Saksagansky v. Weedin

• Decision Date: 19 October 1931
• Docket Number: No. 6555.,6555.
• Citation: 53 F.2d 13
• Parties: SAKSAGANSKY v. WEEDIN, Immigration Com'r.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Ninth Circuit

53 F.2d 13 (1931)

SAKSAGANSKY v. WEEDIN, Immigration Com'r.

No. 6555.

Circuit Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit.

October 19, 1931.

Clarence L. Gere and M. A. Zioncheck, both of Seattle, Wash., for appellant.

Anthony Savage, U. S. Atty., and Hamlet P. Dodd and Cameron Sherwood, Asst. U. S. Attys., all of Seattle, Wash. (John F. Dunton, U. S. Immigration Service, of Seattle, Wash., on the brief), for appellee.

Before WILBUR and SAWTELLE, Circuit Judges, and WEBSTER, District Judge.

SAWTELLE, Circuit Judge.

Appellant, Michael Saksagansky, was born in Ekaterinoslav, Russia, in 1908, of wealthy parents. In 1923 he resided with his mother in Constantinople for two months, and then came to this country on the steamer Madonna, arriving at Providence, R. I., on November 1, 1923. He lived in Hartford, Conn., for about two years and a half, then went to New York City, where he attended City College under the name of James M. Sacks.

Some time in November, 1930, Saksagansky went to Hartford for a short time, and then "hitch-hiked" across the country to the Pacific Coast, first to San Francisco, thence to Seattle in January, 1931. Since that time he has made an effort to find work, but was not successful, and he has received money from his mother in Hartford.

On February 9, 1931, while appellant was vsiting the German motorship Oakland in Seattle harbor, he was arrested by the Seattle police and an immigration officer, and imprisoned in the city jail. At that time he was questioned by the immigration authorities, and on the basis of his statements application was made to the Secretary of Labor for a warrant for his arrest, which warrant was duly issued on February 11, 1931.

Upon receipt of the warrant, appellant was arrested by an immigration inspector, and further hearings were held on March 5 and March 30, 1931, at which time appellant was notified of the charges against him and had the benefit of counsel. After these hearings, the entire record was forwarded to the Secretary of Labor, and on April 25 Luther Weedin, commissioner of immigration for the port of Seattle, made application for a deportation warrant. This application said, among other things: "Deportation via Port of Seattle is recommended. It is believed that arrangements can be made to effect same through Shanghai with provision for rail transportation from that Port to Russian Territory."

On May 7, 1931, a warrant of deportation was issued by the Secretary of Labor, which specifically provided for deportation to Russia.

Appellant then filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus in the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington, Northern Division. From the refusal of that court to issue the writ comes this appeal.

The warrant of arrest charges the appellant with having been found in the United States in violation of the Immigration Act of October 16, 1918, as amended by the act of June 5, 1920, in that he believes in, advises, advocates, or teaches the overthrow by force or violence of the government of the United States or of all forms of law. The pertinent section of the act, 8 USCA § 137, provides:

"That the following aliens shall be excluded from admission into the United States: * * * (c) Aliens who believe in, advise, advocate, or teach, or who are members of or affiliated with any organization, association, society, or group, that believes in, advises, advocates, or teaches: (1) the overthrow by force or violence of the Government of the United States or of all forms of law. * * *

"That any alien who, at any time after entering the United States, is found to have been at the time of entry, or to have become thereafter, a member of any one of the classes of aliens enumerated in section one supra of this act, shall upon the warrant of the Secretary of Labor, be taken into custody and deported in the manner provided in the immigration act of February fifth, nineteen hundred and seventeen. The provisions of this section shall be applicable to the classes of aliens mentioned in this act irrespective of the time of their entry into the United States."

As we have said so often, our power of review in cases of this character is extremely narrow.

"In order to successfully attack by judicial proceedings the conclusions and orders made upon such hearings i. e. hearings of the immigration officers it must be shown that the proceedings were manifestly unfair, that the action of the executive officers was such as to prevent a fair investigation, or that there was a manifest abuse of the discretion committed to them by the statute." Low Wah Suey v. Backus, 225 U. S. 460, 468, 32 S. Ct. 734, 735, 56 L. Ed. 1165, cited in Skeffington v. Katzeff (C. C. A. 1), 277 F. 129, 131.

There is no evidence in the record before us of any unfairness or arbitrariness on the part of the immigration officials who conducted the hearing. Prior to the issuance of the warrant of arrest by the Secretary of Labor, immigration officials examined appellant in the Seattle jail, and he was advised: "Mr. Saksagansky, I Inspector Cornell am an Immigrant Inspector in the service of the United States Government. At this time I wish to make some inquiries concerning your entry into the United States and your right to be and to remain in this country."

In the latter hearings, after the issuance of the warrant of arrest, appellant was represented by counsel, and we find no evidence of any arbitrariness on the part of the officials in charge of said hearings. The hearing was fair, and our support or rejection of the findings must hinge on the question of whether or not there was any evidence to support the findings and conclusions of the officials. If there was any such evidence and their finding that the appellant believed in the overthrow of the government of the United States by force was based on a conflict in the testimony, then we have no power to reverse same. "There is no judicial power to review or reverse a finding of fact based upon evidence." Skeffington v. Katzeff, supra.

After appellant had been questioned at various times regarding his beliefs he drew up the following document to make his position clear:

"Many questions have been asked me in such a way, that while freely answered, inferences have crept in that are not fair, and I want to make my position clear. When we came to this country, we knew that it had been established for the purpose of giving protection to the weak as well as the strong, and in order to do this, it was necessary to overthrow a tyrannical government by a revolution. I have been charged with believing in, advising, advocating or teaching the overthrow by force or violence of the Government of the United States, or of all forms of law. That is not true. It is the abuse of privileges by which I chose to call capitalists, resulting in the thwarting of the will and liberty of the common people that I object to. This has frequently been called here, `the Invisible Government.' I believe the Constitution of the United States provides for a government by the majority, but it is easy to see that those of great wealth have power to delay and defy the people in their efforts to secure equal protection for all. Men of wealth owned slaves, their property, but slavery was abolished. The working classes in many instances today are as much slaves to a system as the black man ever was. They are enslaved by the greed of great wealth. Of course when a man has acquired wealth, even tho he has stolen it, he will fight to keep it. These people have always fought against the Government operating or owning the things that belong to the people, but still this Government operates and owns public utilities. With the Constitution of the United States it should not be necessary for the working classes to suffer as they do. I am not an anarchist, but I am accused of being one because I believe the working classes should fight for their rights, if need be. I do not believe in the overthrow of this Government as such, but I do...