Debs was represented by Clarence Darrow, later a leading American lawyer and civil libertarian, who had previously been a corporate lawyer for the railroad company. While it is commonly thought that Darrow "switched sides" to represent Debs, a myth repeated by Irving Stone's biography, "Clarence Darrow For the Defense", he had in fact resigned from the railroad earlier, after the death of his mentor William Goudy. A Supreme Court case decision, "In re Debs", later upheld the right of the federal government to issue the injunction.