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Timestamp: 2018-01-23 02:22:19
Document Index: 728201183

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 199', '§ 102', '§ 102', '§ 102', '§ 102', '§ 2', '§ 102', '§ 102']

UNITED STATES V. FLEISCHMAN, 339 U. S. 349 (1950) - US SUPREME COURT DECISIONS ON-LINE
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3. After introducing evidence that the executive board had power to produce the records and that it had not done so, the Government chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Respondent Fleischman is a member of the executive board of an organization known as the Joint Anti-Fascist Refugee Committee (hereinafter referred to as the association), chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
There remains the question of the sufficiency of the evidence to support the verdict of guilt in this case. That evidence consisted in part of the record of the Committee's unsuccessful efforts over a period of four months to obtain the books and papers of the association from its chairman and executive secretary, of which there is chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
evidence of respondent's knowledge. [Footnote 3] Other evidence introduced may reasonably be taken to establish the following facts: following its unsuccessful attempts to obtain the records from the chairman and executive secretary, the Committee issued subpoenas to all sixteen members of the executive board of the association, commanding them to appear on April 4, 1946, in the Committee's chamber, there to produce the records. The subpoena served on respondent was addressed to her as "a member of the executive board of the Joint Anti-Fascist Refugee Committee." [Footnote 4] The board had power, its chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
members acting jointly, to direct Miss Bryan to produce the records, to transfer custody of the documents to some other person, or to remove her from office. [Footnote 5] But during the interval between March 29, when the subpoenas were chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Upon being questioned by the Committee as to whether she, individually, would give her consent to production of the books, respondent's answer was that that question chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
When one accepts an office of joint responsibility, whether on a board of directors of a corporation, the governing board of a municipality, or any other position in which compliance with lawful orders requires joint action by a responsible body of which he is a member, he necessarily assumes an individual responsibility to act, chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
The question that remains is whether, after introducing evidence that the board had power to produce the records, that it had not done so, and that each member of the board had read the identical statements quoted above chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
And when the Committee asked respondent whether she, personally, would permit the Committee to have chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
In this situation, manifestly, the prosecution is under a serious practical handicap if it must prove the negative proposition -- that respondent did not or had no good reason for failing to try to comply with the subpoena insofar as she was able. The possibilities of time and chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
circumstance are of such wide range as to defy inclusive rebuttal. On the other hand, the burden of the affirmative was not an oppressive one for respondent to undertake; the relevant facts are peculiarly within her knowledge. She was called upon merely to introduce evidence as to what steps she took after receiving the subpoena, or, if she took no action, any evidence tending to excuse her omission. Respondent does not lose the presumption of innocence that surrounds the defendant in a criminal prosecution. That presumption continues to operate until overcome by proof of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, and is not to be confused with burden of proof, which is a rule affecting merely the time and manner of proof. See 1 Wharton, Evidence (11th Ed.) §§ 199-204. [Footnote 10] chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Even though we assume, therefore, contrary to the reasonable inferences to be drawn from respondent's statements before the Committee, that she may have made some effort to bring about compliance with the subpoena, or had some excuse for failing to do so, we think that, under the circumstances here presented, the burden was upon her to present evidence to sustain such a defense. And, in the absence of such evidence, we conclude that the evidence adduced by the Government amply sustains the conviction. Respondent is no more or less guilty than any other member of the board. If she can escape prosecution by remaining quiescent, so can all the others. If hers is a valid defense, then all that the directors of a corporation need do when they and the corporation are served with subpoenas is to refrain from discussing compliance with the order. No one need make any attempt to comply, for none of them "individually" has control over the action -- or nonaction -- of the corporation. A stratagem so transparent does not cast a shadow of substance. [Footnote 11] chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
"Instances of the application of this principle can be cited in profusion. The cases that follow are typical examples: King v. Turner, 5 Maule & Sel. 206, where a defendant having game in his possession in violation of a statute whereby possession was generally a crime, was held to have the burden of proving his special qualifications (cf. Yee Hem v. United States, 268 U. S. 178, supra; also Spieres v. Parker, 1 T.R. 144, per Lord Mansfield); Fleming v. People, 27 N.Y. 329, a prosecution for bigamy, where, on proof that the defendant had contracted a second marriage during the lifetime of his first wife, the burden was laid upon him to prove exceptional circumstances that would have made the marriage lawful, and finally such cases as Potter v. Deyo, 19 Wend. 361, 363, and United States v. Turner, 266 F.2d 8 (typical of a host of others) where a defendant has been subjected to the burden of producing a license or a permit for a business or profession that would otherwise be illegal. Cf. United States v. Hayward, 26 Fed.Cas. 240; Board of Comm'rs v. Merchant, 103 N.Y. 143, 8 N.E. 484."
