Comparison between the Indiana Constitution and the United States Constitution - Essay Example

Comparison between the Indiana Constitution and the United s Constitution The Indiana constitution was ratified on 10th June 1816 and the UnitedStates constitution was ratified on 17th September 1787. The preamble has striking similarities; both constitutions have the statement that begins with “We, the People of the State of …” Another similarity is that they both aim at establishing justice. There are some differences in the preamble, the Indiana Constitution begins with the words “TO THE END …” and the United States Constitution begins with the words “We the People of the United States…” Another difference is that the element of godliness is not found in the United States Constitution.

The United States Constitution has 7 articles whereas the Indiana Constitution has 16 articles. There are similarities in the articles; each article has sections that elaborate it further. Some articles discuss the same content such the legislative, the judicial and the executive. Differences in the articles: the order in which the article appear is not similar; in the Indiana Constitution the first article is the Bill of Rights whereas in the United States Constitution, the first article is The Legislative Branch.

In Indiana Constitution, the Bill of Rights is located in Article 1 and in the United States Constitution the Bill of Rights is located in the Amendments. There are some similarities in the rights explicated; for example, there is right to freedom of press, expression and religion, the right to trial by a jury in a civil case and the quartering of soldiers. Rights not held in common: the right to no slavery or involuntary servitude is not held in common by the two constitutions; Indiana Constitution considers it as a Bill of Rights.

In the Indiana Constitution, the distribution of powers is found in Article 3 whereas in the United States Constitution the distribution of powers is found in Articles 1, 2 and 3. Article 3 of the United States Constitution describes the Supreme Court and Article 7 of the Indiana Constitution describes the Supreme Court. Similarities in the article; all the judicial powers are vested in the Supreme Court. Article 7 of the Indiana Constitution gives a thorough description of the roles of the people in the judiciary; the United States Constitution does not.

Amendment to the Indiana Constitution is proposed by any branches of the General Assembly. In the United States Constitution, proposal to the amendment of the Constitution can be done when two thirds of each of the houses finds it necessary. The United States Constitution has been amended 27 times whereas the Indian Constitution has been amended more than 50 times. Some of the amendments made make up the Bill of Rights in both constitutions. For example, the right to a speedy trial is an amendment in both constitutions.

There is a significant difference in the amendment in both constitutions; the whole of the United States’ Bill of Rights is made up of amendments and in the Indiana Constitution only a few of the amendments constitute the Bill of Rights.