Independent Pub. Co. v. United States

(after stating the facts as above). It was admitted by the plaintiffs in error in their answer to the information charging them with contempt that the article in question was not based upon the evidence introduced upon the trial of the case; and it was not denied that the publication contained facts relating to the past life of the defendant, highly prejudicial to him, and when read by the jury tended to bias and prejudice them against the defendant and prevent them from giving him a fair and impartial trial; and it is not denied that the publication obstructed the progress of the cause on trial, and compelled the court to discharge the jury impaneled to try the case, resulting, as the court found as a fact, in the infliction of pecuniary damages to the government, in costs uselessly incurred, amounting to $617.95.

[1] 1. The contention of the plaintiffs in error is that the publication is not within the scope of the statute. Section 268 of the Judicial Code (section 725, R. S.; Act of March 2, 1831) provides:

This statute had its origin in the act of March 2, 1831 ( 4 Stat. 487 , c. 99, § 1), from which it differs only slightly in language, not in substance. The original…