Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1917-01-15
IMMORAL ESCAPADES
CAN BE PENALdZED
Digss and caminetti Lose on Appeal to
Highest Court Of Land and Must
Serve Sentences in Prison Imposed
by Lower Courts Court Divided But
Majority Says Statute Applies to
Immoral Acts Without Money.

under the law for transporting women
in interstate commerce are not limited
to commercialized vice and include
personal immoral escapades Convic-.
tion Of F. Drew Caminetti and Maury
I. Diggs. of Sacramento, was affirmed.
The court was divided. The ma
jority opinion was given by Justice
Day. Chief Justice White and JUS
.tices McKenna and Clarke dissented
Justice McReynolds took no part in
consideration of the cases.
The plain terms of the act must
take precedence over the designation
and a report that accompanied it to
congress-" said Justice Day, 1T is said
it will open the door to blackmail, but
that is to be determined by congress"
Following the Interpretation Of the
Mann act the court also affirmed the
conviction Of L. T. Hays, of Alva
Okla.
Justice Days majority opinion said:
'In none of the cases was it charged
or proved that the transportation COT
the women involved) was for gain, or
for the purpose Of furnishing women
for prostitution for hire.
No Ambiguity IN Terms.
There is no ambiguity In the terms
Of this act It is elementary that the
meaning of a statute must, in the first
instance, be sought in the language
of the act as framed, and If that is
plain the sole function of the courts is
to enforce it according to its terms.
stTo cause a woman to be trans
ported Tor de ebauchery, or for an. i'm
moral purpose. for which Diggs and
Caminetti were convicted, would seem
by the very statement of the facts to
embrace TRANSPORTATION prohibited by
the act
Whether the women involved become
technically accomplices. argued in be-
half OF the three defendants, was not
directly decided by the court. It dis
posed Of that feature as follows:
ut is urged as further ground for
reversal of the Judgment that the trial
court did not instruct the jury that
the testimony Of the two girls was that
OF accomplices and to be received with
great caution and to be believed only
when corroborated.
"While this is so there is no absolute
rule Of law preventing conviction on
the testimony of accomplices if juries
believe them"
IN conclusion the court said:
"Mucf1 Is said about the character OF
the testimony adduced and as to GER
tain facts tending to esta ablish the guilt
or Innocence of the accused. This
court does not weigh the evidence In
a proceeding OF this character and Il
is enough to say that there was sub
stantial testimony tending to suppor.
the verdicts rendered in the trial
courts"
Long in Dispute.
Altho the supreme court had previ-
ousIy upheld constitutionality Of the
Mann white slave law, the question Of
whether It prohibits interstate trans
portation Of women only for gcommer-
cialized vice or applies to mere per-
sonal immoral escapades having no
element Of commercialism or coercion
has been disputed ever since the laws
enactment. .. s. IS " tx
Interpretation by the supreme court
Of the disputed point was askedsin the
celebrated Diggs- -Caminetti cases and
In the case of L. T. Hays. OF Alva,
Okla. In all three cases, the govern
ment conceded, there was no element
Of traffic for gain.
Caminesti was sentenced to eighteen
months Imprisonment and fined 81, 800:
Digs to- two years and $1,000 fine.
HAYS had an eighteen months prison
sentence. All have been at liberty un-
der bail.
Lower federal co,N'ts, and different
administrations Of the department Of
Justice have differed over the laws In
depreciation. Various women's clubs
and other organizations have agitated
for an interpretation to curb all im-
morality, whether commercial or not.
The Defendants contended that con-
eress never intended to include, with
classifcations as felonies offenses
which are mlsdemeanors IN most
states. but aimed the law against per-
sons transporting women victims in
commercialized white slave traffic.
A,tho Attorney General Wickershan,
In Office when the law was passed.
ruled that 1t did not apply to personal
escapades, the succeeding admihistra-
ton held otherwise. The, second, Sew
antt,.f eighth and ninth federal circuit
courts Of appeal nave sustained the
broader interpretation, while other fed
eral courts haxe held only for the com-
mercial construction.
Railroads Loss Mail Pay Claims.
Test cases regarded as decisive Of
about 500 railroad claims against the
government for approximately $4,000