Court Opinion

ID: 9457613
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-04 20:27:30.411723+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:35:25.635892
License: Public Domain

DUFFY, Senior Circuit Judge.
I respectfully dissent.
Attorney Frank W. Oliver was and is an officer of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division. He had petitioned that Court asking that he be admitted to practice before that Court. He was permitted to do so upon taking the solemn oath which included “ * * * I will demean myself uprightly and according to law and the recognized standards of ethics of the profession.”
It is not disputed that a court authorized to admit attorneys to practice before it has the inherent power to regulate the practice of law therein by the adoption of rules and canons of ethics and to apply those rules when the court deems necessary.
A rule of court properly authorized has the full force and effect of law and constitutes an order of the court. Weil, et al. v. Neary, 278 U.S. 160, 169, 49 S.Ct. 144, 73 L.Ed. 243 (1928); Link v. Wabash Railroad Company, 291 F.2d 542 (7 Cir., 1961), affirmed 370 U.S. 626, 82 S.Ct. 1386, 8 L.Ed.2d 734.
Oliver was charged with violating a policy statement of the District Court which required members of the bar of that Court to refrain from commenting on and attempting to explain through any source of news media, the action taken or anticipated in pending litigation.
Oliver, on behalf of himself and other named attorneys, filed a petition with the District Court. One of the demands in the petition asked for the postponement of all criminal cases pending in the United States District Court until the conclusion of the trial of United States v. Dellinger, et al., 69 CR 180 (N.D.Ill. 1970). The petition states that the attorneys who signed are concerned that their cases are likely to be affected by the “extraordinary events” in the Federal Court House referring to the trial of the Dellinger case. The second charge of the petition was a criticism of the security provisions taken by officers of the United States Marshal and the General Services Administration to secure and protect the lives of persons working or having business in the courthouse and to protect government property.
Before the District Court had an opportunity to act on the petition, Oliver held a conference with the news media and appeared on television and radio announcing he was not going to obey the District Court’s policy statement. At the conference, he promised to and has committed additional violations of the policy statement.
Oliver admitted that the press interviews and the appearances on television and radio had been arranged prior to the filing of the petition with the District Court, knowingly in violation of the policy statement. By holding this conference, Attorney Oliver did far more than disagree openly with the District Court on a matter of public interest.
In his television and radio interview, Oliver stated he was sympathetic with the defendants in the Dellinger trial (Bobby Seale and others). He also found much fault and severely criticized *116the security precautions at the Federal Court Building in Chicago. Such precautions had been put into effect after many threats of bombing had been received by federal and local police agencies.
I do not assume that Oliver had any expert knowledge of bombing techniques, but making light of threats of bombing is not impressive upon' this author, whose principal office and workshop is located in the United States Courthouse and Federal Office Building in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, which building was bombed on September 25, 1969, causing extensive damage.
Possibly Oliver had never heard of the bombing of the Federal Office Building in New York on September 19, 1969, causing damage in excess of a half million dollars. However, he surely must have been aware that on September 25, 1969, a brief ease containing 17 sticks of dynamite and a timing device was planted in the Cook County Courthouse in Chicago on a floor directly below the Chambers of the Illinois Supreme Court. Yet Oliver thought it appropriate at this time to publicly denounce such protective measures at the Federal Building in Chicago and demean the people who were charged with the responsibility of enforcing these measures.
In Walker v. City of Birmingham, 388 U.S. 307, 87 S.Ct. 1824, 18 L.Ed.2d 1210 (1967), the Supreme Court held that the petitioners in that case could not bypass an orderly review of a temporary injunction before disobeying it. In Walker, supra, some of the persons who had been served with copies of the writ of injunction held a press conference and announced their intention to disobey the injunction.
In the case before us, we have the same kind of arrogant defiance.
I recognize that the majority of this panel has attempted to distinguish such a case as Walker, supra, by saying there is a distinction between the functions of a court in its usual adjudicative role and the function of a court in an essentially legislative role. I do not agree.
The conduct of defendant Bobby Seale and the other defendants during the trial of United States v. Dellinger, et al., supra, was shameful. In such a situation a trial judge should not be shackled by finespun distinctions between the adjudicative and the legislative functions of a reviewing court. We should do all we possibly can to enable a trial court to judicially control any such unfortunate situation. We should keep in mind the words of the Supreme Court in Sheppard v. Maxwell, 384 U.S. 333, 86 S.Ct. 1507, 16 L.Ed.2d 600 (1965). In that case the Court commented, at page 363, 86 S.Ct. at page 1522:
“We must remember that reversals are but palliatives; the cure lies in those remedial measures that will prevent the prejudice at its inception. The courts must take such steps by rule and regulation that will protect their processes from prejudicial outside interferences. Neither prosecutors, counsel for defense, the accused, witnesses, court staff nor enforcement officers coming under the jurisdiction of the court should be permitted to frustrate its function. Collaboration between counsel and press as to information affecting the fairness of a criminal trial is not only subject to regulation, but is highly censurable and worthy of disciplinary measures.”
While in Sheppard, supra, out of court statements by attorneys and others connected with the trial were reasons for overturning a criminal conviction, I believe the Supreme Court’s comments are directed at preventing similar error and prejudice in any matter before any court that is similarly prejudiced. Therefore, I feel no need to limit the application to the Supreme Court’s sanction for court rules and regulations only to criminal matters. I am convinced that such disciplinary rules are proper at any time the functions of a court may be prejudiced upon considering again the comments of the Supreme Court in Sheppard, supra, “The courts must take such *117steps by rule and regulation that will protect their processes from prejudicial outside interferences.” The regulatory power of a court should not be limited merely to persons currently within the adjudicative process of the court as suggested by the majority, but to any officer of the court or other person who is within the legislative control of the court as well.
Despite the possible overbreath of the rule announced by the court below- of which Oliver complained in his petition, no one should be more aware or more cognizant of the orderly legal process which should be followed in challenging such a rule or policy statement than an attorney and officer of that court.
I would affirm.