Parts Mfg. Corporation v. Lynch, 350.

Citation129 F.2d 841
Decision Date25 July 1942
Docket NumberNo. 350.,350.
PartiesPARTS MFG. CORPORATION v. LYNCH et al.
CourtUnited States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (2nd Circuit)

Irving R. Kaufman, of New York City (Simpson, Brady, Noonan & Kaufman, Gregory F. Noonan, and David Brady, all of New York City, on the brief), for appellant.

Edward J. Behrens, Asst. U. S. Atty., of New York City (Mathias F. Correa, U. S. Atty., of New York City, on the brief), for appellees.

Before CHASE, CLARK, and FRANK, Circuit Judges.

CLARK, Circuit Judge.

This appeal is in a way a sequel to our decision in Weinberg v. United States, 2 Cir., 126 F.2d 1004. There we ordered the return of certain property illegally seized by special agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Although the property involved in the appeal before us is not the identical property before us then, both cases arise from the same alleged crime and the background of the Weinberg case is necessary for an understanding of this appeal.

Criminal proceedings were pending in the District Court of the United States for the Eastern District of Michigan for alleged violations of the National Stolen Property Act, 18 U.S.C.A. § 415. That court, by an order dated December 8, 1941, designated the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and his duly authorized representatives as officers of the court and directed them to seize certain automobile parts alleged to have been stolen from the Ford Motor Company in Michigan. Pursuant to this order, FBI agents, on December 11, 1941, seized certain automobile parts in the possession of Weinberg & Co. and Parts Manufacturing Corporation, appellant here, both located in New York City.

Both the Weinbergs and appellant petitioned the district court for return of the seized goods. That relief was refused. On appeal, the Weinbergs were successful. We held that the Michigan court did not have extraterritorial jurisdiction in this respect, and that in any event the court order directing the seizure did not conform to the search warrant statute. 18 U.S.C.A. §§ 611-625. In that appeal only the United States Attorney was before us. We said, however, that, since he was conducting a removal hearing connected with these alleged thefts, and because the FBI was generally an investigative arm to aid the prosecuting officials, he could properly see to it that the seized property was returned.

On March 20, 1942, nine days after our opinion in the Weinberg case, the court below ordered the return of property seized from appellant, which, though not a party in the Weinberg case, was in the same position. Before the return was made, FBI agents gave Ford attorneys a detailed list of the property seized from appellant. Then the FBI carted the auto parts to appellant's premises. Simultaneously, a New York deputy sheriff appeared and served a writ of replevin for the same auto parts. Under this writ, issued in a suit brought by Ford against appellant, the parts were seized by the sheriff and stored in a warehouse. While the parts were in the warehouse, an Assistant United States Attorney and one Sol Rimar visited the warehouse and examined the parts. Affidavits were made by these men and others, and were presented to the district court ex parte for issuance of a search warrant. On April 13, 1942, a search warrant issued. Meanwhile appellant had given bond in the replevin action and had taken steps entitling it to repossession. On April 14, just as appellant was about to retake the goods and remove them, the search warrant was served and the goods were seized. Appellant then petitioned for the return of the goods, naming as respondents the special agent, the United States Attorney, and the United States itself. This appeal is taken from the denial of this petition by the district court.

Appellant's claim is that the second seizure is illegal because it was made by using information obtained in the illegal seizure. Silverthorne Lumber Co. v. United States, 251 U.S. 385, 40 S.Ct. 182, 64 L.Ed. 319, 24 A.L.R. 1426. The argument is that the search warrant here involved was based on the information obtained at the warehouse, and that the parts were at the warehouse only because of the replevin action, which, in turn, depended on the list of seized articles given to the Ford attorneys by the FBI. It cannot be argued that the list of articles was itself used, because the Assistant United States Attorney's affidavit denied he ever saw the list, and no attempt was made to hold a hearing to controvert his statement. The issue turns, therefore, on whether or not the chain of events — list to Ford, replevin based on the list, storage in warehouse, examination of stored parts — makes this search warrant illegal. We think not.

First, we said in the Weinberg case, 126 F.2d at page...

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18 cases
  • State v. Darwin
    • United States
    • Supreme Court of Connecticut
    • 31 Mayo 1967
    ...to the admission of the lanterns was sustained, and both were excluded. See United States v. Paroutian, supra; Parts Mfg. Corporation v. Lynch, 129 F.2d 841, 842 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 317 U.S. 674, 63 S.Ct. 79, 87 L.Ed. On December 9, 1963, while the Chevrolet was being held by the polic......
  • U.S. v. Lace
    • United States
    • United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (2nd Circuit)
    • 5 Enero 1982
    ...v. Marchand, 564 F.2d 983, 991-94 (2d Cir. 1977), cert. denied, 434 U.S. 1015, 98 S.Ct. 732, 54 L.Ed.2d 760 (1978); Parts Mfg. Corp. v. Lynch, 129 F.2d 841 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 317 U.S. 674, 63 S.Ct. 79, 87 L.Ed. 541 (1942). Other Circuits are in accord. See United States v. Williams, 6......
  • U.S. v. Marchand
    • United States
    • United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (2nd Circuit)
    • 9 Enero 1978
    ...warrant is admitted. 418 F.2d at 1151-52 (footnotes omitted). This circuit had an early encounter with the problem in Parts Mfg. Corp. v. Lynch, 129 F.2d 841 (2 Cir.), cert. denied, 317 U.S. 674, 63 S.Ct. 79, 87 L.Ed. 541 (1942). There, certain auto parts alleged to have been stolen from Fo......
  • United States v. Halsey, 66 Cr 334.
    • United States
    • U.S. District Court — Southern District of New York
    • 2 Septiembre 1966
    ...Paroutian, 319 F.2d 661 (2d Cir. 1963), cert. denied, 375 U.S. 981, 84 S.Ct. 494, 11 L.Ed.2d 426 (1964); Parts Mfg. Corporation v. Lynch, 129 F. 2d 841, 843, 143 A.L.R. 132 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 317 U.S. 674, 63 S.Ct. 79, 87 L.Ed. 541 ...
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