporation, not the original statement that the Bill of Rights does not apply to the states.