Mason v. Pulliam, Civ. A. No. C 74-2401 A.
| Decision Date | 15 October 1975 |
| Docket Number | Civ. A. No. C 74-2401 A. |
| Parties | Harve D. MASON and Pat J. Mason, Petitioners, v. Ralph J. PULLIAM (Special Agent/Intelligence Division, IRS) and Jim Kelly (Supervisor/Intelligence Division, IRS), Respondents. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Northern District of Georgia |
Stanley F. Birch, Jr., Greer, Sartain & Carey, Gainesville, Ga., for petitioners.
James Jeffries, Tax Div., Dept. of Justice, Washington, D. C., William D. Mallard, Jr., Asst. U. S. Atty., Atlanta, Ga., for respondents.
This is an action instituted by petitioners Harve D. and Pat J. Mason for the return of certain records and accounts which Mr. Mason had theretofore voluntarily loaned to a Special Agent of the Intelligence Division of the Internal Revenue Service, Ralph J. Pulliam. Action in this case was stayed pending a ruling by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in the case of Richey v. Smith. This decision was handed down on July 21, 1975, Richey v. Smith, 515 F.2d 1239 (5th Cir. 1975), and in accordance with that ruling the Court held an oral hearing to receive evidence and to hear argument on the propriety of the Court's assuming "anomalous" jurisdiction. Upon questioning by the Court, it was found that none of the material facts were in dispute and counsel stipulated the following facts.
On December 4, 1974, Mr. Pulliam entered Mr. Mason's place of business, a retail grocery store, and requested a meeting with Mr. Mason in his private office. Once there, Mr. Pulliam identified himself; displayed his badge; told Mason of the nature of his visit; and read to Mr. Mason his Miranda warnings. Mr. Pulliam then asked permission to take certain of Mr. Mason's records and accounts with him. Mr. Mason was completely willing to cooperate, and the IRS received the papers with the complete and absolute permission of Mr. Mason.
The Court finds that the papers in dispute are the personal property of Mr. Mason, and to the extent it is relevant it appears Mrs. Mason also has some proprietary interest in the papers. Thus the owner, or perhaps the co-owner, of some property gave unconditional possession to that property to a government agency for an undefined period of time. The Court finds that this was a perfectly fine arrangement between gentlemen, one of whom runs a grocery operation, and one of whom works for the government. Every use of the property during this period of time by the IRS was totally authorized and petitioners have no complaint as to the use of the papers by the IRS or the manner by which the IRS obtained initial possession.
The end to this voluntary and cooperative arrangement came at 9:00 a. m. on December 11, 1974, when petitioners, through counsel, terminated any permission given Mr. Pulliam or the IRS to possession of the papers and demanded the immediate return of all records and documents belonging to them. Although admitting that the papers were the property of petitioners, respondents refused to return them because they were not yet through studying and copying them. Respondents were apparently willing to return the original papers within about one week after December 11.
The action for mandamus and injunctive relief was filed at 3:00 p. m. on December 11, and the Court, after hearing argument from both sides, ordered the papers to be turned over to the Clerk, pending a final disposition of the action.
Succinctly stated, with immaterial matter discarded, the question to be decided is, "Can our government maintain possession of, inspect, copy, and otherwise use the private papers of one of its citizens, over the known objection and protest of the citizen, when such property was not obtained by the government through any legal process or compulsion?"
The most troublesome initial question is whether or not the Court has jurisdiction to entertain this action. Petitioners argue that jurisdiction is present pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1361. While not necessarily rejecting jurisdiction under the mandamus statute, the Court does not reach it in light of the theory set out in Richey. This theory, of course, is the "anomalous" jurisdiction discussed in Richey and Hunsucker v. Phinney, 497 F.2d 29 (5th Cir. 1974), cert. denied, 420 U.S. 927, 95 S.Ct. 1124, 43 L.Ed.2d 397.
In Richey the Court set out a number of factors for a district court to consider in determining whether or not to exercise its discretion in favor of "anomalous" jurisdiction. Explanations of these factors were set out in detail in various footnotes.
While the Court cannot find that any seizure of the property displayed "a callous disregard for the constitutional rights of the taxpayer" at the time of the actual taking of possession by the IRS, the Court believes that, when viewed at the point of time when permission was revoked, the action by the IRS in refusing immediately to return the papers can only be described as total failure by the government to recognize the right of a citizen to peaceful possession of his own property. Certainly, if this were an action where two private citizens were quarreling over the rightful possession of the documents, the Court would not feel compelled to take jurisdiction. But here we are considering fundamental rights of a citizen vis a vis his government. If the Court does not have jurisdiction to entertain this action, then there would be no forum available to a citizen to complain about any allegedly wrongful taking and use of his property.
Certainly all other factors listed by the Fifth Circuit are present in this action. Petitioners have an individual interest in and need for property they seek to be returned; petitioners could be irreparably harmed by denying a return of the property in the event that criminal indictments were returned against them; and, at this stage of the proceedings, there appears to be no adequate remedy at law.
One last question is whether or not the Court should exercise jurisdiction over IRS agents who can be considered only "quasi-court officials." The Fifth Circuit in Richey stated that such supervisory jurisdiction over law enforcement agencies should not be exercised as a routine matter, but that "its exercise may be justified in the circumstances of this case if the plaintiffs' allegations are substantiated." The factual circumstances in Richey are strikingly similar to the facts in this instant case, and the Court feels that it has an obligation to petitioners to exercise jurisdiction here where the uncontroverted facts show the government to continue in defiant possession of property, without legal process, when it has no permission from the owners to retain possession.
It...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Linn v. Chivatero
...actions of IRS agents. Lord v. Kelley, 223 F.Supp. 684, 689 (D.Mass.1963); see also Richey, supra, 515 F.2d at 1244; Mason v. Pulliam, 402 F.Supp. 978, 981 (N.D.Ga.1975), aff'd, 557 F.2d 426, 428 (5th Cir.1977). 3 Anomalous jurisdiction is exercised with "caution and restraint," however, an......
-
Angel-Torres v. U.S.
...Inc. v. United States, 617 F.2d at 895-96; Standard Drywall, Inc. v. United States, 668 F.2d at 157 n. 2; Mason v. Pulliam, 402 F.Supp. 978, 981 (N.D.Ga.1975), aff'd, 557 F.2d 426 (5th For another thing, the constitutionality vel non of the government's seizure is far less clear than the pe......
-
Fox v. Washington
... ... a little bit pregnant, ” Mason v. Pulliam, 402 ... F.Supp. 978, 982 (N.D.Ga. 1975), there is, at ... ...
-
$89,000, PLUS OR MINUS, IN US CURRENCY v. Ricon
...regarded as "officers of the court." Hunsucker at 33; Richey at 1244. The issue was resolved two years later in Mason v. Pulliam, 402 F.Supp. 978 (N.D.Ga.1975), aff'd, 557 F.2d 426 (5th Cir.1977), where the Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court's exercise of its anomalous jurisdiction o......