LAD # 26 Schenck vs. United States

It was a United States Supreme Court decision concerning the question of whether the defendant possessed a First Amendment right to free speech against the draft during World War I. The defendant, Charles Schenck, a Socialist, circulated a flyer to recently drafted men. The flyer, which cited the Thirteenth Amendment's provision against "involuntary servitude," exhorted the men to "assert their opposition to the draft," which it described as a moral wrong driven by the capitalist system. The circulars proposed peaceful resistance, such as petitioning to repeal the Conscription Act. Schenck was charged with conspiracy to violate the Espionage Act of 1917 by attempting to cause insubordination in the military and to obstruct recruitment. There was evidence found that connected a certain Socialist group to distributing articles that told people to defy the draft. This goes against the Espionage Act of 1917. The things in these articles would normally be classified as freedom of speech but during times of national crisis our rights as citizens are limited. This offense is punishable by law under the Espionage Act of 1917. There were three counts against them. One was violating the Espionage Act by telling men to defy the draft. The second was a conspiracy against the United States. The third was the unlawful use of the mail to send these articles.