William K. Smith

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Charge:	"Sedition (includes mockery of authority/king/monarchy, etc)"
Sentence:	"10 to 20 years imprisonment and a $20,000 fine"
Years Imprisoned:	2
Year Crime:	1918
Year Convicted:	1918
Year Cleared:	2006
U.S. State or Country of Crime:	Montana
County or Region of Crime:	Custer
City of Crime:
Result:	Pardoned Posthumously
Summary of Case:	"Willam K. Smith was co-defendant of his wife Janet Smith. Both were wrongly convicted of sedition based on Montana's Sedition Act of 1918. One of 78 people convicted of violating the Sedition Act pardoned by Montana Governor Barry Schweitzer on May 3, 2006. Sentenced to 10 to 20 years imprisonment and a $20,000 fine. The fine was paid by the Sheriff's sale of 80 acres of his family's farm land. His wife, Janet Smith was sentenced to 5 to 10 years imprisonment."
Conviction Caused By:
Innocence Proved By:	"Pardoned by Montana Governor Barry Schweitzer on May 3, 2006."
Defendant Aided By:	"The Montana Sedition Project at the University of Montana School of Journalism was formed to work toward the pardoning of the defendants, based on the research in the book "Darkest Before Dawn: Sedition and Free Speech in the American West," by Clemens P Work (University of New Mexico Press 2005)"
Compensation Awarded:
Was Perpetrator Identified?
Age When Imprisoned:	49
Age When Released:	51
Sex:	Male
Skin/Ethnicity:	White
Information Source 1:	Montana Sedition Project Database
Information Location 1:	http://www.seditionproject.net/
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Book About Case:	""Darkest Before Dawn: Sedition and Free Speech in the American West," by Clemens P Work (University of New Mexico Press 2005)"
Book Information:	http://www.unmpress.com/Book.php?id=10893924476241
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William K. Smith

Charge:

"Sedition (includes mockery of authority/king/monarchy, etc)"

Sentence:

"10 to 20 years imprisonment and a $20,000 fine"

Years Imprisoned:

2

Year Crime:

1918

Year Convicted:

1918

Year Cleared:

2006

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

Montana

County or Region of Crime:

Custer

City of Crime:

Result:

Pardoned Posthumously

Summary of Case:

Conviction Caused By:

Innocence Proved By:

"Pardoned by Montana Governor Barry Schweitzer on May 3, 2006."

Defendant Aided By:

"The Montana Sedition Project at the University of Montana School of Journalism was formed to work toward the pardoning of the defendants, based on the research in the book "Darkest Before Dawn: Sedition and Free Speech in the American West," by Clemens P Work (University of New Mexico Press 2005)"

Compensation Awarded:

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Age When Imprisoned:

49

Age When Released:

51

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

White

Information Source 1:

Montana Sedition Project Database

Information Location 1:

http://www.seditionproject.net/

Information Source 2:

Information Location 2:

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Information Source 4:

Information Location 4:

Information Source 5:

Information Location 5:

Book About Case:

""Darkest Before Dawn: Sedition and Free Speech in the American West," by Clemens P Work (University of New Mexico Press 2005)"

Book Information:

http://www.unmpress.com/Book.php?id=10893924476241

Book About Case (2):

Book Information (2):

Movie About Case:

Comments About Case: