People v. Bunis

Charged with knowingly selling magazines from which the cover or title page had been removed, the defendant, owner of a bookstore in Buffalo, challenged the statute, section 436-d of the Penal Law, on which the charge was based, as unconstitutional. Enacted in 1956 “ to prevent the resale of periodicals once they had been recalled by the publisher” (Memorandum of Assemblyman Steingut, N. Y. Legis. Annual, 1956, p. 25), the section provides, insofar as relevant, that “ Any person who knowingly sells, offers or exposes for sale, (except in bulk as waste paper) any newspaper, magazine,…