The Waterbury Democrat., 1942-07-31

cision was handed down the govern ment had concluded summation of it's case against the defendants be- fore the military commission. Death Penalty Belief
 Maj. Gen. Myron c. Cramer, army juoge advocass general and one of the prosecution attorneys in the commission proceedings, delivered the governments summation argu- ments and was believed to have asked the death penalty for at least seven of the eight defendants.
 Col. Kenneth Royal, chief defense counsel, had started his closing ar- gument when the commission re- cessed to permit the attorneys to attend the supreme court session scheduled for noon.
 Meanwhile, defense attorneys filed notice of motion for appeal in the federal district court for the District of Columbia, where their plea of writs of habaes corpus to free the SaboCeurs and grant them civil court trial was denied early this week by Judge James w. Morris. Subsequently, the appeal papers were filed with the court of ap- peals for the district.
 During the argument before the court, Attorney General Francis Riddle, in charge of the governments case, conceded that he had ap- proved of defense counsels move and declined to challenge the jurtsdis- ion of the supreme court in the case. He even urged the court to rule on the application.
 The greatest interest here is in th possible effsct the granting of writs, would have on the Presidents wartime powers, not only in espion- age and sabotage cases but in his direction of the general economy and war production.
 A major portion of the time de- voted to rebuttal arguments yester- day concerned his powers. And at one point Riddle said:
 "It is conceivable that the Presi- Gent, in the role of commander in-chief, can do things which no congress can set aside"
 Chief Justice Harlan F. Stone brought that line to an abrupt stop.
 We don't have to come to that, he said.
 Col. Kenneth Royall, arguing in behalf of the defendants, reiterated during his rebuStal that the &C., cused contend they "did not intend" to commit sabotage but seized upon the sabotage mission as means of escaping Germany.
 Justice Robert H. Jackson inter- posed an assertion that any ques- tion of whether they were refugees or invaders should be decidd by those across the table from the men who testify"-the military com- mission"
 Tt is persuasive that these men came ashore without personal arms, ? Royall said.
 The explosives they brought had been buried and 1t would require "a certain course of conduct to make them effective" he continued
 Royall stressed the fact that the coast guardsman who surprised the four saboteurs who landed near Amagansett, L. l., was unarmed, and added: ITO say that's a battlefront seems to me to ssray from realities. Removed All Bars
 The ruling removed all bars against the commission proceedings
 That trial, in recess for three days while the matter was argued before the high tribunal, was resumed to- day with Maj. Gen. Myron c Cramer, judge advocate general o1 the army and co-chief of the prose- cution staff, concluding summation of the governments case. He pre- sumably asked for the death penalty for at least seven of tt3e Nazis.
 There was some doubt whether the death penalty was requested fol George John Dasche, eighth mem. Der of the group who landed in thi. country last month from German U-boatS. Dasch, who reportedly turned government witness, did not appeal his case to the high court. The commissions findings and de. cisions will be reviewed by Presi' dent Roosevelt.
 Attorney General Francis Riddle chief prosecutor, expressed gratifica' tion with the success of the govern ment's arguments against issuance