Article 1. - Bill of Rights.
TO THE END, that justice be established, public order maintained, and liberty perpetuated; WE, the People of the State of Indiana, grateful to ALMIGHTY GOD for the free exercise of the right to choose our own form of government, do ordain this Constitution.
Section 1. WE DECLARE, That all people are created equal; that
they are endowed by their CREATOR with certain inalienable rights;
that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; that all
power is inherent in the people; and that all free governments are, and
of right ought to be, founded on their authority, and instituted for their
peace, safety, and well-being. For the advancement of these ends, the
people have, at all times, an indefeasible right to alter and reform their
government.
(History: As Amended November 6, 1984).
Section 2. All people shall be secured in the natural right to worship
ALMIGHTY GOD, according to the dictates of their own consciences.
(History: As Amended November 6, 1984).
Section 3. No law shall, in any case whatever, control the free
exercise and enjoyment of religious opinions, or interfere with the
rights of conscience.
Section 4. No preference shall be given, by law, to any creed,
religious society, or mode of worship; and no person shall be
compelled to attend, erect, or support, any place of worship, or to
maintain any ministry, against his consent.
(History: As Amended November 6, 1984).
Section 5. No religious test shall be required, as a qualification for
any office of trust or profit.
Section 6. No money shall be drawn from the treasury, for the
benefit of any religious or theological institution.
Section 7. No person shall be rendered incompetent as a witness, in
consequence of his opinions on matters of religion.
Section 8. The mode of administering an oath or affirmation, shall
be such as may be most consistent with, and binding upon, the
conscience of the person, to whom such oath or affirmation may be
administered.
Section 9. No law shall be passed, restraining the free interchange of thought and opinion, or restricting the right to speak, write, or print,
freely, on any subject whatever: but for the abuse of that right, every
person shall be responsible.
Section 10. In all prosecutions for libel, the truth of the matters
alleged to be libellous, may be given in justification.
Section 11. The right of the people to be secure in their persons,
houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable search or seizure,
shall not be violated; and no warrant shall issue, but upon probable
cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the
place to be searched, and the person or thing to be seized.
Section 12. All courts shall be open; and every person, for injury
done to him in his person, property, or reputation, shall have remedy
by due course of law. Justice shall be administered freely, and without
purchase; completely, and without denial; speedily, and without delay.
(History: As Amended November 6, 1984).
Section 13. (a) In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall have
the right to a public trial, by an impartial jury, in the county in which
the offense shall have been committed; to be heard by himself and
counsel; to demand the nature and cause of the accusation against him,
and to have a copy thereof; to meet the witnesses face to face, and to
have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor.
(b) Victims of crime, as defined by law, shall have the right to be
treated with fairness, dignity, and respect throughout the criminal
justice process; and, as defined by law, to be informed of and present
during public hearings and to confer with the prosecution, to the extent
that exercising these rights does not infringe upon the constitutional
rights of the accused.
(History: As Amended November 5, 1996).
Section 14. No person shall be put in jeopardy twice for the same
offense. No person, in any criminal prosecution, shall be compelled to
testify against himself.
Section 15. No person arrested, or confined in jail, shall be treated
with unnecessary rigor.
Section 16. Excessive bail shall not be required. Excessive fines
shall not be imposed. Cruel and unusual punishments shall not be
inflicted. All penalties shall be proportioned to the nature of the
offense.
Section 17. Offenses, other than murder or treason, shall be bailable
by sufficient sureties. Murder or treason shall not be bailable, when the
proof is evident, or the presumption strong.
Section 18. The penal code shall be founded on the principles of reformation, and not of vindictive justice.
Section 19. In all criminal cases whatever, the jury shall have the right to determine the law and the facts.
Section 20. In all civil cases, the right of trial by jury shall remain
inviolate.
Section 21. No person's particular services shall be demanded,
without just compensation. No person's property shall be taken by law,
without just compensation; nor, except in case of the State, without
such compensation first assessed and tendered.
(History: As Amended November 6, 1984).
Section 22. The privilege of the debtor to enjoy the necessary
comforts of life, shall be recognized by wholesome laws, exempting a
reasonable amount of property from seizure or sale, for the payment of
any debt or liability hereafter contracted: and there shall be no
imprisonment for debt, except in case of fraud.
Section 23. The General Assembly shall not grant to any citizen, or
class of citizens, privileges or immunities, which, upon the same terms,
shall not equally belong to all citizens.
Section 24. No ex post facto law, or law impairing the obligation of
contracts, shall ever be passed.
Section 25. No law shall be passed, the taking effect of which shall
be made to depend upon any authority, except as provided in this
Constitution.
Section 26. The operation of the laws shall never be suspended,
except by the authority of the General Assembly.
Section 27. The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be
suspended, except in case of rebellion or invasion; and then, only if the
public safety demand it.
Section 28. Treason against the State shall consist only in levying
war against it, and in giving aid and comfort to its enemies.
Section 29. No person shall be convicted of treason, except on the
testimony of two witnesses to the same overt act, or upon his
confession in open court.
Section 30. No conviction shall work corruption of blood, or
forfeiture of estate.
Section 31. No law shall restrain any of the inhabitants of the State from assembling together in a peaceable manner, to consult for their common good; nor from instructing their representatives; nor from applying to the General Assembly for redress of grievances.
Section 32. The people shall have a right to bear arms, for the defense of themselves and the State.
Section 33. The military shall be kept in strict subordination to the
civil power.
Section 34. No soldier shall, in time of peace, be quartered in any
house, without the consent of the owner; nor, in time of war, but in a
manner to be prescribed by law.
Section 35. The General Assembly shall not grant any title of
nobility, nor confer hereditary distinctions.
Section 36. Emigration from the State shall not be prohibited.
Section 37. There shall be neither slavery, nor involuntary
servitude, within the State, otherwise than for the punishment of
crimes, whereof the party shall have been duly convicted.
(History: As Amended November 6, 1984).
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