Hess v. Indiana

Hess v. Indiana, 414 U.S. 105 (1973), was a United States Supreme Court case involving the First Amendment which reaffirmed and clarified the imminent lawless action test first articulated in Brandenburg v. Ohio. "Hess continues to be cited by the courts to protect speech that threatens future lawless action."^[1]

Facts and decision

The case involved an anti-war protest on the campus of Indiana University. Between 100 and 150 protesters were in the streets. The sheriff and his deputies then proceeded to clear the streets of the protestors. As the sheriff was passing Gregory Hess, one of the members of the crowd, Hess uttered “'We'll take the fucking street later,' or 'We'll take the fucking street again.'” Hess was convicted in Indiana state courts of disorderly conduct.

The Supreme Court reversed Hess's conviction because the statement at worst "amounted to nothing more than advocacy of illegal action at some indefinite future time. This is not sufficient to permit the State to punish Hess' speech.”

References

External links

• Full text of the decision at FindLaw
• Thomson Reuters blog post: TODAY IN 1973: SUPREME COURT EXPANDS FREE SPEECH IN HESS V. INDIANA
• Panel discussion of Hess v. Indiana held at Indiana University: "Fighting words: Hess v. Indiana tested limits of free speech during wartime"