Greer v. Spock

Justices Brennan and Marshall completely disagreed with the majority opinion. In their view, much of Fort Dix was a public place. Civilians came onto the base at all hours of the day and night, eating and talking freely with the recruits. Access to the base was so easy that there had been problems with muggings and prostitution. Moreover, said the dissenters, there was no basis for believing that distributing leaflets or having a meeting would impair the government's ability to train recruits or to maintain a national defense. Additonally, the fact that all types of political rallies had been excluded was no excuse. "An evenhanded exclusion of all public expression would no more pass muster than an evenhanded exclusion of all Roman Catholics," wrote Justice Brennan.

In the dissenters' view, the only thing that could justify the suppression of free speech on Fort Dix was the threat of a clear and present danger resulting from that speech. The dissenting justices did not see how such danger could result from peaceful leafleting or a campaign rally.

The case of Spock v. Greer has had severe consequences for the kinds of speech allowed or not allowed in military settings. The Court relied on this case to uphold Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps regulations requiring service members to get permission from their commanders before they themselves could circulate petitions on their bases. Greer has also been used to define other arenas as "non-public" places where it is therefore permissible to restrict speech.