Martin v. United States

• Citation: 166 F.2d 76
• Decision Date: 28 January 1948
• Docket Number: No. 5703.,5703.
• Parties: MARTIN v. UNITED STATES.
• Court: United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (4th Circuit)

166 F.2d 76 (1948)

MARTIN v. UNITED STATES.

No. 5703.

Circuit Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit.

January 28, 1948.

Thomas H. Stone, of Richmond, Va., for appellant.

Carl F. Pattavina, Atty., Dept. of Justice, Washington, D. C. (George R. Humrick-house, U. S. Atty., of Richmond, Va., and Golden N. Dagger, Atty., Dept. of Justice, of Washington, D. C., on the brief), for appellee.

Before PARKER, SOPER and DOBIE, Circuit Judges.

PARKER, Circuit Judge.

This is an appeal from a conviction and sentence in a criminal case in which the defendant was charged with corruptly endeavoring to influence a juror in violation of section 241 Title 18 of the United States Code Annotated. Four questions are presented for our consideration: (1) whether there was error in denying motions to quash the indictment and discharge the trial panel on the ground that women were not drawn for jury service in the District Court in which the trial was held; (2) whether the evidence was sufficient to sustain the charge; (3) whether there was error in admitting in evidence a statement of defendant in which he, in effect, admitted his guilt of the crime charged; and (4) whether there was error in refusing a requested charge on knowledge and corrupt intent. We think it entirely clear that all of these questions must be answered against defendant.

With respect to the service of women on juries, there is nothing in the Constitution, or at present in the statutes of the United States, which requires that women be drawn for jury service, although this is provided in highly desirable legislation now pending before Congess. The existing statute provides that jurors in the courts of the United States shall have the same qualifications as jurors of the highest court of law in the state. Judicial Code, § 275, 28 U.S.C.A. § 411. The statute of Virginia prescribing the qualifications of jurors limits those eligible to "male citizens over twenty-one years of age". Virginia Code of 1942, sec. 5984. Because of the limitation of this statute, women are not drawn to serve on juries in Virginia in either the state or federal courts; and to sustain appellant's contention would require, not only that the mandate of the federal statute adopting the state statute as to qualification of jurors be ignored, but also that every conviction had in the federal courts of Virginia for at least the past quarter century be nullified.

Ballard v. United States, 329 U.S. 187, 67 S.Ct. 261 does not support defendant's contention. That case arose in the State of California, under the laws of which women are eligible for jury service. What was held improper there was the exclusion from jury service of a class of persons eligible under the law of the state. This was as much a violation of the federal statute as it would be here to include those not eligible.

As to the sufficiency of the evidence, the proof against defendant consisted of the testimony of one of the jurors who served in the United States District Court in the trial of the case of United States v. Rakes et al., 74 F.Supp. 645, and a statement made to a federal investigator by the defendant himself. The juror testified that, as the result of a telephone conversation, he met defendant at an automobile service station, and that defendant, after mentioning the fact that the juror was serving in the Rakes case, said that the juror could make some easy money if he would "hang that jury with another juryman". In the statement made to the investigator defendant said that a lawyer of his acquaintance had approached him and, after ascertaining that he knew the juror, stated that Rakes had a lot of money to spend on the case and that the lawyer would like for defendant to arrange with the juror for the lawyer to have a conversation with him; that defendant thereupon called the juror over the telephone and arranged to meet him; that at the meeting he told the juror that a man had come to him and told him that the jury was definitely going to be hung and that Rakes had a lot of money to spend; that defendant believed he told the juror at this point that the juror could make some easy money; and that the conversation ended because the juror refused to discuss the matter further. If this evidence does not establish a brazen and outrageous attempt to corrupt and bribe a juror in violation of the statute, it is hard to imagine what would be necessary to do so. It failed of its purpose, not because of any innocent intent or lack of knowledge on the part of the defendant, but because of the honesty of the juror. It certainly constituted a corrupt endeavor to influence a juror within the meaning of the statute; and this was all that was necessary to render the accused guilty of the crime charged.

Defendant's statement was properly admitted in evidence. He was not under arrest and no threats were made or promises held...