United States v. Conley

80 F. Supp. 700, 1948 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2159
CourtDistrict Court, D. Massachusetts
DecidedOctober 25, 1948
DocketCr. 18074, Civ. 7901
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 80 F. Supp. 700 (United States v. Conley) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Massachusetts primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Conley, 80 F. Supp. 700, 1948 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2159 (D. Mass. 1948).

Opinion

WYZANSKI, District Judge.

The grand jury in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts on June 4, 1948, indicted Conley for violation of the Fugitive Felon Act, 48 Stat. 782, as amended by 60 Stat. 789, 18 U.S.C.A. § 408e [now § 1073]. Presentment was made on the charge that “Conley of Amarillo, in the District of Texas * * * did travel in interstate commerce from * * * Massachusetts to * * * Texas, with intent to avoid prosecution for assault with a dangerous weapon upon one Bertha LaCroix, an offense against the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts”. [See this Court’s Criminal No. 18074.]

Thereafter, the United States District. Court for the Northern District of Texas issued a warrant of removal requiring Conley to appear before this Court to stand trial on the indictment. Simultaneously,, that Court admitted Conley to bail for appearance in this District. See Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, Rules 40(b) (3) and 46, 18 U.S.C.A.

Conley alleges that the Attorney General of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the District Attorney for the-County of Plymouth, Massachusetts in connection with an indictment already returned by a Massachusetts state grand jury charging Conley with violation of the Massachusetts statute respecting assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, Mass.G.L.. (Ter.Ed.) c. 265, § 15A, will seek to arrest and try him in the state court either upon. Conley’s “entering the Commonwealth” or after Conley’s acquittal in this Court.

*701 To protect himself against such state prosecution before or after the federal trial Conley first applied to this Court for a writ of protection. He asserts that by virtue of 28 U.S.C.A. § 1651(a) this Court may issue the writ in connection with Criminal No. 18074. Later at the Court’s own suggestion, Conley also applied for an injunction against the Massachusetts Attorney General and the Plymouth County District Attorney. This second action appears on the docket as Civil Action No. 7901.

Although this Court itself suggested to Conley’s counsel that he file the independent suit in equity, now known as C.A. No. 7901, I am persuaded that that suit must be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. The jurisdiction of federal district courts is, of course, statutory. And there seems to be no statute applicable to this case. Even the diversity jurisdiction provisions of 28 U.S.C.A. § 1332 are of no avail since $3,000 is not involved.

There is no similar jurisdictional difficulty with respect to a writ of protection. Admittedly this Court has jurisdiction to hear the trial of defendant on the indictment returned by the grand jury in what is known as Cr. 18074. And having jurisdiction of the criminal case this Court may issue “writs necessary or appropriate in aid of” that jurisdiction “agreeable to the usages and principles of law.” 28 U.S.C.A. § 1651(a). Such auxiliary writs of protection have frequently been issued by this Court [see Benesch v. Foss, D.C.D.Mass., 31 F.2d 118 in addition to the following unreported cases, Eq. 659; Eq. 835; Cr. 438; C.A. 3170] as well as other courts. Chanler v. Sherman, 2 Cir., 162 F. 19, 22 L.R.A.,N.S., 992.

This brings us to inquire what are the usages and principles of law with respect to protecting defendants in criminal cases. When a defendant is compelled to enter a state to answer a charge of violation of federal law, is he entitled to protection from arrest on a charge of another crime committed prior to his entry? A satisfactory answer to that question can be given only by considering it against a broad background.

Except in situations covered by statutes and treaties — to which I shall refer later — the general rule is that a party or witness does not have either before or during or after his attendance at any judicial proceeding a personal privilege to avoid service or arrest in connection with any other judicial proceeding. Such privilege as exists belongs not to the individual but to the court. Lamb v. Schmitt, 285 U.S. 222, 225, 52 S.Ct. 317, 76 L.Ed. 720; Long v. Ansell, 293 U.S. 76, 83, 55 S.Ct. 21, 79 L.Ed. 208.

It is sometimes said that the rationale of the privilege is to encourage voluntary attendance of suitors and litigants who might stay away if they feared service of process in other litigation. But while that may be a good reason, it is historically an inaccurate one. The privilege was first granted in England and America to those who came involuntarily in response to subpoenas. See Judge Learned Hand in Dwelle v. Allen, D.C.S.D.N.Y., 193 F. 546, 548. And even today immunity from civil process is often accorded to defendants and witnesses appearing in civil cases in response to subpoenas. See cases collected in Wigmore, Evidence, (3d Ed.) § 2195g.

It is sometimes said that the rationale of the privilege is to prevent an interruption or embarrassment of the judicial proceedings. But there are two reasons why this-explanation will not stand. The service of process to attend a second trial neither interrupts or embarrasses the first trial' unless the dates of the two proceedings conflict. Moreover, if the purpose of the privilege were to avoid interruption of the first proceeding, then the protection would not extend, as it sometimes does, to the party or witness during his return from court to his home. Cf. Chanler v. Sherman, supra.

Perhaps the best that we can say is that historically the courts, without minutely examining each individual case to see whether a person’s attendance was voluntary or whether a particular process issued by another court caused embarrassment, but in order to “conduce to obedience” to compulsory process, see L. Hand, D. J. in *702 Dwelle v. Allen, D.C.S.D.N.Y., 193 F. 546, 549, to encourage .persons to have their private rights judicially enforced, see Chanler v. Sherman, 2 Cir., 162 F. 19, 21, 22 L.R.A.,N.S., 992 and to emphasize the dignity and importance of attendance at court, have protected ■ litigants and witnesses in civil cases from service of process in another civil suit. Stewart v. Ramsay, 242 U.S. 128, 37 S.Ct. 44, 61 L.Ed. 192. Wigmore, Evidence, (3d Ed.) § 2195g. But this doctrine has not been customarily extended to protecting a litigant or witness in a civil suit from service of process in a criminal suit. Schwartz v. Dutro, Mo.Sup., 298 S.W. 769. But see contra the writ in Eq. 835 issued by this court. The public interest in apprehending and prosecuting him for his alleged criminal conduct outweighs the public interests in the dignity of the courts, in conducing to obedience to subpoenas (when attendance is compulsory), in inducing voluntary attendance (when attendance is voluntary), in encouraging vindication of private rights and in preventing the interruption of judicial proceedings (when interruption is actually threatened).

The extent to which protection is available to a witness in criminal cases is much more debatable. Several rules are possible: for example, (1) like the civil witness, the criminal witness, whether voluntary or involuntary, might be exempt from civil process [Dwelle v.

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Bluebook (online)
80 F. Supp. 700, 1948 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2159, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-conley-mad-1948.