The Court holds that there is sufficient evidence in this record to support the conviction of respondent Fleischman under R.S. § 102. I cannot agree. Whether the evidence is sufficient depends primarily on what conduct is made criminal by R.S. § 102 and what action is required chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Munroe v. United States, 216 F.1d 7, 111-112, quoting Lord Ellenborough's opinion in Amey v. Long, 9 East 473, 483; see the general discussion in Notes, L.R.A.1915B, 980-985; 32 Am.St.Rep. 648. A command to produce is not a command to get others to produce or assist in producing. Of course, Congress, like a court, has broad powers to supplement its subpoena with other commands requiring the witness to take specific affirmative steps reasonably calculated to remove obstacles to production. But even though disobedience of such supplementary orders can be punished at the bar of Congress as contempt, Jurney v. MacCracken, 294 U. S. 125, it does not come within the limited scope of R.S. § 102. Only by importing the broad contempt powers of Congress into this criminal statute can this Court say that chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Viewed in this light, the evidence in this case unmistakably falls short of proving that Fleischman disobeyed the subpoena or violated the statute. The Government did succeed in establishing that she had received the subpoena, knew approximately what documents she was required to produce, and yet failed to produce them. But an essential ingredient of the offense -- that she had power to produce those records on April 4 -- remains completely unsubstantiated. [Footnote 2/2] The Government does not contend that Fleischman had power to produce except by acting jointly with other members of the board. And, for the reasons stated above, the subpoena addressed to Fleischman as an individual board member imposed on her no duty to prod others to produce, or to initiate joint action aimed at production. [Footnote 2/3] chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
A. The foundation of the Court's theory is that a subpoena duces tecum addressed to an individual board member, chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Nor does the opinion in Wilson v. United States, 221 U. S. 361, support today's holding that an order to produce papers requires a person, without further orders, to take action getting others to produce. The Court relies on a dictum that corporate officials can be required to take "appropriate action" to secure performance of a corporate duty. Even the dictum, however, must be read in the context of that case. Wilson, the president of a corporation to which a subpoena was addressed, had actual custody of the subpoenaed records. Appearing before the grand jury with several corporation directors, he refused chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
to produce. The directors denied power to make him do so. In the resulting contempt proceedings, the prosecuting attorney complained that the Government had been after the records "in one way or another before this same grand jury for nearly a month." He emphasized that many of the directors had frequently appeared before the grand jury, and indeed had spent the entire preceding day there. [Footnote 2/6] In view of the frequent and prolonged appearances of the directors before the grand jury, even a passing acquaintance with how a grand jury operates would make it inconceivable that "one way or another" did not include oral orders to take action aimed at forcing Wilson to turn over the records. Whether such orders were specific enough to justify holding the directors in contempt, or whether failure to take any action would justify punishment for violation of the subpoena itself without first ordering the directors to take specific steps, became immaterial when the directors passed a resolution ordering Wilson to produce. The directors were found innocent, and the only issues before this Court involved Wilson's guilt. Read in this context, the dictum on which the Court relies affords no support whatever for its conclusion here that a subpoena, of itself, imposes the amorphous duty of "appropriate action" to get others to produce. Moreover, citation of the Sellew case as authority for the dictum clearly indicates that the "appropriate action" would have to be designated and commanded by specific orders. Nothing in the Wilson opinion can fairly be interpreted as supplanting, or even casting doubt on, the traditional rule that failure to take action required by an order can be punished only chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Apparently the only reason given for discarding this rule is the Court's statement that failure to construe an individual subpoena as requiring joint action by members of a board would "remove such organizations beyond the reach of legislative and judicial commands." That fear is without foundation. A custodian willfully failing to produce records can be prosecuted under R.S. § 102. And, under 18 U.S.C. § 2, any one "aiding or abetting" her also becomes a principal in that offense, and is similarly subject to R.S. § 102. Moreover, a conspiracy to prevent production would certainly provide grounds for conviction. Thus, there is no question that Fleischman's conviction could be sustained if there had been sufficient evidence that she actually aided or encouraged the custodian's refusal to produce, or conspired to accomplish that result. [Footnote 2/8] And in the rare instance where these sanctions chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Not even after today's opinion can Fleischman -- or, for that matter, anyone else -- know precisely what steps were chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
