Find Court Cases > Walker v. Birmingham

Walker v. Birmingham

Case Date: 03/13/1967
Docket No: none

Facts of the Case 

Civil rights activists who planned to march on Good Friday and Easter were denied parade permits from the city. When they indicated their intention to march anyway, Birmingham obtained an injunction from a state court which ordered them to refrain from demonstrating. Marchers who defied the order, including Martin Luther King, Jr. and Ralph Abernathy, were arrested.

Question 

Did the injunction violate the First Amendment?

Argument Walker v. Birmingham - Oral Argument, Part 2  Download MP3Walker v. Birmingham - Oral Argument, Part 1  Download MP3 Conclusion  Decision: 5 votes for Birmingham, 4 vote(s) against Legal provision:

The Court upheld the arrests since Walker failed to use proper judicial procedures to test the injunction's validity. Even though, Justice Stewart admitted, the injunction seemed broad and vague, and the marchers may not have enjoyed due process when applying for the permit originally, simply disobeying the injunction was illegitimate as "no man can be judge in his own case . . . however righteous his motives."