Contemporary Business Law 8th Edition by Henry Cheeseman

تمرين 2

Ethics Congress enacted the Flag Protection Act, which made it a crime to knowingly mutilate, deface, physically defile, burn, or trample the U.S. flag. The law provided for fines and up to one year in prison upon conviction. 21 Certain individuals set fire to several U.S. flags on the steps of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC, to protest various aspects of the federal government's foreign and domestic policy. In a separate incident, other individuals set fire to a U.S. flag to protest the act's passage. All these individuals were prosecuted for violating the act. The district courts held the federal act unconstitutional, in violation of the defendants' First Amendment free speech rights, and dismissed the charges. The U.S. government appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, which consolidated the two cases. Who wins? United States v. Eichman, 496 U.S. 310, 110 S.Ct. 2404, 110 L.Ed.2d 287, Web 1990 U.S. Lexis 3087 (Supreme Court of the United States)
1. What is symbolic speech? Can it be protected speech under the First Amendment?
2. What are the arguments in favor of enforcing the Flag Protection Act? What are the arguments in favor of dismissing the act?
3. Who wins and why?