Walker v. City of Birmingham

181 So. 2d 493, 279 Ala. 53, 1965 Ala. LEXIS 814
CourtSupreme Court of Alabama
DecidedDecember 9, 1965
Docket6 Div. 999
StatusPublished
Cited by17 cases

This text of 181 So. 2d 493 (Walker v. City of Birmingham) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Alabama primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Walker v. City of Birmingham, 181 So. 2d 493, 279 Ala. 53, 1965 Ala. LEXIS 814 (Ala. 1965).

Opinion

*55 COLEMAN, Justice.

We review by certiorari convictions of petitioners for criminal contempt for violating a temporary injunction issued by the Circuit Court of Jefferson County, in equity.

On April 10, 1963, the City of Birmingham, a municipal corporation, presented its verified bill of complaint to one- of the judges of the Tenth Judicial Circuit.- The bill prayed for temporary and permanent injunctions. The judge to whom the bill was presented ordered the temporary injunction to issue upon the City’s making bond for $2,500.00. The prescribed bond was filed and injunction issued out' of 'the circuit court and was served on certain of petitioners.

The return of the sheriff shows.that a copy of the injunction was personally served on petitioners as follows:

On Martin Luther King, A. D. King, F. L. Shuttlesworth, Wyatt Tee Walker, and Ralph Abernathy on April 11, 1963, at 1:00 a. m.;

On John Thomas Porter, on April 12, 1963, at 4:13 p. m,; and

On N. H. Smith, Jr. on April 15, 1963, at 8:35 a. m.

We have not found a return of the sheriff showing service on the other petitioners who were adjudged to be in contempt. Notice to those not personally served is hereinafter discussed.

The injunction recites in part as follows:

“THESE, THEREFORE, are to temporarily Enjoin you Wyatt Tee Walker; Ralph Abernathy; Al Hibler; F. L. Shuttlesworth; Martin Luther King, Jr.; Aberham Woods, Jr.; Calvin Woods; A. D. King; Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights by serving copy on' Fred L. Shuttlesworth as President, and all ' other' persons in active concert or participation with the respondents to this action and all persons having notice of this action from engaging, sponsoring, inciting or encouraging mass street parades or mass processions Or' like demonstrations without a. permit, trespass on private property after', being warned to leave the premises’ [by the owner or person in possession of said private property, congregating on the street or public places into -mobs, .and unlawfully picketing business establishments or public buildings in the City of Birmingham - Jef f erson County, . •. S tat-e of Alabama or performing acts calculated to cause breaches .of the pe^ice in ..the City' óf Birmingham,' Jefferson [County, in the State '/of Alabama dr from conspiring to engage- in- unlawful street parades, unlawful processions, ■unláwful'demonstrations, unlawful boycotts, unlawful trespasses,, arid unlawful picketing or other .like, unlawful conduct or from . violating.. the ordinances of the City of Birmingham and the Statutes of the-State of Alabama or from doing'any acts designed 'tó consúmate (sic) conspiracies ,to en- ' gage in said rinlawful act's o'f parading, demonstrating', boycotting," [tfespassirig and picketing or, other unlawful acts, *56 or from engaging in acts and conduct . customarily known as ‘Kneel-Iri’s’ in churches in violation of the wishes and desires of said churches, until further orders from this Court; and this you will in no wise omit under penalty, etc.”

On April 11, 12, and 13, 1963, certain meetings were held at which some or all of petitioners were present.

Ón April 11, 1963, “The Revs. King, Abernathy, and Shuttlesworth were seated at the round table.” Several copies of “a news bulletin put out by the Alabama Christians for Human Rights” were brought there by “Rev. Wyatt Tee Walker.” After the bulletin was distributed to members of the press, “ * * * Rev. Martin Luther King took one copy of it and read verbatim the entire text.” The paper he read appears in the record as follows :

“COMPLAINANT’S EXHIBIT 2 “NEWS. - from
“ALABAMA CHRISTIAN MOVEMENT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS S051/2 No. 17th Street B’ham, Ala.
“FOR RELEASE 12:00 Noon, April 11, 1963
“STATEMENT BY M. L. KING, JR., F. L. SHUTTLESWORTH, RALPH D. ABERNATHY, et al. FOR ENGAGING IN PEACEFUL DESEGREGATION DEMONSTRATIONS
“In our struggle for freedom we have anchored our faith and hope in the rightness of the Constitution and the moral laws of the universe.
“Again and again the Federal judiciary has made it clear that the priviledges (sic) guaranteed under the First and the Fourteenth Amendments are to (sic) sacred to be trampled, upon by the machinery of state government and police power. In the past we have abided by Federal injunctions out of respect for the forthright and consistent leadership that the Federal judiciary has given in establishing the principle of integration as the law of the land.
“However we are now confronted with recalcitrant forces in the Deep South that will use the courts to perpetuate the unjust and illegal system of racial, separation.
“Alabama has made clear its determination to defy the law of the land. Most of its public officials, its legislative body and many of its law enforcement agents have openly defied the desegregation decision of the Supreme Court. We would feel morally and legal responsible to obey the injunction if the courts of Alabama applied equal justice to all of its citizen's. This would be
“MORE MORE
MHH
-2-
sameness made legal. However the ussuance (sic) of this injunction is a blatant of difference made legal.
“Southern law enforcement agencies have demonstrated nowr and again that they will utilize the force of law to misuse the judicial process.
“This is raw tyranny under the guise of maintaining law and order. We cannot in all good conscience obey such an injunction which is an unjust, undemocratic and unconstitutional misuse of the legal process.
“We do this not out of any desrespect (sic) for the law but out of the highest respect for the law. This is not an attempt to evade or defy the law or engage in chaotic anarchy. Just as in all good conscience we cannot obey unjust laws, neither can we respect the unjust use of the courts.
*57 “We believe in a system of law based, on justice and morality. Out of our great love for the Constitution of the U. S. and our desire to purify the judicial system of the state of Alabama, we risk this critical move with an awareness of the possible consequences involved.
“FOR FURTHER INFORMATION' Phone 324-5944 Wyatt tee walker Public Information Officer”

“ * * * Shuttlesworth read from- a typed statement more or less re-affirming what was said in the statement that was read by Rev. King.” Shuttlesworth made the statement:

“ ‘That they had respect for the Federal Courts, or Federal Injunctions, but in the past the State Courts had favored local law enforcement, and if the police couldn’t handle it, the mob would.’ ”
“ * * * Rev.

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Bluebook (online)
181 So. 2d 493, 279 Ala. 53, 1965 Ala. LEXIS 814, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/walker-v-city-of-birmingham-ala-1965.