Staub v. City Of Baxley

355 U.S. 313 (1958)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

P was a salaried employee of the International Ladies' Garment Workers Union which was attempting to organize the employees of a manufacturing company. Some of those employees lived in Baxley (P). P and Mamie Merritt, also a salaried employee of the union, went to D and, without applying for permits required under the ordinance, talked with several of the employees at their homes about joining the union. While in a restaurant the women were questioned by the Chief of Police concerning their activities in D. Later that day a meeting was held at the home of one of the employees, attended by three other employees. P distributed blank membership cards. P was summoned to appear before the Mayor's Court three days later to answer 'to the offense of Soliciting Members for an Organization without a Permit & License.' P claimed the ordinance violated the 1st and 14th Amendments to the Constitution of the United States. The Mayor and city council were authorized by the ordinance to grant or refuse at their discretion. P was convicted of a violation of a city ordinance and was sentenced to imprisonment for 30 days or to pay a fine of $300. The Superior Court of the county affirmed. The Court of Appeals of the State affirmed. It stated that 'the attack should have been made against specific sections of the ordinance and not against the ordinance as a whole'; that 'having made no effort to secure a license, D was in no position to claim that any section of the ordinance is invalid or unconstitutional.' The Supreme Court of the State denied an application for certiorari. P appealed. D urges that this appeal be dismissed because, it argues, the decision of the Court of Appeals was based upon state procedural grounds and thus rests upon an adequate nonfederal basis and that we are therefore without jurisdiction to entertain it.