United States v. Witkovich, No. 55 Cr 607.
| Court | U.S. District Court — Northern District of Illinois |
| Writing for the Court | Pearl Hart, Chicago, Ill., for defendant |
| Citation | 140 F. Supp. 815 |
| Parties | UNITED STATES of America v. George I. WITKOVICH, also known as Juri Isador Wotkovich. |
| Docket Number | No. 55 Cr 607. |
| Decision Date | 10 May 1956 |
140 F. Supp. 815
UNITED STATES of America
v.
George I. WITKOVICH, also known as Juri Isador Wotkovich.
No. 55 Cr 607.
United States District Court N. D. Illinois, E. D.
February 15, 1956.
Supplemental Opinion May 10, 1956.
Pearl Hart, Chicago, Ill., for defendant.
SULLIVAN, District Judge.
This is an indictment under Title 8 U.S.C.A. § 1252(d), which reads:
"(d) Any alien, against whom a final order of deportation as defined in subsection (c) of this section, heretofore or hereafter issued has been outstanding for more than six months, shall, pending eventual deportation, be subject to supervision under regulations prescribed by the Attorney General. Such regulations shall include provisions which will require any alien subject to supervision (1) to appear from time to time before an immigration officer for identification; (2) to submit, if necessary, to medical and psychiatric examination at the expense of the United States; (3) to give information under oath as to his nationality, circumstances, habits, associations, and activities, and such other information, whether or not related to the foregoing, as the Attorney General may deem fit and proper; and (4) to conform to such reasonable written restrictions on his conduct or activities as are prescribed by the Attorney General in his case. Any alien who shall willfully fail to comply with such regulations, or willfully fail to appear or to give information or submit to medical or psychiatric examination if required, or knowingly give false information in relation to the requirements of such regulations, or knowingly violate a reasonable restriction imposed upon his conduct or activity, shall upon conviction be guilty of a felony, and shall be fined not more than $1,000 or shall be imprisoned not more than one year, or both." (Italics added.)
A motion to dismiss the indictment, attacking the constitutionality of the statute, is now before the court. The charge is that defendant violated clause (3), italicized above, in that he wilfully failed to answer certain questions which are set forth in the indictment. There is no allegation that he refused to appear, to submit to a medical or psychiatric examination, or to submit to reasonable restrictions on his conduct; these requirements are not, therefore, directly involved, although incidental consideration of them is necessary.
The parties agree that this Act is an exercise by Congress of the power of the United States as a sovereign state to deal with aliens within its territory, Carlson v. Landon, 1952, 342 U.S. 524, 72 S.Ct. 525, 96 L.Ed. 547; United States v. Tandaric, 7 Cir., 1946, 152 F.2d 3, 5, certiorari denied 327 U.S. 786, 66 S.Ct. 703, 90 L.Ed. 1012. To be upheld, it must constitute a valid delegation of that power to the Attorney General, in terms definite enough to form a standard of guidance for his conduct. Winters v. New York, 1947, 333 U.S. 507, 515, 68 S.Ct. 665, 92 L.Ed. 840; Lichter v. United States, 1948, 334 U.S. 742, 786, 68 S.Ct. 1294, 92 L.Ed. 1694. Whether it does or not can be determined only by an examination of the section in its context: Title 8 U.S. C.A. § 1251 et seq., and the cases which have interpreted those sections. Section 1251 provides that any alien in the United States shall be deported upon the order of the Attorney General for causes there set forth; section 1252(b) prescribes the procedure for the entry of such an order. Pending determination of deportability, an alien may in the discretion of the Attorney General be continued in custody, or released on bond or conditional parole, section 1252(a). The Attorney General's discretion under this section is not unlimited, but may be reviewed by the courts to determine whether he acted reasonably. United States ex rel. Belfrage v. Shaughnessy, 2 Cir., 1954, 212 F.2d 128; U. S. ex rel. Hyndman v. Holton, 7 Cir., 1953, 205 F. 2d 228, 230; Ocon v. Landon, 9 Cir., 1954, 218 F.2d 320, 324. After the entry of a final deportation order, the Attorney
It is apparent from this summary of the deportation procedure that after the entry of a final order of deportation, the sole remaining power and duty of the Attorney General is to make sure that the alien departs from the country. It follows that the powers of supervision given him are intended as an aid in enforcing this power by making certain that the alien will be available for deportation when and if the time comes that this is possible. Clauses (1), (2), and (4) of the same subsection are reasonably calculated to fulfill this purpose. Clause (1), requiring the alien to submit himself for identification, is clearly helpful to that end; the requirement of physical examinations might be necessary to deportation to a particular country; and in (4), "to conform to such reasonable written restrictions on his conduct or activities as are prescribed by the Attorney General in his case", the word "reasonable" may be read as "those restrictions which tend to guarantee his availability for deportation." The same may be said of clause (3), of immediate concern here: "to give information * * * as to his nationality, circumstances, habits, associations, and activities, and such other information, whether or not related to the foregoing, as the Attorney General may deem fit and proper." This must be read to mean such information as is necessary to enable the Attorney General to be certain that the alien is holding himself in readiness to answer the call to be deported when it comes.
