Hiatt v. Brown 8212 1950, No. 359
| Court | United States Supreme Court |
| Writing for the Court | CLARK |
| Citation | 70 S.Ct. 495,339 U.S. 103,94 L.Ed. 691 |
| Docket Number | No. 359 |
| Decision Date | 13 March 1950 |
| Parties | HIATT, Warden, v. BROWN. Argued Feb. 6—7, 1950 |
v.
BROWN.
See 339 U.S. 939, 70 S.Ct. 672.
Consistent interpretation of Article of War by the Army as vesting a discretion in appointing authority as to availability of a member of the Judge Advocate General's Department for appointment as law member of a general court-martial was entitled to great weight in determination by Supreme Court of the meaning of the article. Articles of War, art. 8, 10 U.S.C.A. § 1479.
Exercise of discretion conferred on appointing authority by Article of War in matter of designating a member of the Judge Advocate General's Department as law member for general court-martial could be reviewed by courts only if gross abuse of that discretion would have given rise to a defect in jurisdiction of the court-martial. Articles of War, art. 8, 10 U.S.C.A. § 1479.
Under Article of War requiring that law member of general court-martial be an officer of Judge Advocate General's Department unless one was not available for the purpose, neither appointment of officer from Judge Advocate General's Department to a capacity other than law member on court nor reassignment of that officer to other duty at time of trial disclosed abuse of discretion. Articles of War, art. 8, 10 U.S.C.A. § 1479.
Where court-martial had jurisdiction of accused and of offense of murder charged, and acted within its lawful powers, correction of any errors was for the military authorities and it was improper for Court of Appeals to extend its review, for purpose of determining compliance with due process of law, to such matters as propositions of law set forth in Staff Judge Advocate's report, sufficiency of evidence to sustain conviction, adequacy of pretrial investigation, and competency of law member and defense counsel. Articles of War, arts. 8, 92, 10 U.S.C.A. §§ 1479, 1564; 28 U.S.C.A. § 1254(1); U.S.C.A.Const. Amend. 5.
[Syllabus from pages 103-105 intentionally omitted]
Page 105
Mr. Stanley M. Silverberg, Washington, D.C., for petitioner.
Mr. Walter G. Cooper, Atlanta, Ga., for respondent.
Mr. Justice CLARK delivered the opinion of the Court.
Respondent, while serving as an enlisted soldier in the United States Army in Germany, was convicted by a general court-martial of committing murder on December 25, 1946, in violation of the 92d Article of War, 41 Stat. 805, 10 U.S.C. § 1564, 10 U.S.C.A. § 1564. The sentence imposed was dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and life imprisonment, which was reduced to twenty years upon recommendation of the Judge Advocate General. On petition for a writ of habeas corpus, the District Court for the Northern District of Georgia ordered respondent discharged from the federal penitentiary in Atlanta, 81 F.Supp. 647 (1948), and the Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed, one judge dissenting. 175 F.2d 273, 277 (1949). Both the District Court and the Court of Appeals concluded that the military tribunal which convicted respondent was improperly constituted and lacked jurisdiction of the offense. The Court of Appeals held further that the record was 'replete with highly prejudicial errors and irregularities' which deprived respondent of due process of law under the Fifth Amendment and afforded an independent ground for sustaining the writ. We brought the case here, on petition of the warden having custody of respondent, in view of the
Page 106
importance of the decision below in the administration of military justice. 1949, 338 U.S. 890, 70 S.Ct. 239. Our jurisdiction to review the judgment of the Court of Appeals is under 28 U.S.C. § 1254(1), 28 U.S.C.A. § 1254(1).1
Respondent was tried in Germany on January 9 and 14, 1947, before a general court-martial which had been appointed by order of the commanding general of the Continental Base Section, European Theatre, on December 7, 1946. The detail appointed was comprised of a trial judge advocate and two assistant trial judge advocates, defense counsel and two assistant defense counsel, the law member and twelve other officers. The ranking officer of the detail, a Colonel of the Field Artillery with twenty-five years of commissioned service, was appointed law member. The only member of the detail appointed from the Judge Advocate General's Department was a captain who was designated an assistant trial judge advocate.2 He was absent from respondent's trial on verbal orders of the commanding general.
The Court of Appeals determined that under these circumstances the court-martial had been appointed in disregard of the 8th Article of War, 41 Stat. 788, 10 U.S.C. § 1479, 10 U.S.C.A. § 1479. The relevant provision of this article
Page 107
as in force at the time of respondent's trial is set forth in the margin.3 The article was interpreted by the Court of Appeals as requiring, 'certainly in times of peace, that the presence of a duly qualified law member from the Judge Advocate General's Department be made a jurisdictional prerequisite to the validity of such court-martial proceeding, except in the single instance where such officer is actually, and in fact, 'not available." 175 F.2d at page 276. The Court of Appeals held that the availability of a law member from the Judge Advocate General's Department was conclusively indicated by the order detailing an officer from that department in another capacity without any explanation. Thus the court concluded that the proceeding was void.