B. Even if the theory on which this Court upholds Fleischman's conviction were tenable, it is, as might be expected from its novelty, completely different from the theory on which the case was tried. An essential element in the trial judge's charge was his instruction that the jury could find Fleischman guilty only if it found that she had "acted in concert with other members of the executive board" to prevent production. But the Court, without even attempting to support her conviction on this theory, substitutes a theory involving completely different problems of proof and evidence. [Footnote 2/11] The issue of whether Fleischman had failed to attempt to persuade others to produce was not being tried, and there was no reason for her to introduce evidence concerning it. The question on review is not whether the record as a whole exudes a general impression of guilt, but whether the evidence supports a finding of guilt of the issues presented to the jury by the trial judge's charge, Bollenbach v. United States, 326 U. S. 607, 326 U. S. 614. This Court should heed its mandates forbidding state appellate courts to uphold convictions on any theory materially different from that, on which the case was presented to the jury. See Cole v. Arkansas, 333 U. S. 196, 333 U. S. 201-202. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
D. Power to produce is an essential ingredient of any offense under R.S. § 102, and the indictment necessarily chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Equally important under the Court's theory is the question of Fleischman's own power to bring about production. The Court holds that membership on the board gave her one-eighteenth of the board's official "power," which it considers enough to support conviction. But her fraction of official "power" could be exercised only at an official meeting. There is no showing that any meeting was held between March 29 and April 4, or that Fleischman had power to call such a meeting. [Footnote 2/13] And I do not understand chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Upon a showing merely that the board controlled the "policies and activities" of the association and that she was a board member, the Court imposes on Fleischman the burden of disproving the crucial allegation of "power to produce" by establishing that she had done "all she could" to bring about production. In effect, it has set up a presumption that every board member automatically has such power, and has saddled Fleischman with the burden of proving her innocence by showing that the presumption should not apply to her. [Footnote 2/14] In the absence of some showing that she had authority to call or an opportunity to vote at an official board meeting, or at least had substantial influence over other board members, this is every bit as arbitrary as the presumption rejected in Tot v. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Anyone who "willfully makes default" in obeying a valid subpoena to produce records before a committee of Congress has, ever since 1857, been guilty of a federal chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
The indictment against respondent also had a count charging her and others with conspiring to make willful default of congressional subpoenas. It is inappropriate to consider whether the evidence would have been sufficient to bring respondent within the expansive range of a conspiracy charge, or whether evidence that could have been admitted under such a charge, but was not admissible in this trial, would have sufficed to prove guilt. For its own good reasons, the Government dismissed the conspiracy charge against Fleischman. A careful study of the record compels the conclusion that Edgerton, J., conveyed fairly and in balance all that the Government chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
This conclusion does not imply the slightest relaxation of the duty of obedience to the lawful commands of congressional committees in exercising their power of testimonial compulsion. McGrain v. Daugherty, 273 U. S. 135. But regard for that power does not call for the slightest relaxation of the requirements of our criminal process. A penal statute must not be applied beyond its terms, and the crime defined by it and charged in an indictment must be established by proof beyond a reasonable doubt. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Whether joint action would have been required by a subpoena addressed to the board is completely irrelevant for the reasons set out in 339 U. S. @ It should be noted, however, that an order to the board as an entity necessarily implies joint action; one addressed to an individual member does not. Moreover, the former is sufficiently specific if it tells the board exactly what to do; the latter must tell the individual what to do. In either case, the recipient must have power to do what is ordered before punishment is justified.
It should be noted that the directors appeared in response to a subpoena addressed to the corporation. Unlike Fleischman, they were not subpoenaed individually. See 339 U. S. @
See, e.g., McFarland v. United States, 295 F.6d 8, 650: