Zenger trial

E456443

The Zenger trial was a landmark 1735 colonial American court case that helped establish the principle of freedom of the press by acquitting printer John Peter Zenger of libel for criticizing the royal governor.

All labels observed (5)

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (47)

Predicate Object
instanceOf colonial American court case
freedom of the press case
legal case
appliesLaw English common law of seditious libel
chronology 18th century
concernsPublication New-York Weekly Journal
country Province of New York
court Supreme Court of Judicature of the Province of New York
date 1735
endDate 1735-08-04
hasAccusation seditious libel
hasComplainant Governor William Cosby
hasDefendant John Peter Zenger
hasDefenseArgument jury may judge law as well as fact
truth should be a defense to libel
hasDefenseLawyer Andrew Hamilton
William Smith Sr.
hasJudge James DeLancey
linked to: James De Lancey
hasJury colonial jury
hasLanguage English
hasPlaintiff Crown v. Zenger
linked to: Zenger trial
hasProsecutor Attorney General Richard Bradley
influenced First Amendment press freedom tradition
development of freedom of the press in the United States
involvesPerson Andrew Hamilton
James DeLancey
linked to: James De Lancey

John Peter Zenger
Richard Bradley
William Cosby
William Smith Sr.
jurisdiction British America
legalCharge libel
location New York City
notableFor advancing freedom of the press in America
establishing truth as a defense in the eyes of the public
influencing American views on press liberty
partOf colonial history of the United States
legal history of New York
precededBy arrest of John Peter Zenger in 1734
relatedTo First Amendment to the United States Constitution
freedom of speech
history of American journalism
result acquittal
startDate 1735-08-04
subject criticism of colonial government
freedom of the press
verdict not guilty

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (5)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

John Peter Zenger knownFor Zenger trial
John Peter Zenger legalCase Crown v. John Peter Zenger
linked to: Zenger trial
Andrew Hamilton trial John Peter Zenger libel trial
linked to: Zenger trial
Zenger trial hasPlaintiff Crown v. Zenger
linked to: Zenger trial
Anna Catharina Maulin associatedWith John Peter Zenger free-press case
linked to: Zenger trial