Due Process

Due process ensures that the federal and state governments must treat all individuals fairly. The constitutions for both the United States and Oklahoma guarantee that the government can not deprive someone of life, liberty, or property without following a fair and impartial process. This guarantee applies to everyone, regardless of citizenship.

There are two main types of due process: procedural due process and substantive due process. Procedural due process is intended to make sure the government acts fairly, while substantive due process ensures the government’s rules themselves are fair. This piece focuses on the former, because of its prevalence in day-to-day interactions with the government.

Procedural due process focuses on the steps and procedures the government must follow before it can deprive someone of their life, liberty, or property. The main ways the government can deprive an individual of these things are through the criminal and civil legal processes.

Procedural due process requires at least three things: notice, a hearing, and an impartial tribunal. In criminal cases, this might look like a formal notice of the charges against the defendant, a fair trial with adequate representation, and an impartial jury of the defendant’s peers. Without these protections, the government could incarcerate someone without proving that they committed a crime in the first place. Immigration and deportation are civil, not criminal issues. Even so, individuals facing removal are guaranteed procedural due process rights, which include proper notice, and a chance for a hearing before an impartial tribunal. Procedural due process exists to prevent government overreach and ensure it acts fairly and impartially.