Ballard et al. v. United States (329 U.S. 187)
U.S. Supreme Court · decided December 9, 1946 · Supreme Court Database (Spaeth)
- Citation
- 329 U.S. 187 · 67 S. Ct. 261
- Docket
- No. 37
- Argued
- October 15, 1946
- Decided
- December 9, 1946
- Term
- October Term 1946
- Vote
- 6–3
- Majority author
- Justice Douglas
- Issue area
- Civil Rights
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome
- Petitioning party won
- Ideological direction
- Liberal
How the Justices voted
- Majority
- Justice Douglas (wrote), Justice Reed, Justice Black, Justice Rutledge, Justice Murphy
- Concurring in the judgment
- Justice R. H. Jackson (wrote)
- Dissenting
- Chief Justice Vinson, Justice Burton (wrote), Justice Frankfurter (wrote)
Opinion excerpt
Mr. Justice Douglas delivered the opinion of the Court. This case is here for the second time. It involves the indictment and conviction of petitioners for using, and conspiring to use, the mails to defraud. Criminal Code § 215, 18 U. S. C. § 338; Criminal Code § 37, 18 U. S. C. § 88. The fraudulent scheme charged was the promotion of the I Am movement, which was alleged to be a fraudulent religious organization, through the use of the mails. The nature of the movement and the facts surrounding its origin and growth are summarized in our prior opinion. 322 U. S. 78. It is sufficient here to say that petitioners were found guilty on a charge by the trial judge which withheld from the jury all questions concerning the truth or falsity of their religious beliefs or doctrines. The Circuit Court of Appeals reversed and granted a new trial, holding it was error to withhold those questions from the jury. 138 F. 2d 540. We, in turn, reversed the Circuit Court of Appeals and sustained the District Court in that ruling. Petitioners argued, however, that even though the Circuit Court of Appeals erred in reversing the judgment of conviction on that ground, its action was justified on other distinct grounds. But the Circuit Court of Appeals had not passed on those other questions; and we did not have the benefit of its views on them. We accordingly deemed it more appropriate to remand the…
Excerpt of a 36,345-character opinion. The full text and citation network load in the interactive viewer above.