The Daily Alaska empire. [volume] (Juneau, Alaska) 1926-1964, 1927-06-01
SEIZURES BY
COAST GUARD
HELD LEGAL
Supreme Court Makes Decis-
ion in Case of American
Vessel with Liquor.

WASHINGTON, June 1.-The Su-
preme Court has declared legal the
Coast Guards seizure of American
, vessels on the high seas beyond the
12-mile limit The decision was made
in the case ofEate steamer Under
writer captured - miles off Block
Island M
To more effectively enforce ma
tional prohibition the United States
urged the Supreme Court in the I'M
derwriter case TO declare in un-
qualified terms that the Coast Guard
was authorized TO seize American
vessels anywhere upon the high seas
and bring them into port on charges
of violating fedeyal laws, and could
at all times in all places board
them in search of evidence especially
of the violation of the prohibition
laws.
Whiskey}ls Found
Aboard the Underwater, when she
was seized "a miles off Block Is
land. the Coast Guard found 81
eases of whisksy, and the vessel
was taken into New London. Conn.
where it was tnrned over to \ the
collector of customs When the United
States sought by libel proceedings to
forfeit the vessel. Arthur Maui. the
owner challenged the jurisdiction of
the federal district court for Con.
necticut. taking the position that the
seizure had beer made outside the
ljurisdiction Of tht court, which was
asserted to extend only to the ter
ritorial limits of the United States
three miles at sea Maui also con
tended that under authority of Con
gress the Coast Guard was restricted
to search and seizure within IL
miles off shore. and that the seizure
was therefore unlawful.
Coast Guard Upheld
The trial court decided against the
Government, but the circuit court of
appeals reversed the decision, and
held broadly that the Coast Guard
could seize American vessels any.
where.
Assistant Attorney General WILLIE
brandt in arguing the case in the
Supreme Court urged the construc-
ton given by the circuit court. She
described the Coast Guard as the
marine police of the United States
and asserted that under recent prohi-
the federal district court which had
Jurisdiction over the port to which
an American vessels was taken had
Jurisdiction to try the case although
the seizure had been made outside
its district
Violated License
The Underwater had been licensed
to sail in the coastwise trade and
the government declared the seizure
would have been justified also under
the navigation laws, because when
taken the vessel had violated its
coastwise license. II sought to have
this phase of the case ignored, how
ever, and asked broad decision
which would be a precedent for dis
posing of a number of seizures of
rum-running America vessels. cap
tured outside the 12-mile limit.
While the trial court in the Under
writer case held that the seizure had
been unlawful and the circuit court
sustained the seizure as lawful, the
government experienced an exact re
versaI of these findings in Massa
chusetts case, where a motor boat
out of Gloucester was seized by
a Coast Guard cutter "a miles east
of Boston Light In the federal dis
trict court verdict was returned
against James NJ. Lee, found aboard
the motor boat, for conspiracy to
violate the prohibition law, but the
circuit court of appeals reversed II.
That case also has been appealed
to the Supreme Court.