United States v. Caldwell, 408 U.S. 665 (1972)

In early 1970, a grand jury was investigating violations of federal law, including threats against the president, civil disorder, and mail fraud, by the Black Panther Party and other black militant groups. Earl Caldwell was a reporter for the New York Times and assigned to cover the activities of the Black Panther Party and similar groups. In February 1970, a subpoena was served on Caldwell ordering him to testify and produce documents and recordings concerning the activities of the Black Panthers. Caldwell objected to the scope of the order, and in March a second subpoena was issued ordering him to appear before the grand jury to testify; however, the order omitted the document requirement. Again, Caldwell opposed the scope of the subpoena, citing that his testimony would destroy his relationship with the Panthers and infringe on the First Amendment rights of speech and press.
In April, the district court denied Caldwell’s motion to quash the subpoena but did issue a protective order, which allowed Caldwell to refrain from revealing confidential information, which is protect by the First Amendment. The court did stipulate, however, that such information must be revealed if the government could show a compelling national interest in obtaining his testimony that could not be served by any other means.
Caldwell refused to appear and was held in contempt until he complied with the court’s order to testify. The court of appeals reversed the contempt order and held that requiring Caldwell to testify breached a qualified testimonial privilege for a reporter. Such a requirement would have an adverse impact on the flow of news to the public.
The Supreme Court granted certiorari and determined the issue to be whether reporters are immune to grand jury subpoenas and from answering questions relevant to the investigation of a crime. The Court reasoned that the First Amendment does not give the press the right to publish anything and everything it wills without consequence, as it is subject to liability for damages and subject to prosecution. Furthermore, grand juries serve a fundamental interest in securing the safety of the public, and thus, actions that infringe on personal rights are generally justifiable.
Therefore, the Court overturned the decision of the court of appeals and ordered Caldwell to testify. The Court found that requiring reporters to disclose to grand juries information that would be otherwise protected served a legitimate and compelling state interest and was not in violation of the First Amendment.
In the dissent, Justice  O. Douglas stated two principles that stemmed from his understanding of the First Amendment. The first is that the government should afford citizens the freedom and privacy of their own opinions and beliefs regardless of public sentiment. A corollary conclusion reached in the dissent is that an individual must also have absolute privacy of the information gathered and used in developing his or her own opinions and beliefs. The second principle is that self-government cannot succeed unless people are free of general suspicion as to their beliefs and able to participate in an undeterred flow of opinion and reporting. Thus, by requiring Caldwell to testify, the government not only infringed on inherent freedoms, but also impeded journalists’ ability to gather and disseminate news.
Moreover, Justice Douglas points out that in his view no compelling need can be shown that refutes the reporter’s immunity or forces him to testify, unless he is involved in a crime. The First Amendment, absent his involvement in a crime, protects him against appearance before a grand jury, and if he is involved in a crime, the Fifth Amendment protects him from self-incrimination. Therefore, in the view of Douglas, the reporter need not appear simply to invoke a right to every question posed by the grand jury. Thus, the reliance upon which the Court rested its opinion—that there was a compelling state interest in Caldwell’s testimony and information—failed to withstand the constitutional rights of the First and Fifth Amendments guaranteed to Caldwell.