The D.C. Nine were nine men and women, including seven who were priests and nuns, who engaged in a daytime protest against the Dow Chemical Company and its production of napalm and were charged with malicious destruction of property and unlawful entry.
This group was part new generation of Catholic activists who undertook demonstrations in the late 1960s, such as the Catonsville Nine, that pushed the limits of Nonviolent resistance.
The nine were: The trial was a chaotic public spectacle, and all defendants were sentenced, although eventually only Catherine Melville and the Rev.
[2] They attempted to present a political defense, but the judge instructed the jury, "The Vietnam War is not an issue in this case.
Their appellate case, United States v. Dougherty, had important implications for the jurisprudence surrounding jury nullification.