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How Did Abel Fields Stolen Valor Appeal

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Abel Fields was convicted of violating the stolen valor act. Fields claimed to have achieved the Purple Heart Medal, A very important medal given only for outstanding bravery. Field also claimed to have served in the Military. Neither of Fields claims were true. Fields was sentenced to 1 year in prison. Fields decide to appeal his sentence claiming his first amendment rights had been violated. The court of appeals granted his attempt to appeal the decision. The court of appeals ruled in his favor, and overturned his conviction. After Fields conviction had been overturned, The U.S. government decided to appeal Fields case. The Supreme court accepted the case. Fields attorneys are arguing that the Stolen Valor act is unconstitutional. Field attorneys argued that Fields cannot be convicted because he lied. The First amendment protects speech that does not directly harm others. Fields attorneys claim that Fields had lied about himself, and by lying about himself he only hurt himself. …show more content…

By lying Fields did not harm himself alone, but he damaged the integrity of those soldiers serving, or those who have served in the military. Fields claim of earning a purple heart, I believe, is also in violation of the stolen valor act, and not protected under the first amendment . Fields claim of earning a purple heart damages the sacredness of the award, and damages the reputation of those recipients of the purple heart. My verdict as a supreme court Justice would be to uphold Fields conviction of 1 year in

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Abel Fields was convicted under the Stolen Valor Act for falsely claiming he had received the Purple Heart. Fields has never served in the military and therefore has never received a military award. At his first trial, Fields was found guilty for violating the Stolen Valor Act and was sentenced to a fine. Fields then appealed his sentence and the Court of Appeals overturned his conviction citing that Fields’ First Amendment rights were violated. The government then appealed the Court of Appeals’ decision and the case was sent to the Supreme Court.

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Tejinder Singh, writer and contributor of Scotus, argues that the stolen Valor Act is "unconstitutional because the government had not shown that the statute is necessary to protect the integrity of the system of military honors . . . [and] the Stolen Valor Act posed a significant—and perhaps unique—threat to protected speech. " On the contrary, the Stolven Valor Act does not violate the freedom of speech guaranteed by the First Amendment, but instead enforces the appreciation of our soldiers. If Fields had been convicted because he preached that he deserved the Purple Heart and contributed as much as an eight-year veteran of the military, then the Stolven Valor Act would have violated his First Amendment rights because he would be denied to publically share his opinion, and thus denied his freedom of

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