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Debs v. United States
Wikipedia article
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Debs_v._United_States
Resource Type: Article
Debs v. United States, 249 U.S. 211 (1919), was a United States Supreme Court decision that upheld the Espionage Act of 1917.
Eugene V. Debs was an American labour and political leader and five-time Socialist Party of America candidate for the American Presidency. On June 16, 1918 Debs made an anti-war speech in Canton, Ohio, protesting US involvement in World War I. He was arrested under the Espionage Act of 1917 and convicted, and sentenced to serve ten years in prison.
The case against Debs was based on a document entitled Anti-War Proclamation and Program, showing that Debs' original intent was to openly protest against the war. The argument of the Federal Government was that Debs was attempting to arouse mutiny and treason by preventing the drafting of soldiers into the United States Army. This type of speech was outlawed in the United States with the Espionage Act of June 15, 1917. The defense argued that Debs was entitled to the rights of free speech provided for in the first amendment of the Bill of Rights. This was one of three cases decided in 1919 in which the Court had upheld convictions that restricted free speech.
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