Connection lost
Server error
Papachristou v. City of Jacksonville Case Brief
Why Top Law Students (And Those Aspiring to Be) Use LSD+ Briefs
Let's be real, law school is a marathon. Our exclusive Flash-to-Full case system is designed by Harvard Law School and MIT grads to match your pace: Quick summaries when you're slammed, detailed analysis when you need to go deep. Only LSD+ offers this kind of flexibility to genuinely fit your study flow.
Adaptive Case Views
Toggle between Flash, Standard, and Expanded. Get what you need, when you need it.
Exam-Ready IRAC Format
We deliver the precise structure professors look for in exam answers.
Complex Cases, Clarified
We break down dense legal reasoning into something digestible, helping you grasp core concepts.
Case Brief Summary & Legal Analysis
tl;dr: The Supreme Court invalidated a Jacksonville vagrancy ordinance, finding it unconstitutionally vague because its broad terms criminalized innocent behavior and allowed arbitrary police enforcement, violating due process.
Legal Significance: Established that vagrancy ordinances with overly broad and imprecise terms are unconstitutionally vague, violating due process by failing to provide fair notice and inviting arbitrary enforcement.
Papachristou v. City of Jacksonville Law School Study Guide
Use this case brief structure for your own legal analysis. Focus on the IRAC methodology to excel in law school exams and cold calls.
Case Facts & Court Holding
Key Facts & Case Background
Eight defendants were convicted under a Jacksonville, Florida, vagrancy ordinance. The ordinance criminalized a wide array of activities and statuses, including being “rogues and vagabonds,” “common night walkers,” “persons wandering or strolling around from place to place without any lawful purpose or object,” “habitual loafers,” and “persons able to work but habitually living upon the earnings of their wives or minor children.” The petitioners were arrested for conduct such as “prowling by auto” (driving on a main street), being “vagabonds” (waiting for a friend), “loitering” (standing in a driveway at police command), and being a “common thief” (based on reputation). For instance, Papachristou and Calloway, along with two male companions, were arrested for “prowling by auto” while driving to a nightclub after dinner, near a used-car lot that had been previously burglarized, though no crime occurred that night. Smith and Henry were arrested as “vagabonds” while waiting for a friend to get a ride to a job application. The ordinance’s language was archaic, derived from old English poor laws.
Court Holding & Legal Precedent
Issue: Is a vagrancy ordinance unconstitutionally void for vagueness if its prohibitions are not clearly defined, thereby failing to give fair notice of forbidden conduct and encouraging arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement by police, in violation of the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment?
Yes. The Jacksonville vagrancy ordinance is unconstitutionally void for vagueness because its Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure
IRAC Legal Analysis
Complete IRAC Analysis for Higher Grades
IRAC (Issue, Rule, Analysis, Conclusion) is the exact format professors want to see in your exam answers. Our exclusive Flash-to-Full briefs combine holding, analysis, and rule statements formatted to match what A+ students produce in exams. These structured briefs help reinforce the essential legal reasoning patterns expected in law school.
Legal Issue
Is a vagrancy ordinance unconstitutionally void for vagueness if its prohibitions are not clearly defined, thereby failing to give fair notice of forbidden conduct and encouraging arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement by police, in violation of the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment?
Conclusion
This case is a landmark decision reinforcing the due process requirement that Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in repr
Legal Rule
A criminal statute is void for vagueness if it (1) “fails to Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in volup
Legal Analysis
The Supreme Court, in an opinion by Justice Douglas, found the Jacksonville Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillu
Flash-to-Full Case Opinions
Flash Summary
- The Supreme Court held a Jacksonville vagrancy ordinance was **void for