In the early twentieth century, the primary legal test used in the United States to determine if speech could be criminalized was the bad tendency test.[100] Rooted in English common law, the test permitted speech to be outlawed if it had a tendency to harm public welfare.[100] One of the earliest cases in which the Supreme Court addressed punishment after material was published was Patterson v. Colorado (1907) in which the Court used the bad tendency test to uphold contempt charges against a newspaper publisher who accused Colorado judges of acting on behalf of local utility companies.[100][101]