William Jennings Bryan led for the prosecution and Clarence Darrow for the defense. The judge ruled out any test of the law’s constitutionality or argument on the validity of the theory, limiting the trial to the single question of whether John T. Scopes had taught evolution, which he admittedly had. He was convicted and fined $100.
Scopes was unsure whether he had ever actually taught evolution, but he incriminated himself purposely so the case could have a defendant. The ACLU hired the famous lawyer Clarence Darrow to defend Scopes, while William Jennings Bryan, three-time presidential candidate and former secretary of state, volunteered to argue for the prosecution.
With Raulston limiting the trial to the single question of whether Scopes had taught evolution, which he admittedly had, Scopes was convicted and fined $100 on July 21. On appeal, the state Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the 1925 law but acquitted Scopes on the technicality that he had been fined excessively.
The prosecution in Scopes Trial aimed to support the fundamentalist point of view by finding him guilty. Scopes was prosecuted by the famous fundamentalist lawyer, William Jennings Bryan. The prosecution proved that Scopes had taught evolution, The prosecution attacked the defence's attitude to the Bible
John Scopes. What became known as the Scopes Monkey Trial began as a publicity stunt for the town of Dayton, Tennessee. A local businessman met with the school superintendent and a lawyer to discuss using the ACLU offer to get newspapers to write about the town.
The trial was viewed as an opportunity to challenge the constitutionality of the bill, to publicly advocate for the legitimacy of Darwin’s theory of evolution, and to enhance the profile of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).
The trial day started with crowds pouring into the courthouse two hours before it was scheduled to begin , filling up the room and causing onlookers to spill into the hallways. There was applause when Bryan entered the court and further when he and Darrow shook hands.
The grand jury met on May 9, 1925. In preparation, Scopes recruited and coached students to testify against him. Three of the seven students attending were called to testify, each showing a sketchy understanding of evolution. The case was pushed forward and a trial set for July 10.
The theory of evolution, as presented by Charles Darwin and others, was a controversial concept in many quarters, even into the 20th century. Concerted anti-evolutionist efforts in Tennessee succeeded when in 1925, the Tennessee House of Representatives was offered a bill by John W. Butler making teaching evolution a misdemeanor.
Clarence Darrow – a famous attorney who had recently acted for the defense in the notorious Leopold and Loeb murder trial – found out about the Scopes trial through journalist H.L. Mencken, who suggested Darrow should defend Scopes.
Witnesses followed, establishing that Scopes had taught evolution and zoologist Maynard M. Metcalf gave expert testimony about the science of evolution, a signal that Scopes himself would not take the stand during the trial. Subsequent days saw prosecutors argue about the validity of using expert witnesses.
On July 21, Scopes was found guilty and fined $100, but the fine was revoked a year later during the appeal to the Tennessee Supreme Court. As the first trial was broadcast live on radio in the United States, the Scopes trial brought widespread attention to the controversy over creationism versus evolution .
John Scopes returned to college and studied to become a geologist. He worked in the oil industry and never taught high school again. Scopes died in 1970 at the age of 70. Clarence Darrow returned to his law practice, where he worked on several more high-profile cases.
The ACLU was notified of the plan, and Scopes was arrested for violating the Butler Act on May 7, 1925. Scopes appeared before the Rhea County justice of the peace on May 9, 1925, and was formally charged with having violated the Butler Act—a misdemeanor. He was released on bond, paid for by local businessmen.
The Scopes "Monkey" Trial (official name is State of Tennessee v John Thomas Scopes) began on July 10, 1925, in Dayton, Tennessee. On trial was science teacher John T. Scopes, charged with violating the Butler Act, which prohibited the teaching of evolution in Tennessee public schools. Known in its day as "the trial of the century," ...
A battle between creationism and evolution in public schools. Patricia Daniels is a former managing editor for Time-Life Books. She holds a degree in history from the College of William & Mary. The Scopes "Monkey" Trial (official name is State of Tennessee v John Thomas Scopes) began on July 10, 1925, in Dayton, Tennessee.
Bryan's team set out to prove that Scopes had indeed violated Tennessee law by teaching evolution. Witnesses for the prosecution included the county school superintendent, who confirmed that Scopes had taught evolution out of A Civic Biology, the state-sponsored textbook cited in the case.
Darwin's Theory and the Butler Act . Controversy had long surrounded Charles Darwin's The Origin of Species (first published in 1859) and his later book, The Descent of Man (1871). Religious groups condemned the books, in which Darwin theorized that humans and apes had evolved, over millennia, from a common ancestor.
The trial’s proceedings helped to bring the scientific evidence for evolution into the public sphere while also stoking a national debate over the veracity of evolution that continues to the present day. Scopes Trial.
With Raulston limiting the trial to the single question of whether Scopes had taught evolution, which he admittedly had, Scopes was convicted and fined $100 on July 21.
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