We are unable to agree with the Court of Appeals that this record discloses any disregard of the 8th Article of War in the appointment of the tribunal which convicted respondent.
Under the interpretation placed on the 8th Article by the court below, an officer from the Judge Advocate General's Department was 'available' for appointment as law member if he was appointed on the detail in another capacity and nothing otherwise appeared to negative his availability as law member. The article has been construed differently by the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in Henry v. Hodges, 1948, 171 F.2d 401. In
Page 108
that case, in which the interpretative issue was similarly raised on petition for habeas corpus, one officer from the Judge Advocate...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Burns v. Lovett, No. 11419
...Potens, D.C.E.D.Wis.1945, 63 F.Supp. 582. 6 Whelchel v. McDonald, 1950, 340 U.S. 122, 71 S.Ct. 146, 95 L.Ed. 141; Hiatt v. Brown, 1950, 339 U.S. 103, 70 S.Ct. 495, 94 L.Ed. 691; Dynes v. Hoover, 1858, 20 How. 65, 61 U.S. 65, 15 L.Ed. 838; Johnson v. Sayre, 1895, 158 U.S. 109, 15 S.Ct. 773, ......
-
Calley v. Callaway, No. 74-3471
...5 Cir., 1949, 174 F.2d 645, cert. denied, 338 U.S. 874, 70 S.Ct. 135, 94 L.Ed. 536; Hiatt v. Brown, 5 Cir., 1949, 175 F.2d 273, rev'd, 339 U.S. 103, 70 S.Ct. 495, 94 S.Ct. 691, (1950); Schita v. King, 8 Cir., 1943, 133 F.2d 283; Benjamin v. Hunter, 10 Cir., 1948, 169 F.2d 512; Kuykendall v.......
-
Levy v. Parker, No. 71-1917.
...where the individual is confined by the military. 28 U.S.C. § 2241(c). Indeed, since the Waley decision, only in Hiatt v. Brown, 339 U.S. 103, 70 S.Ct. 495, 94 L.Ed. 691 (1950), has the Supreme Court indicated that the original view of Siebold and Reed controls, that is, when examining a pe......
-
Harris v. Ciccone, No. 19456.
...quoted qualifies as dictum for even the more extreme situation where there is no pretrial at all. The following year, in Hiatt v. Brown, 339 U.S. 103, 110, 70 S.Ct. 495, 498, 94 L.Ed. 691 (1950), the Court held that a lower court "was in error in extending its review, for the purpose of det......
-
Burns v. Lovett, No. 11419
...Potens, D.C.E.D.Wis.1945, 63 F.Supp. 582. 6 Whelchel v. McDonald, 1950, 340 U.S. 122, 71 S.Ct. 146, 95 L.Ed. 141; Hiatt v. Brown, 1950, 339 U.S. 103, 70 S.Ct. 495, 94 L.Ed. 691; Dynes v. Hoover, 1858, 20 How. 65, 61 U.S. 65, 15 L.Ed. 838; Johnson v. Sayre, 1895, 158 U.S. 109, 15 S.Ct. 773, ......
-
Com. v. Thompson
...person and whether the sentence was one authorized by law (Collins v. McDonald, 258 U.S. 416, 42 S.Ct. 326, 66 L.Ed. 692; Hiatt v. Brown, 339 U.S. 103, 70 S.Ct. 495, 94 L.Ed. 691) and whether any constitutional [389 Pa. 403] questions are involved (United States ex rel. Innes v. Hiatt, 3 Ci......
-
Beardslee v. United States, No. 18565.
...murder is the presence in the former of premeditation. Hiatt v. Brown, 175 F.2d 273, 277, note 3 (5 Cir. 1949), reversed on other grounds, 339 U.S. 103, 70 S.Ct. 495, 94 L.Ed. 691 (1950); 40 C.J.S. Homicide § 35(d), p. 895; 26 Am.Jur., Homicide, § 38, p. 181. Malice aforethought, on the oth......
-
Harris v. Ciccone, No. 19456.
...quoted qualifies as dictum for even the more extreme situation where there is no pretrial at all. The following year, in Hiatt v. Brown, 339 U.S. 103, 110, 70 S.Ct. 495, 498, 94 L.Ed. 691 (1950), the Court held that a lower court "was in error in extending its review, for the purpose of det......