Debs v. United States
Case Date: 05/19/2024
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Debs v. United States, 249 U.S. 211 (1919), was a United States Supreme Court decision that upheld the Espionage Act of 1917.
Eugene V. Debs was an American labor and political leader and five-time Socialist Party of America candidate for the American Presidency. On June 16, 1918 Debs made an anti-war speech in Canton, Ohio, protesting US involvement in World War I, and he was subsequently arrested under the Espionage Act of 1917. He was convicted and sentenced to serve ten years in prison and disenfranchised for life.
The case against Debs was presented in a document entitled Anti-War Proclamation and Program showing that Debs's original intent was to openly protest against the war. The argument of the Federal Government was that Debs was attempting to arouse mutiny and treason by preventing the drafting of soldiers into the United States Army. This sort of sentiment and speech was outlawed in United States with the Espionage Act of June 15, 1917. The argument in favor of Debs was that he was entitled to the rights of free speech provided for under the first amendment of the Bill of Rights.
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