Texas v. Johnson

From Conservapedia

In Texas v. Johnson, 491 U.S. 397 (1989), the 5-4 U.S. Supreme Court held that burning an American flag is a form of symbolic speech protected under the First Amendment of the United States Constitution.

The flag-burning happened at a rally that included about 100 demonstrators, of whom only Johnson was charged with a crime. He was charged was the desecration of a venerated object in violation of Tex. Penal Code Ann. § 42.09(a)(3) (1989). After a trial, he was convicted, sentenced to one year in prison, and fined $ 2,000. The Court of Appeals for the Fifth District of Texas at Dallas affirmed Johnson's conviction, 706 S. W. 2d 120 (1986), but the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals reversed, 755 S. W. 2d 92 1988), holding that the State could not, consistent with the First Amendment, punish Johnson for burning the flag in these circumstances. The U.S. Supreme Court held that the conviction, and the statute itself, is unconstitutional.

Justice William Brennan wrote the opinion, which was joined by Justices Thurgood Marshall, Harry Blackmun, Anthony Kennedy and, surprisingly, Antonin Scalia. Justice William Rehnquist wrote a dissent that was joined by Justices Sandra Day O'Connor and Byron White. Justice John Paul Stevens, a veteran, dissented separately.

This caused a political uproar and an effort by Congress to ban flag-burning by statute. That effort was also declared unconstitutional.