New York Times Company v. United States - Significance, The Government Moves To Stop The Leak, Supreme Court Throws Out Government's Case

New York Times Company v. United States - Significance

In New York Times Company v. United States, the Supreme Court held that the government must meet a heavy burden of justification before it can restrain the press from exercising its First Amendment right to publish. In the spring of 1971, the Vietnam War was still raging despite the fact that popular opinion was against President Richard Nixon's administration's efforts to keep the United States i…

New York Times Company v. United States - Further Readings

New York Times Company v. United States - The Government Moves To Stop The Leak

On 15 June 1971 the government asked the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York to restrain the Times from publishing any more of the Pentagon Papers. The court refused to issue an injunction against the Times but did grant a temporary restraining order against the Times while the government prepared its case. On June 18, the Post also published portions of the Pentagon Papers, …

New York Times Company v. United States - Supreme Court Throws Out Government's Case

The Pentagon Papers' case was a litigation whirlwind, beginning on 15 June 1971 and ending just over two weeks later, after having traveled through three courts, when the Supreme Court issued its decision on 30 June 1971. By 6-3 vote, the Court slammed the door shut on the government's attempt to stop the Times from publishing the Pentagon Papers, with Justice Black stating: In seeking injunctions…

New York Times Company v. United States - Government Thwarts Own Prosecution Of Ellsberg

The criminal prosecution involved 15 counts of theft and espionage against Ellsberg and Russo. Ellsberg faced a possible 105 years in prison and $110,000 in fines if convicted. Russo faced a possible 25 years in prison and $30,000 in fines if convicted. The two men were tried in the U.S District Court for the Central District of California, which includes Los Angeles, where they were alleged to ha…

New York Times Company v. United States - Related Cases

New York Times Company v. United States - The Pentagon Papers

The Pentagon Papers was a voluminous study secretly conducted for the U.S. Defense Department, from 1967 to 1969. Its official name was the History of the U.S. Decision-Making Process on Viet Nam Policy. This classified document was highly critical of the policies employed by the United States in Southeast Asia, which subsequently contributed to the Vietnam War. In 1971, Daniel Ellsberg released t…