Texas+vs.+Johnson

=Texas **vs. Johnson**=

__Background and Facts__
In a political demonstration during the Republican National Convention in Texas, protesting the policies of the Reagan Administration and of certain corporations based in Dallas, Gregory Lee Johnson doused an American flag with kerosene and set it on fire. No one was hurt or threatened with injury, but some witnesses said that they were seriously offended. Johnson was charged and convicted with the desecration of a venerated object, in violation of the Texas Penal Code.

__Players__
William Kunstler Gregory Lee Johnson Kathi Alyce Drew State of Texas
 * __Defense__**
 * __Plaintiff__**

**__Lower Court Decision__**
County Criminal Court Number Eight in Dallas County, Texas Gregory Lee Johnson is convicted of violating a Texas Statute prohibiting desecration of the flag, sentenced to one year in prison, and fined $2,000.

__**Other Court Decisions**__
__**Supreme Court of the United States**__ The State of Texas appeals the case to the Supreme Court of the United States which grants certification. The Court holds 5 to 4 that the conviction cannot stand because the Texas statute is unconstitutional. "The State's interest in preventing breaches of the peace does not support his conviction because Johnson's conduct did not threaten to disturb the peace. Nor does the State's interest in preserving the flag as a symbol of nationhood and national unity justify his criminal conviction for engaging in political expression." The court concluded that the State could not criminally sanction flag desecration in order to preserve the flag as a symbol of national unity. It also held that the statute did not meet the State's goal of preventing breaches of the peace, since it was not drawn narrowly enough to encompass only those burnings that would likely result in a serious disturbance, and since the flag burning in this case did not threaten such a reaction. Further, it stressed that another Texas statute prohibited breaches of the peace and could be used to prevent disturbances without punishing this flag desecration.
 * __Court of Appeals for the Fifth District of Texas__**. Johnson appeals his case. The Court of Appeals for the fifth district affirms his conviction.
 * __Texas Court of Criminal Appeals__**. Johnson again appeals his case, this time successfully. The Court of Criminal Appeals holds that Johnson's rights under the First Amendment were violated and overturns his conviction. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals is the court in Texas that hears criminal cases.

**__Decision__**
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision in favor of Johnson. The high court agreed that symbolic speech - no matter how offensive to some - is protected under the First Amendment. Johnson was arrested and convicted under a Texas state law. In an appeal, Johnson argued that burning the American flag was symbolic speech and protected by the First Amendent. The Texas appeals court agreed and overturned his conviction. Unsatisfied with the decision, the state of Texas appealed the ruling to the United States Supreme Court. The case didn't have a significant impact on society, other than generally making flag desecration a legally accepted expression of civil disobedience. Written by: Mikaila Zimmerman