United States v. Watson

293 F. Supp. 694, 1968 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 8121
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Missouri
DecidedDecember 10, 1968
DocketNo. 22617
StatusPublished

This text of 293 F. Supp. 694 (United States v. Watson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Missouri primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Watson, 293 F. Supp. 694, 1968 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 8121 (W.D. Mo. 1968).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

JOHN W. OLIVER, District Judge.

Defendant stands accused in four of a ten count indictment of violating Sections 2, 371 and 1461, Title 18, United States Code, A second defendant was named in all ten counts. Count 1 alleged that, in violation of Section 371, the two defendants were parties to a conspiracy to violate Section 1461. Counts 8, 9, and 10 alleged that the two defendants used the United States mail for delivery of nonmailable matter, identified as Issues 10, 11, and 12 of a publication known as “The Swinging Set,” which allegedly gave “information, directly and indirectly, where, how, and from whom, and by what means obscene, lewd, lascivious, indecent, filthy and vile matter may be obtained, in violation of Sections 2 and 1461, Title 18, United States Code.”1 The case went to trial against this defendant alone. The codefendant committed suicide shortly after the indictment was returned. The government consented to the defendant’s waiver of trial by jury pursuant to Rule 23 of the Rules of Criminal Procedure. The case was submitted to the Court on a full stipulation of facts to which numerous exhibits were attached. Neither party, although afforded an opportunity, adduced any oral testimony.

We find the defendant not guilty of all four counts. We now state the reasons for those findings.

I.

Defendant can not be found guilty of the offense charged in Count 1 of conspiring to violate Section 1461 if defendant is not guilty of the substantive offenses charged in Counts 8, 9, and 10 which allege violations of Section 1461.2

[696]*696The ultimate question therefore presented is whether, under the particular facts stipulated and the applicable law, the issues of “The Swinging Set” which defendant placed in the mail were “non-mailable matter,” within the meaning of Section 1461.

We find that each of the issues of “The Swinging Set” was written and published for the same purpose and designed to reach the same audience. Issue No. 10, identified in Count 8, states, somewhat leeringly, that it is “an adult publication” and that “you must be 21 years old to read this III ” 3 On the front page it states the following: “WARNING * * * It is unlawful to send obscene letters, photographs, or other materials through the mail. We cooperate to the fullest extent with the Post Office Department.” A letter to “Dear Fellow-Swingers” published in one of the indicted issues advises that “The Swinging Set” began in the Fall of 1966 as a three page mimeoed bulletin without pictures,” that nine issues had been since published, each larger than the last, and that pictures had been added in Issues No. 8 and 9. It was claimed that the publication reached 5,000 “Swingers” and that a staff of 4 forward all letters on the same day received.

No evidence was adduced as to how many people actually received each issue but it is reasonable to assume that at least everyone who placed an ad received a copy. The issues average 21 pages and most pages carry eight or nine individual ads (all the issues carry advertisements of other publications similar to “The Swinging Set”).

The communication pattern adopted by “The Swinging Set” harks back to the pattern established by more familiar lonely heart clubs. An individual places an advertisement in the publication, with or without a picture, for a $2 fee and is assigned a code number. One receiving the publication may answer the advertisement by writing a letter to the code number in the advertisement, sending that letter to a post office box rented by defendants, together with $1 as a fee to have his first letter forwarded. The fee for forwarding additional letters was 500. Subscription rates were $3 for a six issue subscription.4

[697]*697An ad placed by defendant in his own publication is typical of many of the other ads published. Defendant’s ad in Issue No. 10 read:

K. C. Couple ages 29 & 39, would like to meet like-minded couples in area. She is AC/DC so you gals write too. No drinkers please. 2033.

The stipulation sets forth a glossary of the terms used in “The Swinging Set” and other like publications. Particular words, apparently not considered by the Post Office to be obscene when given their usually accepted meaning, have nevertheless been considered to have acquired a secondary meaning when used in publications such as “The Swinging Set.” 5 There can be no doubt that this is true in regard to a particular — although unidentified segment of the society in which we live.

Exhibit 14, a letter addressed to “Dear 2033,” defendant’s code number, was an answer to the defendant’s ad and illustrates the sort of response the defendant must be found to have known might be written in answer to the type of ad he had personally placed in his own publication.6 The couple who answered defendant’s ad gave their ages, height, and weight and stated “We are both totally uninhibited and shock-proof so if you care to answer our letter, we will answer any and all questions frankly and truthfully.” They also stated an interest in “home movies” and “photographs,” stating that they had a “wonderful collection of photos of ourselves, and friends that we have partyed [sic] with.” 7

The responding letter continued: “If you answer our letter we will send an action photo of ourselves in our next letter.” (An “action photo” is stipulated to mean “pictures of sex acts”). This statement is similar to the few other responding letters which are in evidence. The responding letter closed with the statement: “We hope to hear from you soon so that we may write on a less formal basis.”

Exhibit 9 is a letter from the defendant to a couple in Wichita, Kansas, who had already answered defendant’s ad. Reference to that letter will serve to illustrate how correspondence initiated by contacts established by placement of ads in “The Swinging Set” at least sometimes progressed. Defendant stated in his reply to the response received from his ad that “We received your answer to [698]*698our ad in The Swinging Set” and described that response as “a very nice letter — and very interesting.” Defendant described himself in quite ordinary language, advised that he owned a Polaroid camera and cautiously stated that “We are interested in things you mentioned in your letter.” What, if anything, resulted from the correspondence is not revealed by the evidence.

The parties agreed in paragraph 17 of the stipulation that particular exhibits “originated with or came into [the defendant’s] possession during the time he was an advertiser, member and correspondent in sex-oriented pen-pal clubs.” Those exhibits, 8 through 18, inclusive, consisted of five publications quite similar to “The Swinging Set” published elsewhere in the United States (see footnote 4 above), and seven letters to or from the defendant or his code number similar to Exhibits 14 and 9 above described. Althoügh various words set forth in the glossary are used throughout that material, none of the exhibits could properly be classified as “nonmailable” in the sense that they are “obscene” when viewed in light of the applicable tests stated in Roth. The government does not contend otherwise in the briefs and arguments presented in this case.

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Bluebook (online)
293 F. Supp. 694, 1968 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 8121, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-watson-mowd-1968.