In the Matter of the April 1956 Term Grand Jury. Byron A. Cain and Sally Cain v. United States

239 F.2d 263
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
DecidedFebruary 25, 1957
Docket11861
StatusPublished
Cited by77 cases

This text of 239 F.2d 263 (In the Matter of the April 1956 Term Grand Jury. Byron A. Cain and Sally Cain v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In the Matter of the April 1956 Term Grand Jury. Byron A. Cain and Sally Cain v. United States, 239 F.2d 263 (7th Cir. 1957).

Opinion

SCHNACKENBERG, Circuit Judge.

On July 27, 1956, Byron A. Cain and Sally Cain, John H. Cain as Trustee of Cain Trust No. 1, a partnership, Harold E. Sullivan, Frank J. Huebner, Uptown Federal Savings & Loan Association of Chicago, Homan Mfg. Co., Inc., a corporation, and Cain & Culhane, Inc., a corporation, filed notice of appeal to this court from an order entered by the district court on July 18, 1956, dismissing their verified petition. The court’s action was taken upon a motion of the United States of America, which filed no answer to the petition.

Allegations of pertinent facts set forth in said petition which, for the purpose of this proceeding, are accepted as true, are as briefly as possible now set forth.

In 1948 the treasury department began an investigation of Shotwell Manufacturing Company, a corporation (sometimes herein referred to as Shot-well) 1 and Byron A. Cain, Frank J. Huebner and Harold E. Sullivan, its officers. That investigation was being continued when the petition herein was filed. Shot-well furnished to treasury agents its records and suitable accommodations for the agents at its offices, and expended about $20,000 in making the services of its auditors available to said agents to assist the treasury’s investigation, which extended also into the personal affairs of said Cain, Sullivan and Huebner.

Shotwell, Cain, Sullivan and Huebner were indicted on two counts on March 14, 1952, for allegedly wilfully and knowingly attempting to defeat and evade a large part of the income taxes due and owing by Shotwell to the United States of America for the calendar years 1945 and 1946, in violation of 26 U.S.C.A. § 145(b), in that defendants filed and caused to be filed false and fraudulent tax returns for said corporation. In a trial before a jury, defendants were convicted. On July 15, 1955, we reversed the judgment of conviction and remanded the case, United States v. Shotwell Manufacturing Company, 7 Cir., 225 F. 2d 394, with instructions to sustain a seasonably made motion by the defendants to suppress certain evidence, and to re-try the case. 2

At the beginning of the year 1954 (after the trial of the criminal case), the treasury department commenced a new and complete audit and investigation of Shotwell’s affairs and those of its officers for 1947 and subsequent years. Shotwell furnished space where its records were made available to the treasury agents.

On or about June 9, 1954, the then disr trict director of internal revenue issued a departmental subpoena to Homan “In the Matter of the Tax Liability of Ho-man Mfg. Co. for the years 1944, 1945 and 1946”, calling for all books, documents, work papers, etc., prepared and used at any date by: first, Frank Del-Monte, former cost accountant of Shot-well; second, Busby and Oury, certified public accountants working for Shot-well ; and third, all persons and organizations, for Shotwell, in connection with sales by said company in said years.

About July 1, 1954, Shotwell (Homan) delivered to treasury agents books and records covering transactions during the *266 1940’s for examination, constituting a van load of papers, all of which were minutely examined by revenue agents, who made copies of those which they considered relevant, and which documents were returned to Shotwell in late 1955. 3

Sundry records of Shotwell for the years 1947 to 1952 were called for by a subpoena issued by the acting district director about October 6, 1954. However, said records were not delivered by Shotwell because, among other reasons, Shotwell and' its officers were advised and informed that said documents had been examined repeatedly by agents of the treasury and could no longer be called for re-examination under the internal revenue code, 4 constituted preparatory analyses of possible evidence to be adduced at the criminal trial and otherwise could not lawfully and constitutionally be subpoenaed.

In September and October 1955, other departmental subpoenas were served upon Homan and Byron A. Cain and Sally T. Cain, Cain Trust No. 1, and Cain & Culhane, Inc., calling for production of substantially all of their books, records and documents for the years 1947 to 1952 inclusive, relating to all of their transactions with or concerning the petitioners, or most of them. 5

On September 15, 1955, the treasury department made a jeopardy assessment and levy against Homan for the years 1944, 1945 and 1946. The district court held the assessment and levy void. The government’s appeal from that order is pending in this court. 6

On September 16, 1955, Cain on behalf of himself, and Cain & Culhane, Inc., Homan, and Uptown Federal Savings and Loan Association of Chicago, wrote to the regional commissioner of the internal revenue service, declining to comply with the subpoenas, and stating his reasons therefor, including the statement that the materials referred to had been produced repeatedly for inspection by the government's examining agents. He averred that any further attempt to force production of such records would constitute unreasonable and unnecessary harassment and persecution, and therefore would constitute unreasonable searches and seizures in violation of the Fourth Amendment to the constitution of the United States as well as a denial of due process of law in violation of the Fifth Amendment to the constitution.

The treasury department has not attempted to enforce compliance with any of said subpoenas.

Prior to February 7,1956, the treasury department recommended to the department of justice “that a grand jury investigation be undertaken to determine whether criminal proceedings should be initiated against one or more of [Cain & Culhane, Inc., Byron A. Cain and Sally T. Cain] for certain indicated violations of titles 18 and 26 U.S.C.” The department of justice acceded and the attorney genéral appointed as special assistants Vincent P. Russo and Charles A. McNelis *267 to conduct an investigation. Thereupon, at the behest of the treasury department and not sua sponte, the April 1956 term grand jury commenced an investigation into the income tax returns and allegedly related matters of several of the petitioners.

On April 10, 1956, Russo and McNelis caused a grand jury subpoena duces te-cum to be issued directed to Leon J. Busby, an accountant who had done work for petitioners, requiring the production of documents, some of which had theretofore been by this court ordered suppressed in the criminal case. Thereupon Homan, Byron A. Cain, Harold E. Sullivan and Frank J. Huebner, by their complaint, asked the district court to quash said Busby subpoena, that Russo and McNelis be enjoined from using any of the material ordered suppressed before the grand jury, and also be enjoined from taking any witness before the grand jury for the purpose of testifying with respect to any part of said material. We affirmed an order of the district court dismissing the complaint. Homan Mfg. Co., Inc., v. Russo, 7 Cir.,

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