Case Briefs-A Roman Holiday
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Indiana Wesleyan University, Marion *
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Jan 9, 2024
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Case Briefs-A Roman Holiday
DaWonda L Mack
Indiana Wesleyan University CRJ-465--01A: Constitutional Law/Civil Liber
Susan Biery Sergojan
December 4, 2023
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Case Briefs-A Roman Holiday
I. Identifying Information
Sheppard v. Maxwell, 384 U.S. 333 (1966). Eight votes for Sheppard. One vote against.
Justice Tom C. Clark wrote the majority opinion.
II. Circumstances of the Case
Petitioner Sam Sheppard was charged with the murder of his wife. Sheppard maintained
his innocence throughout the trial, and the media and other news sources frequently
air the charges and countercharges throughout the case. Sheppard was subject to
interviews with the press without counsel for months in a gymnasium full of audience
members before the trial, and the newspapers posted the names and addresses of the
jurors on the trial, causing them to receive letters and phone calls regarding the case.
Throughout the trial, the media flooded the courthouse, including spaces inside the
courtroom and near the jury where the jurors deliberated. The trial judge claimed
that neither he nor anyone else could restrict the prejudicial news accounts. Sheppard
filed a habeas corpus petition contending that he did not receive a fair trial. Sheppard’s
conviction was reversed.
III. The Issue Presented and the Court’s Decision
Whether the influence of the media throughout the trial and in the courthouse caused an
unfair trial for Sam Sheppard.
IV. The Court’s Reasoning
The Court held that the massive, pervasive, and prejudicial publicity attending
petitioner's prosecution prevented him from receiving a fair trial consistent with the Due
Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
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The trial court failed to invoke procedures that would have guaranteed the petitioner a fair
the trial, such as adopting stricter rules for the use of the courtroom by journalists as petitioners
counsel requested, limiting their number and more closely supervising their courtroom
conduct. The Court should also have insulated the witnesses and controlled the release of
leads, information, and gossip to the press by police officers, witnesses, and counsel;
proscribed extrajudicial statements by any lawyer, witness, party, or court official
divulging prejudicial matters and requested the appropriate city and county officials to
regulate the release of information by their employees. V. Concurring/Dissenting Opinions
In his dissent, Justice Hugo Black argued that among these "legal procedures" is the
requirement that the jury's verdict be based on evidence received in open Court, not from
outside sources.
VI. Your Response
As was represented in Sheppard v. Maxwell, allowing CourtTV into a courtroom for
the taping of a murder trial could result in the influence of both the prosecution and the
jurors on the trial. With the widespread publication of the show to thousands of viewers
worldwide, we are publicizing our judicial members of the courtroom as well as our
jurors, which could lead to harassment, threats, and influence on the decisions that are
made in this case. To adhere to the Fourteenth Amendment rights of his due
process protections, the defendant and his counsel request that all mass media,
including CourtTV, be prohibited from the courtroom throughout the trial.
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References
Sheppard v. Maxwell
, 384 U.S. 333 (1966)
Case Name Supreme Court Reporter Volume and Page Year Decided
Sheppard v. Maxwell 384 U.S. 333 1966