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Constitutional Law Keyed to Choper
United States v. Ballard
Citation:
322 U.S. 78 (1944)Facts
The Ballards founded and promoted the “I Am” religious movement, claiming they had been selected as divine messengers who could communicate with “ascended masters” including Saint Germain and Jesus Christ. They also claimed supernatural powers to heal diseases. The government indicted them on twelve counts of mail fraud, alleging they made eighteen false representations to solicit funds while knowing these claims were untrue. At trial, the judge instructed the jury not to evaluate whether the religious doctrines were true, but only whether the defendants sincerely believed them. The jury found the defendants guilty, concluding they did not honestly believe their own religious claims. The Circuit Court of Appeals reversed, holding that the truth of the religious representations should have been submitted to the jury.
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