Dennis v. United States (1940)
- Docket
- 336
- Decided
- 1940-1955-
Summary
Question: Did the Smith Act violate the First Amendment? Conclusion: In a 6-to-2 decision, the Court upheld the convictions of the Communist Party leaders and found that the Smith Act did not "inherently" violate the First Amendment. In the plurality opinion, the Court held that there was a distinction between the mere teaching of communist philosophies and active advocacy of those ideas. Such advocacy created a "clear and present danger" that threatened the government. Given the gravity of the consequences, the Court held that success or probability of success was not necessary to justify restrictions on the freedom of speech. Justices Frankfurter and Jackson concurred in separate opinions. Justices Black and Douglas dissented in separate opinions. Justice Black stressed that the petitioners were not charged with an attempt to overthrow the Government or any overt acts designed to overthrow the Government. They were not even charged with saying anything or writing anything designed to overthrow the Government. The charge was that they agreed to assemble and to talk and publish certain ideas at a later date. “No matter how it is worded, this is a virulent form of prior censorship of speech and press, which I believe the First Amendment forbids.”