James Weir

Speech Relevance

How many of us realize that today federal agents can invade a man's property without a warrant? They can impose a fine without a formal hearing, let alone a trial by jury, and they can seize and sell his property in auction to enforce the payment of that fine. In Chicot County, Arkansas, James Wier overplanted his rice allotment. The government obtained a $17,000 judgment, and a U.S. marshal sold his 950-acre farm at auction. The government said it was necessary as a warning to others to make the system work.

1. that the Act was unconstitutional
2. that the Act imposed no personal liability for penalties on farmers who produced commodities in violation of the Act
3. that the rice produced by him in 1959 was intended to be sold as seed rice and was not covered by the Act
4. that he did not plant as much rice as the Government contended
5. that he had been discriminated against by the local officials administering the rice program in Chicot County.

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