Case Name: Philip BERRIGAN, Daniel J. Berrigan, Appellants, v. Maurice SIGLER, Chairman of the Board of Parole, and all members of the said Board of Parole (all of whom have their offices at room 354 HOLC Building), et al.
Court: United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
Jurisdiction: United States
Decision Date: 1973-01-17
Citations: 475 F.2d 918
Docket Number: No. 73-1049
Parties: Philip BERRIGAN, Daniel J. Berrigan, Appellants, v. Maurice SIGLER, Chairman of the Board of Parole, and all members of the said Board of Parole (all of whom have their offices at room 354 HOLC Building), et al.
Judges: Before BAZELON, Chief Judge, and WRIGHT and MacKINNON, Circuit Judges.
Reporter: Federal Reporter 2d Series
Volume: 475
Pages: 918–924

Head Matter:
Philip BERRIGAN, Daniel J. Berrigan, Appellants, v. Maurice SIGLER, Chairman of the Board of Parole, and all members of the said Board of Parole (all of whom have their offices at room 354 HOLC Building), et al.
No. 73-1049.
United States Court of Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit.
Argued Jan. 16, 1973.
Decided Jan. 17, 1973.
Morton Stavis, Newark, N. J., for appellants.
Gil Zimmerman, Asst. U. S. Atty., with whom Harold H. Titus, Jr., U. S. Atty., and John A. Terry and Arnold T. Aikens, Asst. U. S. Attys., were on the pleadings, for appellees.
Before BAZELON, Chief Judge, and WRIGHT and MacKINNON, Circuit Judges.

Opinion:
ORDER
PER CURIAM:
This case came on for consideration of the motion for emergency relief by way of summary reversal, and the court heard argument of counsel. While the denial of a temporary restraining order is normally not appealable, an exception is made where the denial serves for all practical purposes to render the cause of action moot or where appellant's rights will be irretrievably lost absent review. See McSurely v. McClellan, 138 U.S.App.D.C. 187, 191, 426 F.2d 664, 668 (1970); Dilworth v. Riner, 5 Cir., 343 F.2d 226, 229 (1965). Since it is evident that invitations to visit North Vietnam are granted sparingly and that the present invitation is subject to a time restriction which is soon to expire, the Parole Board's refusal to grant appellants permission to travel to North Vietnam and the District Court's order denying a temporary restraining order against such refusal will irretrievably deny appellants the opportunity presently afforded them and may well moot this case. Accordingly, we find that this court has jurisdiction to hear this appeal.
With respect to the question of the likelihood of success on the merits as it pertains to the District Court's denial of a temporary restraining order, it is uncontroverted that the Parole Board's refusal to approve appellants' proposed visit to North Vietnam interferes with their right to travel and their First Amendment right to freedom of association. The Parole Board has offered two justifications for this interference, arguing that the trip will interfere with Parole Board efforts to rehabilitate appellants and is contrary to the national interest as determined by the State Department. We find neither justification persuasive. The proposed visit to North Vietnam will be of short duration, and it is clear that it will not interfere with the rehabilitation of appellants, especially since the Board has made no active effort to rehabilitate appellants since the date of their release. While the proposed trip undoubtedly raises questions of the national interest in light of the current status of relationships between the United States and the government of North Vietnam, the Parole Board has no special competence in the area of foreign policy and such matters as these are best left in the control of the State Department, subject to the limitations imposed by law. See Lynd v. Rusk, 128 U.S.App.D.C. 399, 389 F.2d 940 (1967).
In view of the foregoing, we can find no interest, compelling or otherwise, served by the Board's refusal to approve appellants' proposed trip, and their right to travel and to freedom of association must prevail. See Sobell v. Reed, S.D.N.Y., 327 F.Supp. 1294 (1971).
It is therefore ordered by this court that the order of the District Court denying a temporary restraining order be, and it is hereby, vacated; and
It is further ordered by the court that appellee Parole Board members be, and they are hereby, temporarily restrained from withholding their approval of appellants' proposed trip to North Vietnam; and
It is further ordered by the court that this case is remanded to the District Court for further proceedings not inconsistent with this order.
