Gorin v. United States
Supreme Court Cases
312 U.S. 19 (1941)
Case Overview
Action
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Facts/Syllabus
This case pertained to the sale of information on the activities of Japanese-Americans citizens and Japanese residents to Soviet Union intelligence agent Mihail Gorin.
Importance of Case
In Gorin v. United States, the Supreme Court rules that the Espionage Act contains unconstitutionally vague language. It specifically notes the phrases 鈥渞elating to the national defense鈥 and 鈥渃onnected to the national defense.鈥
The Court also specifies that bad faith is necessary in order to convict those accused of violating parts (a) and (b) of section 793 relating to 鈥済athering, transmitting or losing defense information.鈥