Evening star., 1936-02-14
SEIZURE DECISION
PROTECTS CITIZEN
Wide Effect of Ruling Re.
.stricting Search or Seiz.
ure Discussed.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

By DAVID LAWhLNNE.
Probably the most important de-
cision of the Federal courts in many
years, sustaining the constitutional
right Of the citizen to be secure
aeainst unreasonable search and seiz-
ire of his papers, has just been hand
ed down by Judges Burlington ana
Davis of the United States Circuit
Court of Appeals at Philadelphia.
The opinion means that efforts OF
Government bureaus and even legis-
latlve committees to demand books
and records and private files from
banks and brokers can be resisted by
the persons whose transactions are
sought to be examined. But such re-
sistance will be sustained by the
courts only when there is no show
ing of fraud, concealment or wrong
doing.
The circumstances in the case are
rather amazing. They suggest that
high officials of the New Deal can
hardly be aware of the extent to
which the income tax laws have been
used either to persecute innocent citi-
zens or to cause them annoyance.
~ No Allegations of Fraud.
Judge Burlington said:
s"The pleadings disclose a case
where, three or four years after a
due examination by the Government
agents, the income tax returns of
both husband and wife were approved,
where no allegation is now made Of
fraud, concealment or wrongdoing of
any kind by the taxpayers. and no
contention made that the revenue
agents who approved the returns made
any mistake, oversight or did not dc
their duty and. it may be added,
where on the hearings by this court
counsel were asked by the court what
was the purpose and reason for their
asserted right of second search
three or four years thereafter. they
could give none save that they acted
on the orders of their superiors."
The court was caustic in its declara'
tion that the bankers and broker!
could be threatened with crimina
penalty for giving up the books oi
their clients when there was no charge
anywhere of wrongdoing. Judge
Burlington said it was the taxpayer:
and not the bankers and brokers who
were the aggrieved parties. for the
latter under threat Of jail sentence
and fine would doubtless produce the
papers unless restrained by court
order.
Belongs to Taxpayers.
Judge Burlington held that the
books of the bankers and brokers
might be the property of the latter
but that the information written in
those books and papers belonged to
the taxpayers, and added:
But apart from all questions of
constitutional protection. of statutes
of limitation. we regard the search
here asserted as a violation of the
natural law Of privacy in ones own
affairs which exists in lberty-loving
peoples and nations-for no right is
more vital to liberty and pursuit OF
happiness than the protection of the
citizens private affairs, their right to
be let alone.
= = And that right extends to the rec
erds of his tranSa ctions from the un-
reasonable inspection and examination
thereof by unwarranted governmental
search. If due protection of this natu-
raj right be denied him by the courts,
his other rights and his citizenship
lose their value.
"A hundred and fifty years ago, the
far-seeing men who framed the Con-
stitution, mindful of the fact that they
had been wrongfully subjected to un-
reasonable search. placed the rugged
barrier. the right of the people to
be secure in their. E. Papers against
unreasonable Searches in the path
way of the Government then to be
established and made the courts the
stern guardians of that barrier if the
Government was tempted to violate it. +"
Ruling Is Significant.
The foregoing is all the more sig
nificant when it is considered that
Congress by law has provided that it
is a misdemeanor, punishable by a
$4,000 fine and one years imprison-
nent, for any person wilfully to fail
to supply any information, required by
the law or the regulations. for the pur-
pose of the computation, assessment or
collection of income tax"
Surely if Congress cannot invade the
privacy of citizen where no fraud or
wrongdoing is alleged by an executive
agency of the Government, it cannot
invade by resolution through investi-
eating committees the privacy of citi-
zens who have not violated any law or
been guilty of any wrongdoing.
The Supreme Court has held with
respect to committees of investigation
that search for papers and books must
be specific and must be related di-
rectly to matter on which Congress
has the power to legislate, and it
would seem that the burden of proof
and the statement of the specific mat
ters rests upon the Government agents
who want particular information.
Fishing expeditions" to hunt for
some evidence of wrongdoing have not
been countenanced by the courts when
tried by legislative investigating COM
mittees, but now it would appear that
Congress cannot, in an effort to en-
force any statute, compel the produc-
tion of books and papers where no
evidence of violation of the law has
been offered by the Government itself.
(Copyright. 1880