Lovell v. City of Griffin, 303 U.S. 444 (1938)
Contents:
Show Summary
Hide Summary
General SummaryThis case is from a collection containing the full text of over 16,000 Supreme Court cases from 1793 to the present. The body of Supreme Court decisions are, effectively, the final interpretation of the Constitution. Only an amendment to the Constitution can permanently overturn an interpretation and this has happened only four times in American history.
Lovell v. City of Griffin, 303 U.S. 444 (1938)
Lovell v. City of Griffin No. 391 Argued February 4, 1938 Decided March 28, 1938 303 U.S. 444
APPEAL FROM THE COURT OF APPEALS OF GEORGIA
Syllabus
1. Whether a federal question was properly presented to and decided by a state court is itself a federal question, to be decided by this Court upon appeal. P. 450.
2. Freedom of speech and freedom of the press, which are protected by the First Amendment from infringement by Congress, are among the fundamental personal rights and liberties which are protected by the Fourteenth Amendment from invasion by state action. P. 450.
3. Municipal ordinances adopted under state authority constitute state action within the meaning of the Fourteenth Amendment. P. 450.
4. A city ordinance forbidding as a nuisance the distribution, by hand or otherwise, of literature of any kind without first obtaining written permission from the City Manager violates the Fourteenth Amendment; strikes at the very foundation of the freedom of the press by subjecting it to license and censorship. P. 450.
So held as applied to distribution of pamphlets and magazines in the nature of religious tracts.
5. The liberty of the press is not confined to newspapers and periodicals. It embraces pamphlets and leaflets. P. 452.
6. One who is prosecuted for disobeying a license ordinance which is void on its face may contest its validity without having sought a permit under it. P. 452.
55 Ga.App. 609, 191 S.E. 152, reversed.
Appeal from a judgment affirming a sentence imposed for violation of a city ordinance. The Supreme Court of the State denied a review.
Contents:
Chicago: U.S. Supreme Court, "Syllabus," Lovell v. City of Griffin, 303 U.S. 444 (1938) in 303 U.S. 444 303 U.S. 447. Original Sources, accessed November 22, 2024, http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=3UE2VRCRWXJNEWV.
MLA: U.S. Supreme Court. "Syllabus." Lovell v. City of Griffin, 303 U.S. 444 (1938), in 303 U.S. 444, page 303 U.S. 447. Original Sources. 22 Nov. 2024. http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=3UE2VRCRWXJNEWV.
Harvard: U.S. Supreme Court, 'Syllabus' in Lovell v. City of Griffin, 303 U.S. 444 (1938). cited in 1938, 303 U.S. 444, pp.303 U.S. 447. Original Sources, retrieved 22 November 2024, from http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=3UE2VRCRWXJNEWV.
|