Beauharnais v. Illinois
United States Supreme Court
343 U.S. 250 (1952)
Relevant factsFree
Beauharnais (defendant) was convicted under an Illinois law criminalizing the distribution of material portraying a racial, religious, or similar group of citizens as depraved or criminal, after he printed and distributed a lithograph containing derogatory statements about African Americans. A Chicago municipal court convicted him and sentenced him to 30 days in jail; the conviction was affirmed on appeal through the Illinois Supreme Court. The U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari.
IssueFree
Whether the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment prevents a state from criminalizing libelous speech directed at a defined racial or religious group.