Selective Draft Law Cases

Arver v. United States
Grahl v. United States
Wangerin v. United States
Wangerin v. United States
Kramer v. United States
Graubard v. United States
Supreme Court of the United States
Argued December 13–14, 1917
Decided January 7, 1918
Full case nameArver v. United States, 245 U.S. 366
Grahl v. United States
Wangerin v. United States
Wangerin v. United States
Goldman v. United States, 245 U.S. 474
Kramer v. United States, 245 U.S. 478
Ruthenburg v. United States, 245 U.S. 480
Graubard v. United States
Citations245 U.S. 366 (more)
Court membership
Chief Justice
Edward D. White
Associate Justices
Joseph McKenna · Oliver W. Holmes Jr.
William R. Day · Willis Van Devanter
Mahlon Pitney · James C. McReynolds
Louis Brandeis · John H. Clarke
Case opinion
MajorityWhite, joined by unanimous
Laws applied
Selective Service Act of 1917

Arver v. United States, 245 U.S. 366 (1918), also known as the Selective Draft Law Cases, was a United States Supreme Court decision which upheld the Selective Service Act of 1917, and more generally, upheld conscription in the United States. The Supreme Court held that conscription did not violate the Thirteenth Amendment's prohibition of involuntary servitude, or the First Amendment's protection of freedom of conscience.

The Solicitor General's argument, and the court's opinion, were based primarily on Kneedler v. Lane, which was actually multiple opinions of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania during the American Civil War that upheld the Enrollment Act, and Vattel's The Law of Nations (1758).[1][2] The reliance on the Kneedler v. Lane decisions of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court have been questioned on multiple occasions.[2][3]

As reasoning for its decision, laws of the following governments of sovereign states were given as listed in The Statesman's Yearbook for 1917 as enforcing military service:

References

  1. ^ Leach, Jack Franklin (1952). Conscription in the United States: Historical Background. Rutland, Vt.: C.E. Tuttle Pub. Co. p. vi. OCLC 1727243.
  2. ^ a b Delehant, John W. (December 1967). "A Judicial Revisitation Finds Kneedler v. Lane Not So 'Amazing'". ABA Journal. 53: 1132.
  3. ^ Bernstein, JL (August 1967). "Conscription and the Constitution: The Amazing Case of Kneedler v. Lane". ABA Journal. 53: 708.
  4. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 656.
  5. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 667.
  6. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 712.
  7. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 738.
  8. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 747.
  9. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 728.
  10. ^ Military Service Act of August 27, 1917, expressly providing for service abroad. Printed in the Congressional Record of September 20, 1917, 55th Cong. Rec., p. 7959
  11. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 790.
  12. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 754.
  13. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 770.
  14. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 811.
  15. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 820.
  16. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 1270.
  17. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 841.
  18. ^ La loi du 15 juillet 1889 sur le recrutement de l'armée, July 15, 1889 (Duvergier, vol. 89, p. 440), modified by act of March 21, 1905 (Duvergier, vol. 105, p. 133)
  19. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 1001.
  20. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 914.
  21. ^ Constitution, German Empire, April 16, 1871, Art. 57, 59
  22. ^ Gesetz, betreffend Aenderungen der Wehrpflicht, vom February 11, 1888, No. 1767, Reichs-Gesetzblatt, p. 11, amended by law of July 22, 1913, No. 4264, RGBl., p. 593
  23. ^ Dodd 1909, p. 344.
  24. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 1009.
  25. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 1018.
  26. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 1036.
  27. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 1064.
  28. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 1090.
  29. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 1098.
  30. ^ a b Keltie 1917, p. 1191.
  31. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 1142.
  32. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 1152.
  33. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 1201.
  34. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 1220.
  35. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 1240.
  36. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 1281.
  37. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 1288.
  38. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 1300.
  39. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 1337.
  40. ^ Keltie 1917, p. 1353.