LAD #30

The Supreme Court case Schenck v. United States determined that freedom of speech, guaranteed under the Bill of Rights, did not always exist in times of war. Charles Schenck, a member of the Socialist party, vehemently opposed the Conscription Act. This piece of legislation was drafted during the Great War in order to draft soldiers to serve overseas. Schenck was found distributing papers that urged readers to petition for a repeal of the act. When he was arrested, he was confident that he would be protected by the Bill of Rights. Unfortunately for Schenck, a unanimous Supreme Court determined that he was guilty of conspiracy against the Federal Government. In order to justify this decision, Justice Holmes explained that, because the country was at war, Schenck's actions could "create a clear and present danger." This essentially meant that in different circumstances, the same action could produce a danger for the Federal Government or the American people. By disrupting the conscription during the Great War, at a time when the Federal Government needed men to serve, Schenck was creating a danger.