Garrison v. Louisiana

379 U.S. 64 (1964)

Purchase the Printed Copy at bsmsphd.com

Nature of the Case

To access this section all you need to do is click here and register.

Facts

D is the District Attorney of Orleans Parish. During a dispute with the eight judges, D held a press conference at which he issued a statement disparaging their judicial conduct. D was tried without a jury before a judge from another parish and convicted of criminal defamation. The defamatory statements concerned a large backlog of pending criminal cases to the inefficiency, laziness, and excessive vacations of the judges, and for their refusing to authorize disbursements to cover the expenses of undercover investigations of vice in New Orleans. D said: 'The judges have now made it eloquently clear where their sympathies lie in regard to aggressive vice investigations by refusing to authorize use of the DA's funds to pay for the cost of closing down the Canal Street clip joints . . . .'. . . This raises interesting questions about the racketeer influences on our eight vacation-minded judges.' D’s defense was the statute unconstitutionally abridged his freedom of expression. D was convicted and it was affirmed by the Supreme Court of Louisiana. The Supreme Court granted certiorari.