The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1937-05-27
Difficult Decisions
By ROBERT MERRILL

NIR T U ALLY all cases
' brought before a court for
decision represent strong diff
ferences of opinion.
This is also true Of cases which
come before the Supreme court of
the United States - particularly
those in which citizen differs with
congressional opinion on the grave
question of whether or not his con-
stitutional rights have been violated
by congressional act.
And, since the members of the
Supreme court are not supermen
but simply citizens trained in the
law, they too differ on occasion.
More frequently, however, than
many persons realize, they are
unanimous in their decisions.
16 Unanimous Decisions.
On January 4, of the present year,
for example, the Supreme court
handed down 16 decisions. All were
unanimous.
Oh February l, it handed down "a
decision. Of these, % were unani-
nous.
In cases where private citizens
differ with congress on the constitu-
tionality of law, and the Supreme
court is asked to act as umpire, the
chances for unaninity of opinion
among the justices are, of course,
smaller.
Students of government have re-
Gently computed las this is written)
that, during its century and a half of
history, the Supreme court declared
laws unconstitutional in approx
mately 70 such cases. In thirty Of
those cases the justices reached
unanimous decisions. In % of them
there were either one or two dis
senting votes.
Contrary, perhaps, to general
opinion, the much-discussed ga
decisions were rarer. They occurred
in about a dozen of those opinions.
Other decisions have run 6-3, SO,
ETC., varying, sometimes, according
to the number of justices on the
court.
Deny Powers to Court.
Many of the unanimous decisions
finding congressional acts unconsti-
tutional involved rights of citizens
as well as fundamental principles of
American government.
Several of them declared unconsti-
tutional certain powers which legis-
lation would have conferred upon
the court itself.
Others upheld the right OF trial
by jury, the right of a citizen to
refuse to testify against himself,
the right to just compensation for
property taken for public purposes,
and the like.
One declared that even an alien
in United States territory cannot be
denied the right to indictment and
trial by jury when charged with
criminal offense.
Even when the decisions were
unanimous, however, the court, un-
der its own rulings, could not sug-
gest legislation. 1t could only say
that the legislation as enac.ed did
not conform with the Constitution
and, in the case of the citizen who
made the particular appeal, inter-
fered with constitutional guarantees.
Court Can't Override Congress.
This point was recently expressed
in one opinion of the court which
read in part as follows:
cit is sometimes said that the
court assumes a power to override
or control the action of the peoples
representatives. This is a miscon-
ception.
''The Constitution is the supreme
law of the land ordained and es-
tablished by the people. All ,egisla-
ton must conform to the principles
it lays down. When an act of con-
gress is appropriately challenged in
the courts as not conforming to the
Constitutional mandate, the Judicial
branch of the Government has only
one duty-to lay the Article of the
Constitution which is invoked beside
the statute which is challenged and
to decide whether the latter squares
with the former.
Cali the court does or can do, is
to announce its considered judg-
ment upon the question. The only
power it has, if such it may be
called, is the power of judgment.
''This court neither approves nor
condemns any legislative policy. It's
delicate and difficult office is to as
certain and declare whether the
legislation is in accordance with, or
in contravention of, the provisions
of the Constitution; and, having done
that, its duty ends"
g Western Newspaper Union.