State v. Meredith

• Court: South Carolina Supreme Court
• Writing for the Court: The opinion of the Court was delivered by MR. ASSOCIATE JUSTICE FISHBURNE.
• Citation: State v. Meredith, 197 S.C. 351, 15 S.E.2d 678 (S.C. 1941)
• Decision Date: 01 July 1941
• Docket Number: 15287.
• Parties: STATE v. MEREDITH.

15 S.E.2d 678

197 S.C. 351

STATE v. MEREDITH.

No. 15287.

Supreme Court of South Carolina

July 1, 1941

Grover C. Powell, of Atlanta, Ga., and C. E. Cooley, of Anderson for appellant.

Randolph Murdaugh, Jr., Sol., of Hampton, and W. N. Levin, of Beaufort, for respondent.

FISHBURNE Justice.

The defendant, Thomas Meredith, belongs to a religious society or organization called "Jehovah's Witnesses," and was tried and convicted in a Magistrate Court in Beaufort County on a charge of violating Section 7120 of the Code of 1932. Upon appeal the Circuit Court affirmed the judgment of conviction, and appellant brings his appeal to this Court upon various exceptions.

The facts adduced to sustain the conviction follow: On the day of his arrest the defendant, supplied with books and pamphlets on religious subjects and a portable phonograph, was engaged in going from house to house through the rural districts of Beaufort County. The defendant would ask the person who responded to his call for permission to play on his phonograph a record of a Bible lecture or sermon. The appellant is a minister of the Gospel, and if the party solicited was interested, he offered for sale one or more of the books and pamphlets referred to. If the person had no funds, a book would be given him upon the promise being made that he would read it. He was arrested on the porch of a house while talking to the person who came to the door, but on this occasion he made no sale. The prosecution, however relies for conviction upon evidence showing that he had effected a sale of one of his books two or three weeks prior to his arrest.

The literature carried around by the defendant consisted of books or booklets entitled "Refugees," and "Salvation," and copies of the "Watchtower" magazine, all of which are publications issued by the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society. The testimony shows that the main and primary purpose and occupation of the defendant was to preach and teach principles drawn from the Bible, in accordance with his faith, wherever one or two were gathered together and would listen to him. His was an evangelistic work, for which he received no material consideration, and to which he devoted his life. The distribution of the books and pamphlets was but another method or channel through which he disseminated the religious opinions and beliefs of Jehovah's Witnesses. An examination of them shows that they contain nothing offensive to good morals or hurtful to the general welfare. And it is quite clear that the sale and distribution of the literature were merely incidental to defendant's work of evangelism and not related to any commercial enterprise conducted for personal profit. The record shows that the money paid by purchasers of the books and pamphlets was received as a contribution to the cause, and was devoted to the publication of other religious literature.

The defendant testified, "That in so doing, he acted in accordance with and pursuant to his faith and belief and convictions, and in obedience to the command of Almighty God, and that the act of distributing said printed matter was a part of the exercise of his duties as a minister and a part of his sincere worship of Almighty God, and was not for profit or gain, and was solely for the purpose of promoting the spread of the Gospel of the Kingdom of Jehovah God under Christ Jesus, in accordance with the teaching of the Holy Scriptures."

The immediate question before us is whether the lower Court erred in denying the defendant's motion for a directed verdict of not guilty. It is contended that the evidence shows no violation of the Code Section under which he was prosecuted.

This Section (7120) does not purport either to define the offense of hawking or peddling, or to enlarge its definition as heretofore recognized, but simply declares that "no person shall, as hawker or peddler, expose for sale or sell any goods, wares and merchandise in any county" without having first obtained a license from the Clerk of the...