Chief Judge BAZELON'S statement concurring, joined in by Circuit Judge J. SKELLY WRIGHT, is attached. Circuit Judge MacKINNON's statement dissenting is also attached.
It is further ordered by the court that, on application of the United States, this order is stayed until 6:00 p. m. today, January 17, 1973.
Statement of Chief Judge BAZELON, in which Circuit Judge J. SKELLY WRIGHT joins:
I would grant the Berrigans the relief they seek. That relief is not an order directing the government to permit them to travel to North Vietnam. Rather, it is an injunction restraining one federal agency — the United States Parole Board —from withholding permission for the trip. The authority — if any — of the Department of State to grant or deny its permission is not at issue in this case.
The most troublesome problem on these appeals is jurisdictional. By statute, our review is limited to final orders. The denial of a temporary restraining order does not commonly fall into that category. It is well-established, though, that the question of finality is a pragmatic one. Brown Shoe v. United States, 370 U.S. 294, 82 S.Ct. 1502, 8 L.Ed.2d 510 (1962); McSurley v. McClellan, 138 U.S.App.D.C. 187, 426 F.2d 664 (1970). If the effect of denying the temporary restraining order is to preclude the trip altogether, it is, for practical purposes, a final determination and is accordingly ripe for review.
The Berrigans have represented to us that their opportunity to make the trip is fleeting; that they have a single, limited invitation from the North Vietnamese ; that passenger flights to Hanoi are infrequent; and that failure to leave the United States on schedule will cause them to miss essential connections further on. In short, they maintain that any delay in resolving their claim will be tantamount to a denial. Absent refutation, we should accept those representations. On that basis, the case appears to be appropriate for appellate review.
The question on the merits is the Berrigans' claim that their Constitutional right to travel, Aptheker v. Secretary of State, 378 U.S. 500, 84 S.Ct. 1659, 12 L. Ed.2d 992, has been denied. We consider this claim in the awareness that the Berrigans are presently under the legal authority of the Parole Board. The Board's authority can be exercised, however, only in accordance with the rule of law. That historic check on governmental power is central to our democratic traditions. A fundamental principle of law is that every governmental agency —including the Parole Board — must respect the rights of every citizen.
The Board has offered two explanations for its refusal to permit this particular trip:
1) The Board would be unable to exercise its "supervisory responsibilities looking to rehabilitation" of the two priests during the 10 days they are overseas.
2) It would be improper to permit travel to North Vietnam because the State Department has "informally" informed the Board that the trip would not be in the national interest.
The Board's first contention is so transparently unrealistic as to cast doubt on its entire presentation in this proceeding. Other than admitting the two brothers to parole, there is no indication that the Board has made any effort toward rehabilitation in regard to either of them. Since he was granted parole, Father Daniel Berrigan has traveled extensively in Europe and the United Kingdom, Never until now has the Board suggested that overseas travel would interfere with its unspecified supervisory activities. During his brief period as a parolee, Father Philip Berrigan's sole contact with the Board has been his request to come to this court for argument on his motion. Yet the Board claims that the need for rehabilitative supervision during the next ten days is so great as to justify the denial of a Constitutional right. In light of its prior record of inactivity, the Board's stated rationale cannot even be described as "facially legitimate and bona fide". Kleindienst v. Mandel, 408 U.S. 753, 92 S.Ct. 2576, 33 L.Ed.2d 683 (1972).
By implication, then, the Board's second point must be the real basis for its decision; but for the State Department's viewpoint, presumably, the Board would permit the trip. The Board concedes that the "impropriety" of this trip is a question within the State Department's "foreign relations competence". The Board also concedes that numerous Americans from all walks of life — including other priests, other pacifists, and other convicted felons — have traveled to Hanoi without objection from the State Department. It may be that the Berrigans' visit will be different. But that kind of delicate diplomatic determination is properly the province of the Secretary of State.
Accordingly, the Parole Board should be enjoined from refusing the Berrigans' request for permission to travel to North Vietnam based on the reasons asserted and relied upon by the Board. Cf. Perkins v. Elg, 307 U.S. 325, 59 S.Ct. 884, 83 L.Ed. 1320 (1939). The matter appears to be one for the consideration of the Secretary of State in light of the applicable law and regulations.