science · 25 July 1925 · 100 years ago
In 1925, at the end of the twelve-day “Scopes monkey trial” in Dayton, Tennessee, the jury gave their verdict, after only nine minutes consideration:. John T. Scopes was found guilty of teaching evolution, which was prohibited by the Butler Act, a Tennessee statue passed on 21 Mar 1925. The judge determined that Scopes should be fined $100. But, technically the amount should have been set by the jury, said the Tennessee Supreme Court when, on 15 Jan 1927, it overturned the verdict—but not the the law itself. Testing the constitutionality law the had been the goal when the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) offered funding for the defense. Dayton town leaders wanted publicity from the trial and recruited Scopes as a willing defendant. The law stood for 42 years, until repealed on 17 May 1967.
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