Due process is a fundamental principle enshrined in the US Constitution to ensure that every individual is treated fairly and justly by the government. It guarantees that no one can be deprived of their life, liberty, or property without following the proper legal procedures. The Fifth Amendment and the Fourteenth Amendment both emphasize the importance of due process, making it a crucial safeguard against arbitrary actions by the government. This essential protection ensures that all individuals have the right to a fair and impartial legal process, regardless of their circumstances. By upholding due process, we uphold the values of justice, equality, and the rule of law in our society.
Due Process requires that procedures for the treatment of laws must be applied the same, so that individuals are not subjected to arbitrary decisions of power.
The Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution, ratified July 9, 1868, prohibited states from denying any person “life, liberty or property, without due process of law” or denying “any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”
As to the natural persons protected by the due process clause, these include all human beings regardless of race, color, or citizenship. Yick Wo v. Hopkins, 118 U.S. 356 (1886); Terrace v. Thompson, 263 U.S. 197, 216 (1923). See Hellenic Lines v. Rhodetis, 398 U.S. 306, 309 (1970).
The arbitrary power, enforcing its edicts to the injury of the persons and property of its subjects, is not law, [...] And the limitations imposed by our constitutional law upon the action of the governments, both state and national, are essential to the preservation of public and private rights, [notwithstanding the representative character of our political institutions].
