Nelson initially received a 20-year prison sentence, $10,000 in fines and $13,000 in prosecution costs. He was jailed in Pittsburgh for seven months and then released on bail pending his appeal. In 1953 he and five others were indicted under the Federal Smith Act. This the sentence was 5 years of imprisonment and $10,000 in fines. All six were granted bail. In 1956 in "Pennsylvania v. Nelson", the United States Supreme Court overturned the Pennsylvania Sedition Act, saying that the Federal Smith Act superseded this and all similar state laws. In the same year testimony at the first trial was found to have been perjured and a new trial was granted. In 1957, the government dropped all charges against the defendants.