The Government urges that the Attorney General may, under this section, question the alien to determine not only his availability for deportation, but also to satisfy himself that the activities for which the alien was ordered...
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Siminoff v. Murff
...territory. See Carlson v. Landon, 1952, 342 U.S. 524, 534-537, 72 S.Ct. 525, 96 L.Ed. 547; United States v. Witkovich, D.C.N.D.Ill.1956, 140 F.Supp. 815, 817, affirmed 1957, 353 U.S. 194, 77 S.Ct. 779, 1 L.Ed.2d Resultantly, if the Order of Supervision imposed upon plaintiffs here is within......
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Sentner v. Colarelli, No. 9440(1).
...that the alien will be available for deportation. See the opinion of Judge Sullivan, in United States v. Witkovich, D.C.N.D. Ill., 140 F.Supp. 815, appeal pending, No. 295, 1956 The restrictions authorized by parts (1) and (2) of Section 242(d) are clearly directed solely toward that purpos......
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United States v. Witkovich, No. 295
...it did so, that the statute was unconstitutional. The District Court held that the statute as construed by it was not unconstitutional. 140 F.Supp. 815. Thereupon the United States filed a motion for clarification of the court's opinion, and appellee filed a supplemental motion to dismiss t......
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United States v. Oliver, No. 19497.
...discovered, and may be used in evidence against the defendant. The "Motion to Suppress the Evidence" as to the defendant Thelma J. 140 F. Supp. 815 Oliver is overruled, and in view of the stipulation, the court must find the defendant guilty on each of the three counts, as charged in the La......
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Siminoff v. Murff
...territory. See Carlson v. Landon, 1952, 342 U.S. 524, 534-537, 72 S.Ct. 525, 96 L.Ed. 547; United States v. Witkovich, D.C.N.D.Ill.1956, 140 F.Supp. 815, 817, affirmed 1957, 353 U.S. 194, 77 S.Ct. 779, 1 L.Ed.2d Resultantly, if the Order of Supervision imposed upon plaintiffs here is within......
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Sentner v. Colarelli, No. 9440(1).
...that the alien will be available for deportation. See the opinion of Judge Sullivan, in United States v. Witkovich, D.C.N.D. Ill., 140 F.Supp. 815, appeal pending, No. 295, 1956 The restrictions authorized by parts (1) and (2) of Section 242(d) are clearly directed solely toward that purpos......
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United States v. Witkovich, No. 295
...it did so, that the statute was unconstitutional. The District Court held that the statute as construed by it was not unconstitutional. 140 F.Supp. 815. Thereupon the United States filed a motion for clarification of the court's opinion, and appellee filed a supplemental motion to dismiss t......
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United States v. Oliver, No. 19497.
...and may be used in evidence against the defendant. The "Motion to Suppress the Evidence" as to the defendant Thelma J. 140 F. Supp. 815 Oliver is overruled, and in view of the stipulation, the court must find the defendant guilty on each of the three counts, as charged in the Last......