Facts of the Case

Samuel Gompers and two other labor leaders were convicted of violating an antiboycott injunction. The American Federation of Labor (headed by Gompers) had run a notice in its magazine listing Buck's Stove & Range Company along with other companies under the heading "We Don't Patronize."

Question

Does the injunction abridge free speech and press?

Conclusion

The Court refused to reexamine the validity of the injunction issued by the lower court. However, the convictions were reversed on the ground that the contempts were civil but the lower court had treated them as criminal in nature. The aim of civil contempt is remediation while the purpose of crminal contempt is punitive.