Gitlow v. New York
Supreme Court of the United States
Argued April 12, 1923 Reargued November 23, 1923 Decided June 8, 1925
Full case name: Benjamin Gitlow v. People of the State of New York Citations: 268 U.S. 652; 45 S. Ct. 625; 69 L. Ed. 1138; 1925 U.S. LEXIS 598 Prior history: Defendant convicted, Supreme Court of New York County, 2-5-20; affirmed, 195 A.D. 773 (N.Y. Sup.Ct.App.Div. 1921); affirmed, 136 N.E. 317 (N.Y. 1923) Subsequent history: None
Holding
Though the Fourteenth Amendment prohibits states from infringing free speech, the defendant was properly convicted under New York's criminal anarchy law for advocating the violent overthrow of the government, through the dissemination of Communist pamphlets.
Court membership
Chief Justice: William Howard Taft Associate Justices: Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., Willis Van Devanter, James Clark McReynolds, Louis Brandeis, George Sutherland, Pierce Butler, Edward Terry Sanford, Harlan Fiske Stone
Case opinions
Majority by: Sanford Joined by: Taft, Van Devanter, McReynolds, Sutherland, Butler, Stone Dissent by: Holmes Joined by: Brandeis
Laws applied
U.S. Const. amends. I, XIV; N.Y. Penal Law §§ 160, 161

Gitlow v. New York, 268 U.S. 652 (1925), was a historically important case argued before the United States Supreme Court in which the Court ruled that the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution had extended the reach of certain provisions of the First Amendment — specifically the provisions protecting freedom of speech and freedom of the press — to the governments of the individual states. The Supreme Court had previously held, in Barron v. Baltimore, 32 U.S. 243 (1833), that the Constitution's Bill of Rights applied only to the federal government, and that, consequently, the federal courts could not stop the enforcement of state laws that restricted the rights enumerated in the Bill of Rights. Gitlow v. New York's partial reversal of that precedent began a trend towards nearly complete reversal; the Supreme Court now holds that almost every provision of the Bill of Rights applies to both the federal government and the states. Ironically, the Court upheld the state law challenged in Gitlow v. New York, which made it a crime to advocate the duty, need, or appropriateness of overthrowing government by force or violence. The Court's ruling on the effects of the Fourteenth Amendment was incidental to the decision, but nevertheless established an extremely significant precedent. Image File history File links Seal_of_the_United_States_Supreme_Court. ... The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest judicial body in the United States and leads the judicial branch of the United States federal government. ... William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857 – March 8, 1930) was an American politician, the 27th President of the United States, the 10th Chief Justice of the United States, a leader of the progressive conservative wing of the Republican Party in the early twentieth century, a chaired professor at Yale Law... Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. ... Willis Van Devanter (April 17, 1859 - February 8, 1941), associate justice of the United States Supreme Court, January 3, 1911 to June 2, 1937. ... Justice McReynolds, c. ... Louis Dembitz Brandeis (November 13, 1856 – October 5, 1941) was an American litigator, Supreme Court Justice, advocate of privacy, and developer of the Brandeis Brief. ... George Sutherland (March 25, 1862 – July 18, 1942) was an English-born U.S. jurist and political figure. ... Pierce Butler (March 17, 1866 – November 16, 1939) was an American jurist who served as an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court from 1923 until his death in 1939. ... Edward Terry Sanford (July 23, 1865-March 8, 1930) was an American jurist who served on the United States Supreme Court. ... Harlan Fiske Stone (October 11, 1872 – April 22, 1946) was an American lawyer and jurist who served as the dean of Columbia Law School, Attorney General of the United States, Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court and later Chief Justice of the United States. ... For other uses, see First Amendment (disambiguation). ... The Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution is one of the post-Civil War amendments and it includes the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses. ... 1925 (MCMXXV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Supreme Court Building, Washington, D.C. The Supreme Court Building, Washington, D.C., (large image) The Supreme Court of the United States, located in Washington, D.C., is the highest court (see supreme court) in the United States; that is, it has ultimate judicial authority within the United States... The Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution is one of the post-Civil War amendments and it includes the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses. ... The United States Constitution is the supreme law of the United States of America. ... For other uses, see First Amendment (disambiguation). ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Freedom of the press (or press freedom) is the guarantee by a government of free public press for its citizens and their associations, extended to members of news gathering organizations, and their published reporting. ... Federal courts Supreme Court Chief Justice Associate Justices Elections Presidential elections Midterm elections Political Parties Democratic Republican Third parties State & Local government Governors Legislatures State Courts Counties, Cities, and Towns Other countries Politics Portal      A state of the United States is any one of the fifty subnational entities referred to... 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Gitlow v. New York was also important for defining the scope of the First Amendment's protection of free speech following the period of the "Red Scare," in which Communists and Socialist Party members were routinely convicted for violating the Espionage Act of 1917 and Sedition Act of 1918. Gitlow, a Socialist, had been convicted of criminal anarchy after publishing a "Left Wing Manifesto." The Court upheld his conviction on the basis that the government may suppress or punish speech when it directly advocates the unlawful overthrow of the government. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article may require cleanup. ... The Espionage Act of 1917 was a United States federal law passed shortly after entering World War I, on June 15, 1917, which made it a crime for a person to convey information with intent to interfere with the operation or success of the armed forces of the United States... The Sedition Act of 1918 was an amendment to the Espionage Act of 1917 passed at the urging of President Woodrow Wilson, who was concerned any widespread dissent in time of war constituted a real threat to an American victory. ...

The opinions in this case are notable for their attempt to more clearly define the "clear and present danger" test that came out of Schenck v. United States, 249 U.S. 47 (1919). Both the majority and dissenting opinions applied the clear and present danger test, but with differing results. The majority opinion written by Justice Edward Terry Sanford stated that a "State may punish utterances endangering the foundations of government and threatening its overthrow by unlawful means" because such speech clearly "present[s] a sufficient danger to the public peace and to the security of the State." Justice Sanford and the concurring justices believed Gitlow presented a clear and present danger simply by publishing the manifesto. According to Sanford, "a single revolutionary spark may kindle a fire that, smouldering for a time, may burst into a sweeping and destructive conflagration." Clear and present danger is a term used in the case Schenck v. ... Holding Defendants criticism of the draft was not protected by the First Amendment, because it created a clear and present danger to the enlistment and recruiting practices of the U.S. armed forces during a state of war. ... Year 1919 (MCMXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar). ... Edward Terry Sanford (July 23, 1865-March 8, 1930) was an American jurist who served on the United States Supreme Court. ...

In the dissenting opinion, Justice Holmes, the original author of the clear and present danger test, disagreed, arguing that Gitlow presented no present danger because only a small minority of people shared the views presented in the manifesto and because it directed an uprising at some "indefinite time in the future."

References

Spaeth, Harold J.; and Smith, Edward Conrad. (1991). HarperCollins college outline series: Constitution of the United States. (13th ed.). New York: HarperCollins. ISBN 0-06-467105-4

External links

• Full text of the decision courtesy of Findlaw.com
• First Amendment Library entry for Gitlow v. New York
• Exploring Constitutional Conflicts: Clear and Present Danger
• Full text of the opinion at Wikisource