The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-09-14
CANNOT USE NAVY ID STOP RUNNE ERS,
 SAYS DAUGHERTY
Believes No Emergency Ex- iSts For Calling WarShipS
 Into Prohibition Service

WASHINGTON, Sept. 1s.-The navy cannot legally be used in enforcing prohibition, Attorney General Daugh- erty ruled today. In addition, he decided there is no national emergency in the situation calling for the em- ployment of warships to make the dry laws effective.
 Delivering to President Coolidge the formal opinion, asked last spring by the late President Harding, the Attorney General held that the naval establishment could be used as an enforcement agency onlys by special authorization of Congress. or in an emergency which made civil processes impotent.
 Two questions were submitted originally by President Harding whether the executive had power to use the naval forces in enforcing prohibition in the absence of an emergency and, if this was unlawful, whether an emergency existed au- ! thorizing their use. Both questions were answered in the negative by Mir. Daugherty, who cited several laws and supreme court decisions as precedents.
 T am of the opinion" he said "that you have no authority to use the naval forces in the enforcement of the national prohibition act when no emergency exists"
 Declaring there was no emergency justifying a call upon the navy, the opinion said: There can be no emergency authorizing the President to call out the naval forces to en- force the civil and criminal laws un- til the courts and the civil depart ments of the government are no longer able to enforce them.
 No Court Distractions
 While there have been numerous violations of the national prohibition a act both on land and within our ter ritorial waters, there have been no unlawful Instructions of the func- tions of the courts or restraint of their processes. or of the coast .s guard, the divisions of customs, the ( prohibition unit nor of the marshals and their deputies of the department of justice. All the departments of the government are functioning and are making a steady advance against lawless clements.
 Tn general the prohibition act Is being enforced. There are stubborn exception in congested localities, in some of which local support has not been rendered. There are places where public opinion Is unfriendly and the enforcement of this law is D difficult. But. I cannot believe that such isolated cases constitute na- tional emergency within the mean ing of the act of Congress.
 T am, therefore, of the opinion that there are no unlawful obstruc- frnr h ma : of persons, or rebellion against the authority of government of the United States In the enforcement of this prohibition statutes such as render it impracticable to continue to enforce these laws by the ordinary course of executive and judicial pro- ceedings." No Appropriation Available.
 Congress has made no appropria- tion available for prohibition enforce ment work by the navy, MT. DauSh- erty ruled. adding that only in one instance, in suppression of slave trat- fic had the military force ever been called upon in time of profound peace to aid in making effective criminal statutes. Some laws exist. the opinion said. authorizing the President to use . sthe navy under certain circumstances. such as execution of court processes, when federal officers have been oo- structed. quarantine laws, neutrality proclamations and other measures. "However. none of these special s statutes" said the opinion, "confer the authority for the use of the naval vessels to enforce ordinary civil and criminal statutes such as the national prohibition act and the revenue laws. s The opinion was regarded as ap- plica ble to the army as well as the navy, precluding also the use of mili- tary forces in assisting prohibition enforcement, although it dealt spe- officially with the navy.
 Secretary Denby and other officials S who have been opposed to diversion of their forces to prohibition work were sustained by the Attorney Gen eral.
 Prohibition Commissioner Haines declined to comment, but prohibition headquarters officials were quoted IS ! taking the view that the ruling would not change the enforcement situ- ation.
 While a contrary opinion from the r Attorney General it was said, would 2 have worked a great change in en- s forcement methods, especially against the rum fleet" the ruling, it was 2 insisted, will not disturb existing policies.