In re Little

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In re Little
Syllabus
943667In re Little — Syllabus
Court Documents

United States Supreme Court

404 U.S. 553

In re Little

On Petition for Writ of Certiorari to the Superior Court Division, General Court of Justice, County of Forsyth, North Carolina

No. 71-244 

Petitioner defended himself at his criminal trial when his motion for continuance, by reason of another trial engagement of his retained counsel, was denied. The court adjudged petitioner in contempt for stating in summation after the close of evidence that the court was biased and had prejudged his case, and that petitioner was a political prisoner.

Held: Petitioner's statements did not constitute criminal contempt, as they were not uttered in a boisterous tone, did not actually disrupt the court proceeding, or constitute an imminent threat to the administration of justice. Holt v. Virginia, 381 U.S. 131.

Certiorari granted; reversed.


PER CURIAM.

Notes[edit]

This work is in the public domain in the United States because it is a work of the United States federal government (see 17 U.S.C. 105).

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