Evening star., 1955-06-05
Loyalty Ruling
MAY End Term
OF High Court
BY ROBERT X. WALSH

LlC Oupi Cli1C SOuA Y 40 NAPSND~A
Ito end its term tomorrow with a
ruling on the Federal employees
loyalty program.
A decision invalidating the
Governments method of using
information from unidentified
witnesses would greatly affect
loyalty hearing proceedings. An
opinion limited to other points,
such as review board authority
lin a specific case or interpreta-
Ition of executive order require
ments could still be far-reaching.
The case of DR.. John p. Peters.
Yale University medical profess
Isor, dismissed from a part-time
Iconsultant job with the United
States Surgeon Generals office
lin 1853 after a loyalty review
board finding against him, is the
most important of about a dozen
Iawaiting action before the high
court adjourns to october.
The tribunal announced last
week that unless otherwise Or
dered" the current term would
close tomorrow.
Verdict Closely Watched
Unusual governmental and
general public interest in the
Ioutcome of the Peters case CEN
ters mainly on how far and how
deep the Supreme Court decision
will go.
DR.. Peters conceivably could
win or lose reinstatement en-
another loyalty hearing under a
Supreme Court opinion which
might not reach the constitu-
tional issue. But his attorneys
have declared he hopes his case
will stand or fall on determina-
ton of the constitutional right
| of an employe to know and con-
front witnesses giving testimony
that could cause his dismissal
| as a loyalty risk.
Another factor accounting Tor
great interest in the case is that
the Supreme Court split, "A, in
a 1851 case which raised the
same basic constitutional ques-
tion. That decision affirmed the
dismissal of Miss Dorothy Bailey
from a Government job. 1t die
not disclose how the individual
Justices voted or what their rea-
sons were. Any decision tomor-
row, no matter which way or
how far 1t goes, seems likely to
produce voluminous writing and
probably some dissents among
the Justices.
Korea Case Ruling Due
A key section Of the Code Of
Military Justice is at stake In
another major case which prob
ably will be decided tomorrow.
The case raised the question
whether Congress had authority
Ito enact a law permitting mill
Itary court-martial of a civilian
flor a. crime allegedly commit
tied while he was In the armed
forces. : - @
Former Air Force Sergt, Rob-
|ert w. 10th, a Pittsburgh steel
worker who was honorably dis
charged from the Air Force in
1852 after service in Korea, con-
tends military authorities had no
right to arrest him In 1858 for
court martial ona charge Of hav-
ing taken part in the murder OF
a South Korean civilian.
Among numerous review re-
quests on which the court may
act before adjourning is that OF
William Ludwig Ullman, a for
Imer Treasury official named
several years ago as having be-
Ilonged to a Communist spy ring
lin Washington in the 1930s.
His appeal from a contempt
Of court judgment asks the Su-
preme Court to rule on consti-
nationality Of the new Compul-
sorry Testimony. Act. That law
allows Federal courts in cases
involving national security to
grant witnesses immunity from
prosecution that might other
wise result from their testimony.
Samuel r. Beard, former
Washington gambler. is seeking
a Supreme Court review of his
ccnviction and five year prison
sentence on income tax evasion
charges. In another income tax
evasion case from New York,
Frank Costello also has appealed
ito the high court. If review is
granted in the Beard and Co.'S
Itello cases. or in the Ullmann
case, oral arguments will be