NEW YORK TIMES CO. v. UNITED STATES

June 30, 1971, Decided

Opinion of the Court

MR. JUSTICE STEWART, with whom MR. JUSTICE WHITE joins, concurring.

MR. JUSTICE BRENNAN, concurring.

MR. JUSTICE DOUGLAS, with whom MR. JUSTICE BLACK joins, concurring.

MR. JUSTICE BLACK, with whom MR. JUSTICE DOUGLAS joins, concurring.

MR. JUSTICE BLACKMUN, dissenting.

MR. JUSTICE HARLAN, with whom THE CHIEF JUSTICE and MR. JUSTICE BLACKMUN join, dissenting.

MR. CHIEF JUSTICE BURGER, dissenting.

MR. JUSTICE MARSHALL, concurring.

MR. JUSTICE WHITE, with whom MR. JUSTICE STEWART joins, concurring.

The United States, which brought these actions to enjoin publication in the New York Times and in the Washington Post of certain classified material, has not met the "heavy burden of showing justification for the enforcement of such a [prior] restraint."

Opinion of the Court

PER CURIAM

We granted certiorari in these cases in which the United States seeks to enjoin the New York Times and the Washington Post from publishing the contents of a classified study entitled "History of U.S. Decision-Making Process on Viet Nam Policy." Post, pp. 942, 943.

"Any system of prior restraints of expression comes to this Court bearing a heavy presumption against its constitutional validity." Bantam Books, Inc. v. Sullivan, 372 U.S. 58, 70 (1963); see also Near v. Minnesota, 283 U.S. 697 (1931). The Government "thus carries a heavy burden of showing justification for the imposition of such a restraint." Organization for a Better Austin v. Keefe, 402 U.S. 415, 419 (1971). The District Court for the Southern District of New York in the New York Times case and the District Court for the District of Columbia and the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in the Washington Post case held that the Government had not met that burden. We agree.

The judgment of the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit is therefore affirmed. The order of the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit is reversed and the case is remanded with directions to enter a judgment affirming the judgment of the District Court for the Southern District of New York. The stays entered June 25, 1971, by the Court are vacated. The judgments shall issue forthwith.

So ordered.