Balzac v. Porto Rico

Balzac v. People of Porto Rico
the Supreme Court of the United States

Syllabus

Balzac v. Porto Rico, 258 U.S. 298 (1922), was a case in which the Supreme Court of the United States held that certain provisions of the U.S. Constitution did not apply to territories not incorporated into the union. It originated when Jesús M. Balzac was prosecuted for criminal libel in a district court of Puerto Rico. Balzac declared that his rights had been violated under the Sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution as he was denied a trial by jury, since the code of criminal procedure of Puerto Rico did not grant a jury trial in misdemeanor cases. In the appeal, the Supreme Court affirmed the judgments of the lower courts on the island in deciding that the provisions of the Constitution did not apply to a territory that belonged to the United States but was not incorporated into the Union. It has become known as one of the "Insular Cases".

866443Balzac v. People of Porto Rico — Syllabusthe Supreme Court of the United States

Court Documents

Opinion of the Court

United States Supreme Court

258 U.S. 298

Balzac v. People of Porto Rico

Argued: March 20, 1922. --- Decided: April 10, 1922

Mr. Jackson H. Ralston, of Washington, D. C. for plaintiff in error.

Mr. Grant T. Trent, of Washington, D. C., for the People of Porto Rico.

[Argument of Counsel from page 299 intentionally omitted]

Mr. Chief Justice TAFT delivered the opinion of the Court.