What is selective incorporation, and how does it affect state action?

• A. It allows states to ignore portions of the Bill of Rights
• B. It applies portions of the Bill of Rights to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment's Due Process Clause
• C. It expands federal regulatory authority over states
• D. It prohibits the Supreme Court from hearing state challenges

Answer: (B)

Selective incorporation is the process by which the Supreme Court uses the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause to bind state governments to most of the protections in the Bill of Rights. Originally, the Bill of Rights only restricted the federal government. Over time, through a series of cases, the Court held that many of those rights also apply to state and local action, but not all at once and not automatically. The result is rights like free speech and protection against unreasonable searches being enforceable against states just as they are against the federal government.

This mechanism affects state action by preventing states from infringing those incorporated rights. If a state action or law violates an incorporated right, it is unconstitutional as applied to individuals within the state. The process is ongoing and selective, meaning rights are added to the list on a case-by-case basis rather than all at once.