Evening star., 1945-01-02
High Fore
is Only One Factor
lin Draft Conspiracy

The Supreme Court ruled today
that the Selective Service Act for
bids all conspiracies to defeat its
purpose, and not only those which
are accompanied by force and vio-
lence.
The court split to on the issue
which was raised by the conviction
of Willard Irwin Singer, Pitts
burgh attorney, and his father Mar
tin H. Singer, who were accused Of
making false statements to enable
the younger man to evade service in
the armed forces.
In dissent which criticized
the court majority for giving the
statute "the broadest possible scope"
Justice Frankfurter tartly observed
that "the responsibility Of Con-
gress for manifesting its will Is ILL
served by easy-going judicial con-
struction Of criminal statutes"
In another case today the Su-
preme Court held 8 to / that work.
ers employed on q piece-work basis
get the same protection under the
Wage and Hour Act as do those
employed on q time basis.
Father Has Died.
In the draft case Willard Singer
was sentenced to a year and a day
and his father was placed on pro-
baton for two years when convicted
in Pennsylvania District Court. The
Third Circuit Court OF Appeals af-
f1rmed the sentences and the de-
fedants took the case to the Su-
preme Court. The father has since
died
The Government prosecution was
based on section II of the Selective
Service Act. This sets forth a long
list Of offenses which are prohibited
and concludes by saying that ANY
person or persons who shall know
ingly hinder or interfere in any way
by force or violence with the ad-
ministration Of this act or the rules
or regulations made pursuant there
to, or conspire to do so" shall be
punishable upon conviction. The
contention raised by the defenses
was that force or violence" must,
on account Of the reading of the law,
accompany conspiracy in order for
the plot to be punishable.
In the decision read by Justice
Douglas the court said though the
matter is not free from doubt, we
think the conspiracy clause of sec
ton II Is not limited, but embraces
all conspiracies to violate the act.
That Is the view of the Court of
Appeals for the Second Circuit as
well as the court below. We think
that construction is dramatically
permissible and conforms with the
legislative scheme"
Narrowest Meaning Unnecessary.
Expanding on the argument that
grammatical construction permits
the term conspiracy to be treated
separately from the "force and
violence clause" Justice Douglas
said the principle of strict con-
struction of criminal statutes does
not mean that they must be given
their narrowest possible meaning, {"
although he conceived that the
Legislative history throws only a
little light on this problem of
construction.
Justice Douglas also pointed out
that the Government had suggested
that If the conspiracy clause of Sec
ton II were constructed to apply
only to conspiracies to obstruct the
act by force and violence it would
only duplicate section of the
Criminal Code and have no effect
except to decrease the maximum
imprisonment for the offense from six
years to five. He added that where
another Interpretation is wholly
permissible we would be reluctant
to give a statute that construction
which makes 1t wholly redundant.
Only clear legislative purpose
should lead to that result here. He
concluded that I'VE do not make
the act trap for the innocent" by
applying the construction to use.
In his dissent-in which he was
Joined by Justices Roberts, Murphy
and Rutledge-Justice Frankfurter
indicated his belief the court was
giving strained reading" to the
statute.
Sees Obvious Difference.
Since no absurd consequences
preclude the idicated natural read
ing of this criminal statute and since
all available extraneous aids con-
firm the rendering which the text
invites, think 1t should be given
it." Justice Frankfurter said there
is an obvious difference between con-
spiracies to violate by force and vio-
lence issued under the act and q
mere unexpected agreement between
two people peacefully to escape one
Of such rules"
The dissent also took exception
to the Govern nent argument that
If the act merely hits a conspiracy
to do an act of violence the con-
spiracy clause will be redundant.
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