United States v. McLeod

229 F. Supp. 383, 1964 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 7055
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. Alabama
DecidedMarch 19, 1964
DocketCiv. A. No. 3188
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 229 F. Supp. 383 (United States v. McLeod) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. Alabama primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. McLeod, 229 F. Supp. 383, 1964 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 7055 (S.D. Ala. 1964).

Opinion

DANIEL HOLCOMBE THOMAS, District Judge.

This cause comes on to be heard on petition of the United States of America, Plaintiff, for: (1) A preliminary injunction restraining defendants McLeod, Reese, Clark, Houston, Hare and Wilkinson their agents, servants, officers, employees and attorneys, and all persons acting in concert or participation with them, from commanding, by any means, the attendance before the Grand Jury of the Circuit Court of Dallas County, Alabama, at any time, of certain attorneys of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice; (2) A preliminary injunction restraining Defendant Clark, his agents, employees, officers, and all persons acting in concert or participation with him, from intimidating, threatening, coercing or attempting to intimidate, threaten or coerce any person for the purpose of interfering with the right of that person or persons to vote in Dallas County for candidates for Federal office, or punishing any person for having registered or attempted to register to vote and voting for such candidates, whether by arrest, threatened arrest, holding in custody, prosecuting or attempting to prosecute any person, stationing deputies inside voter registration meetings, stationing deputies along voter lines, or by any other means; (3) A preliminary injunction restraining the defendants McLeod, Hare, Reese, Wilkinson and Houston, their agents, officers, employees and all persons acting in concert or participation with them from intimidating, threatening, coercing, or attempting to intimidate, threaten, or coerce any person for the purpose of interfering with the right of that person or any other person to become registered to vote and to vote in Dallas County for candidates for Federal office; and (4) A preliminary injunction restraining defendants Dallas County White Citizens Council, Jones, Rentz, Beers, Waugh, Sims, Arrington, and Hicks, their agents, etc., from essentially the same thing.

On an oral motion of the Attorney General of Alabama a severance was [385]*385granted as to Defendants McLeod, Reese, Clark, Hare, Houston and Wilkinson on one side, and Dallas County Citizens Council, Jones, Rentz, Beers, Waugh, Sims, Arrington and Hicks on the other. The Court proceeded to hear evidence on the former, with a hearing as to the latter to be set.

This matter was first brought to the attention of the Court on November 12, 1963, when the Plaintiff filed a motion for a temporary restraining order pending hearing on plaintiff’s motion for a preliminary injunction. The Court refused to issue an ex parte temporary restraining order and denied the motion, it being the considered judgment of the Court that there was no clear showing that immediate and irreparable injury, loss, or damage would result to the applicant before notice could be served and a hearing had thereon, as required by 65(b), Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. The plaintiff immediately filed notice of appeal from the order denying plaintiff’s motion or application for a temporary restraining order.

The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals promptly convened and at 3:00 p. m., November 13, 1963, reversed the order of this Court, and ordered “The District Court shall forthwith enter an order restraining each of the above named appel-lees, their agents, servants, officers, employees, and attorneys and all persons acting in concert or participating with them from commanding or attempting to compel the attendance before the Grand Jury of the Circuit Court of Dallas County, Alabama, Fall Term 1968, on November 13, 1963, or any other day, of Burke Marshall, Assistant Attorney General, John Doar, First Assistant to the Assistant Attorney General, Richard Wasser-strom, Attorney, David H. Marlin, Attorney, Arvid A. gather, Attorney, and Kenneth McIntyre, Attorney, attorneys of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice, by serving or enforcing or attempting to enforce the subpoenas bearing the return date of November 13, 1963, previously issued, or from arresting or holding in custody or attempting to arrest or hold in custody any of the aforesaid attorneys of the Department of Justice as a result of any action or by or under the authority of any of the aforesaid appellees or as a result of any failure on the part of any said attorneys to appear before said Grand Jury, the said restraining order to remain in effect until the disposition by said court of the application now pending before it for a temporary injunction which is set for hearing on December 5, 1963.”

Pursuant to the above order, this Court, on November 14, 1963, issued a restraining order as directed, to remain in effect until disposition could be had on the application for temporary injunction.

The hearing on the application for a temporary injunction commenced December 5, 1963. The plaintiff called numerous witnesses and introduced numerous exhibits, during the days of December 5, 6, 16 and 18, 1963. Upon the resting of its case by the plaintiff, an oral motion for a directed verdict, pursuant to Rule 50, Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, was directed on behalf of each defendant, separately and severally, to each count or claim set forth in the complaint. The motion was also written and filed with the Court. The motion for a directed verdict was taken under submission and the Court recessed. On December 20, 1963, defendants filed a motion to deny plaintiff’s application or petition for a temporary injunction. It is on these motions that the cause is now considered by the Court.

One aspect of this case is closely akin to the case of United States of America v. Dallas County, et al., D.C., 229 F.Supp. 1014. That particular aspect has to do with the alleged abuse and misuse of the power of their office by various Dallas County officials contrary to the provisions of 42 U.S.C. § 1971. Since the Dallas County case does deal with and dispose of that aspect, the Court will here confine itself to the motion for preliminary or temporary injunction directed to the Dallas County Grand Jury [386]*386phase of the ease. The plaintiff made an oral motion to consolidate the two cases, but the Court is of the opinion that the two eases are of sufficiently different nature to warrant that the motion be denied.

Though it greatly taxed the imagination of the Court to see any connection between the greater part of the testimony and the issue at hand, the government was allowed to build its record as it desired. Numerous witnesses were examined, many exhibits were received in evidence, including a myriad number of photographs. The transcript of the proceedings totaled some 608 pages, though the defense did not put on its case, the cause having been recessed on the defendant’s motion for a directed verdict upon the resting of plaintiff’s ease. The government was allowed to place in evidence the transcript of the proceedings in the Dallas County case. The Court did, in its discretion, refuse to allow the government to introduce a movie in evidence and refused to view it, since it would have added nothing to what the Court had already seen from photographs and heard from the numerous witnesses.

The government produced as witnesses four attorneys of the Justice Department who had been subpoenaed to appear before the Dallas County Grand Jury, November 13, 1963.

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229 F. Supp. 383, 1964 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 7055, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-mcleod-alsd-1964.