Miller v. California

Miller v. California, 413 U.S. 15 (1973), is a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court.

Marvin Miller conducted a mass mailing campaign advertising sexually explicit books. Recipients who had not requested the material complained, and Miller was convicted under California’s obscenity law. He challenged the conviction, arguing that the material was protected by the First Amendment.

Significance

Chief Justice Burger’s 5-4 opinion established the three-part ‘Miller test’ for determining whether material is obscene and thus unprotected by the First Amendment: (1) whether the average person, applying contemporary community standards, would find the work appeals to prurient interest; (2) whether the work depicts or describes sexual conduct in a patently offensive way; and (3) whether the work lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value (the ‘LAPS’ test). The Miller test remains the governing standard for obscenity.

Category

US Federal Case Law