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What was Texas v. Johnson and who were the people important to the case?
Wiki User
∙ 13y ago
In 1984, Gregory Johnson participated in a political rally during the Republican National Convention, which was held in Dallas that year. He and other protesters distributed literature and made speeches denouncing President Reagan's "War Chest" policies. The crowd marched through the streets and staged "die-ins" on the grounds of several corporations known to support the Reagan administration.
The tour concluded in front of Dallas City Hall, where Johnson unfurled an American flag, doused it with kerosene and set it on fire while the crowd chanted, "America, the red, white, and blue, we spit on you."
After the protesters dispersed, one of the onlookers gathered the remains of the flag and buried it in his backyard. No one was injured or threatened during the demonstration, but some people reported feeling extremely offended by the flag burning.
Johnson was subsequently arrested and convicted under a Texas law that prohibited intentionally and knowingly desecrating a state or national flag, fined $2,000, and sentenced to one year in jail.
Johnson appealed his case to the Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas, which reversed the lower court ruling on the grounds that Johnson could not be punished for expressive conduct protected under the First Amendment. The Court concluded that the State could not sanction flag burning in order to preserve the flag as a symbol of national unity.
The State of Texas petitioned the US Supreme Court for a writ of certiorari, with the hope of preserving the desecration statute.
In a 5-4 vote, the Court affirmed the Court of Criminal Appeals' verdict. Justice William Brennan delivered the majority opinion.
The Texas law stated desecration is illegal if "the actor knows it will seriously offend one or more persons," which the Court held was a deliberate attempt at suppressing free speech, and therefore was unconstitutional. Johnson had the right to invoke First Amendment protection because the burning occurred in the context of a political protest.
In expressing the majority concern, Brennan quoted an appropriate passage from a decision in West Virginia Board of Education v. Barnette, 319 U. S. 624 (1943):
"Recognizing that the right to differ is the centerpiece of our First Amendment freedoms a government cannot mandate by fiat a feeling of unity in its citizens. Therefore, that very same government cannot carve out a symbol of unity and prescribe a set of approved messages to be associated with that symbol when it cannot mandate the status or feeling the symbol purports to represent."
Case Citation:
Texas v. Johnson, 491 US 397 (1989)
People Involved in the Johnson Case
Petitioner: State of Texas
Respondent: Gregory Lee Johnson
Attorneys
Kathi Alyce Drew, for the State of Texas
William Kunstler, for Gregory Lee Johnson
Supreme Court Votes
William J. Brennan.........Pro.......Wrote majority opinion
Thurgood Marshall.........Pro
Harry Blackmun............Pro
Antonin Scalia...............Pro
Anthony M. Kennedy......Pro
C.J. William Rehnquist...Con.......Wrote dissenting opinion
John Paul Stevens.........Con
Byron White.................Con
Sandra Day O'Connor.....Con
Amici Curiae for Respondent (Johnson)
ACLU
The Christic Institute
Clergy and Laity Concerned
The Committee of Interns and Residents
The Community for Creative Non-Violence
The Fellowship of Reconciliation
La Raza Lawyers' Association of San Francisco
Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, Inc.
The Lawyers' Committee on Nuclear Policy
The Massachusetts Chapter of the National Lawyers Guild
The Nation Institute of New York City
The National Conference of Black Lawyers
The National Emergency Civil Liberties Committee
The National Lawyers Guild
The National Organization for Women, Inc.
The New York State Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
People for the American Way
Toward a More Perfect Union
The United Electrical, Radio, and Machine Workers of America
Wabun-Inini
Anishinabe, as a Representative of the American Indian Movement
The War Resistors League
The Writers Guild of America, East, Inc.
Texas Liberties ACLU
Jasper Johns
Robert Rauschenberg
Claes Oldenburg
Paul Conrad
Coosje Van Bruggen
Mark Disuvero
Hans Haacke
Irving Petline
Faith Ringgold
Jenny Holzer
Michael Glier
Nancy Spero
Leon Golub
Sol Lewitt
Carl Andre
John Hendricks
Amici Curiae for Petitioner (Texas)
The Legal Affairs Council
The Washington Legal Foundation
Veterans of Foreign Wars of U.S.
National Flag Foundation
AM Vets
Air Force Association
The Allied Education Foundation
Texas v. Johnson, (1989) was part of series of flag desecration cases that culminated with United States v. Eichman, (1990). For more information on this subject, see Related Links, below.
Wiki User
∙ 13y ago
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Who won the case Texas vs Johnson?
Johnson
Who was the plaintiff in the Texas v Johnson case?
the plaintiff was Texas.
Would the supreme court have a jurisdiction if Johnson burned a Texas flag in the case Texas vs Johnson?
Would the supreme court have jurisdiction if Johnson burned a texas flag in the case of Texas vs. Johnson?
Why is Claudia Taylor Johnson important to Texas?
Claudia Taylor Johnson is better know as First Lady "Lady Bird" Johnson. While that should be a case of 'nuff said, she was married to President Lyndon Baines Johnson.
Examples of symbolic speech?
An individual wearing a black armband to protest against a war Burning the flag as a form of protest or demonstration Creating artwork or performance pieces to convey a political message
What court case established that the government can not limit a citizen's right to burn a flag?
Texas vs Johnson
What did Johnson do to cause him to arrested in the case Texas vs Johnson?
He doused an American flag in Kerosene and set it afire and chanted, "America, the red, white, and blue, we spit on you."
Which First Amendment case was effected by the decision in Texas v. Johnson?
Texas v. Johnson, (1989) has been cited a number of cases, but you are probably referring specifically to:US v. Eichman, 496 US 310 (1990)For more information, see Related Questions, below.
What were the court dates of Texas v. Johnson?
The case was argued before the US Supreme Court on March 21, 1989, and decided on June 21, 1989.Case Citation:Texas v. Johnson, 491 US 397 (1989)For more information, see Related Questions, below.
When was Gregory Lee Johnson arrested for burning the US Flag?
Gregory Lee Johnson was arrested on Wednesday, August 22, 1984, for burning a flag in protest of President Reagan's "War Chest" during the Republican National Convention in Dallas.Johnson was convicted under Texas Penal Code Ann. § 42.09(a)(3), Texas Venerated Objects Law, and sentenced to one year in prison and a $2,000 fine.His case was eventually appealed to the US Supreme Court as Texas v. Johnson, (1989)Case Citation:Texas v. Johnson, 491 US 397 (1989)For more information, see Related Questions, below.
What law did the US Supreme Court overturn in the Texas v. Johnson case?
In Texas v. Johnson, 491 US 397 (1989) the US Supreme Court overturned the Texas Venerated Objects Law (Tex. Penal Code Ann. § 42.09(a)(3) [Vernon 1974]), which outlawed intentionally or knowingly desecrating a flag in a way that some observer might find seriously offensive.Case Citation:Texas v. Johnson, 491 US 397 (1989)For more information about Texas v. Johnson, (1989) and other flag desecration cases, see Related Links, below.
In the case of Texas v. Johnson why was Gregory Johnson only sentenced to one year in jail?
In 1984, Gregory Johnson was arrested and convicted for burning a flag under the Texas Venerated Objects law, fined $2,000, and sentenced to one year in jail. The state statute prohibited intentionally and knowingly desecrating a state or national flag.One year was the maximum sentence allowed for violation of this law.Case Citation:Texas v. Johnson, 491 US 397 (1989)For more information, see Related Questions, below.
