{"argument_date":"2007-10-30T00:00:00Z","arguments":[{"argument_date":"2007-10-30T00:00:00Z","heading":"What happened at the argument","official_detail_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/oral_arguments/argument_transcript/2007","official_transcript_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","paragraphs":["General Clement argued that speech proposing unlawful transactions is unprotected. He stated that falsely proposing such transactions is also unprotected.","Mr. Diaz argued that the law carries severe penalties. He claimed the statute is vague and overbroad on its face.","Justice Roberts asked about a movie reviewer describing a film. He questioned if such a review violates the law.","Justice Ginsburg asked about a film showing a twelve-year-old. She questioned if the actor is a young adult."],"reargument":false,"sequence":1,"sources":[{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 11, lines 17-49","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 11, lines 17-49"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 29, lines 11-49","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 29, lines 11-49"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 15-47","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 3, lines 15-47"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 49-13","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 3, lines 49-13"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 7-13","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 3, lines 7-13"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 5, lines 45-7","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 5, lines 45-7"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 13-15","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 6, lines 13-15"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 21-33","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 6, lines 21-33"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 41-41","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 6, lines 41-41"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 51-5","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 6, lines 51-5"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 7, lines 25-29","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 7, lines 25-29"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 7, lines 43-11","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 7, lines 43-11"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 8, lines 21-27","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 8, lines 21-27"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 9, lines 23-39","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 9, lines 23-39"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 9, lines 47-3","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 9, lines 47-3"}]}],"caption":"United States v. Williams","case_history":[{"changed_at":"2026-08-29T20:06:27.591681Z","explanation":"An official oral-argument transcript was verified.","status":"argued"}],"case_status":"argued","dek":"The government argues that describing illegal images is a crime. The defendant argues that describing them is protected speech.","dek_sources":[{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 29, lines 11-49","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 29, lines 11-49"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 15-47","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 3, lines 15-47"}],"dispositions":[],"latest_court_document_date":"2007-10-30T00:00:00Z","maturity":"official_transcript","official_detail_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/oral_arguments/argument_transcript/2007","official_disposition_urls":[],"official_docket_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/docket/docketfiles/html/public/06-694.html","primary_docket":"06-694","revisions":[{"correction_note":"Rewritten to the concise citizen-facing editorial standard.","created_at":"2026-08-31T12:06:42.426991Z","maturity":"official_transcript","revision_number":1},{"correction_note":"Migrated to the dated official Court activity contract without model use.","created_at":"2026-09-05T03:22:24Z","maturity":"official_transcript","revision_number":2}],"schema_version":"1.1","sections":[{"heading":"What this case is about","paragraphs":["This case tests the limits of free speech. The government claims that describing child pornography is illegal. The defendant claims that describing it is protected expression. The Court must decide if the law is too broad."],"sources":[{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 29, lines 11-49","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 29, lines 11-49"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 15-47","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 3, lines 15-47"}]},{"heading":"How the case got here","paragraphs":["The Supreme Court heard oral argument in this case on October 30, 2007."],"sources":[{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 7-13","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 3, lines 7-13"}]},{"heading":"What each side wants","paragraphs":["The government wants the Court to uphold the law. It seeks to criminalize describing child pornography.","The defendant wants the Court to strike down the law. It seeks to protect speech about illegal materials."],"sources":[{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 29, lines 11-49","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 29, lines 11-49"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 15-47","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 3, lines 15-47"}]},{"heading":"What each side says","paragraphs":["The government argues that proposing an unlawful transaction is not protected speech. It claims that falsely proposing such a transaction is also unprotected.","The defendant argues that the law is unconstitutionally vague. It claims the statute captures protected speech about materials."],"sources":[{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 29, lines 11-49","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 29, lines 11-49"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 15-47","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 3, lines 15-47"}]},{"heading":"What the justices asked","paragraphs":["Justice Stevens asked if describing a war crime film violates the statute. He questioned if a person describing such a film commits a crime.","Justice Souter asked about receiving unsolicited child pornography. He asked if reporting it to police violates the law."],"sources":[{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 11, lines 17-49","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 11, lines 17-49"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 49-13","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 3, lines 49-13"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 5, lines 45-7","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 5, lines 45-7"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 13-15","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 6, lines 13-15"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 21-33","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 6, lines 21-33"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 41-41","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 6, lines 41-41"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 51-5","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 6, lines 51-5"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 7, lines 25-29","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 7, lines 25-29"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 7, lines 43-11","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 7, lines 43-11"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 8, lines 21-27","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 8, lines 21-27"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 9, lines 23-39","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 9, lines 23-39"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 9, lines 47-3","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 9, lines 47-3"}]},{"heading":"Why it matters","paragraphs":["This case defines the boundary between illegal conduct and protected speech. It determines whether describing illegal images is a crime. The outcome shapes how citizens discuss sensitive materials."],"sources":[{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 29, lines 11-49","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 29, lines 11-49"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 15-47","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 3, lines 15-47"}]},{"heading":"What happens next","paragraphs":["This article currently covers the argument record. Use the official docket link for later case activity."],"sources":[{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 11, lines 17-49","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 11, lines 17-49"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 49-13","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 3, lines 49-13"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 7-13","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 3, lines 7-13"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 5, lines 45-7","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 5, lines 45-7"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 13-15","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 6, lines 13-15"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 21-33","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 6, lines 21-33"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 41-41","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 6, lines 41-41"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 51-5","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 6, lines 51-5"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 7, lines 25-29","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 7, lines 25-29"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 7, lines 43-11","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 7, lines 43-11"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 8, lines 21-27","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 8, lines 21-27"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 9, lines 23-39","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 9, lines 23-39"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 9, lines 47-3","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 9, lines 47-3"}]}],"slug":"2007-06-694-united-states-v-williams","term":"2007","title":"Does describing child pornography violate federal law?","title_sources":[{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 29, lines 11-49","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 29, lines 11-49"},{"evidence_type":"Transcript","label":"Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 15-47","official_url":"https://www.supremecourt.gov/pdfs/transcripts/2007/06-694.pdf","page_label":"file page 3, lines 15-47"}],"topics":[],"undated_disposition_date_fallback":null,"updated_at":"2026-09-05T03:22:24Z"}