Perez v. United States
United States Supreme Court
402 U.S. 146 (1971)

- Written by Carolyn Strutton, JD
Facts
Perez (defendant) was a loan shark. He would loan money to individuals and then extort excessive payments back from his debtors through threats of violence. After extorting excessive payments and threatening violence against a debtor named Miranda and Miranda’s wife, Perez was arrested and charged under a federal statute that made loansharking a federal crime. Perez’s loansharking activities against Miranda all occurred intrastate. After he was convicted, Perez appealed, alleging that the application of the federal statute against his intrastate activities was an unconstitutional overreach of Congress’s limited powers to legislate under the Commerce Clause.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Douglas, J.)
Dissent (Stewart, J.)
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