William Breese v. United States

• Decision Date: 28 October 1912
• Docket Number: No. 476,476
• Citation: 33 S.Ct. 1,226 U.S. 1,57 L.Ed. 97
• Parties: WILLIAM E. BREESE and Joseph E. Dickerson v. UNITED STATES
• Court: U.S. Supreme Court

226 U.S. 1

33 S.Ct. 1

57 L.Ed. 97

WILLIAM E. BREESE and Joseph E. Dickerson

v UNITED STATES.

No. 476.

Argued October 15, 1912.

Decided October 28, 1912.

Messrs. Charles A. Douglas, John S. Adams, Thomas Ruffin, James H. Merrimon, Gibbs L. Baker, and Hugh H. Obear for Breese and Dickerson.

[Argument of Counsel from pages 2-5 intentionally omitted] Assistant Attorney General Denison and Mr. Louis G. Bissell for the United States.

[Argument of Counsel from pages 5-7 intentionally omitted] Mr. Justice Holmes delivered the opinion of the court:

This case comes here on a certificate which may be summed up as follows: The defendants were indicted in 1897 under Rev. Stat. § 5440, U. S. Comp. Stat. 1901, p. 3676, for a conspiracy to embezzle funds of a national bank. In the following term, on November 6, 1897, they were ordered to plead, and pleaded not guilty; but the order provided that the plea should not 'prevent their taking advantage, upon motion in arrest of judgment, or on motion for a new trial, of all matters and things which could be taken advantage of by motion to quash or demurrer; upon motion in arrest of judgment or for a new trial, all such matters and things shall be heard and determined as if the same were being heard upon motion to quash or demurrer.' After the trial of another case, this one was called for trial at the May term, 1908. The defendants then pleaded in abatement and moved to quash on the ground of the disqualification of three grand jurors, but the plea and motion were not maintained by the facts. 172 Fed. 761. The case was put down for trial again on June 21, 1909. The defendants again pleaded in abatement and moved to quash on the ground that the foreman of the grand jury delivered the indictment to the judge during the session of the court, but in the absence of the other grand jurors. The court denied the plea and overruled the motion. A jury was sworn, the defendants were tried and found guilty, and after a motion for a new trial had been made on the same ground as above, and overruled, they were sentenced. 172 Fed. 768. The question is whether the last-mentioned plea and motions should have been sustained.

The facts are 'that more than twelve grand jurors voted to find the indictment a true bill. That when this action had been taken, the grand jury was in session in a room adjoining the court room, on the same floor, with a door opening into the court room. The foreman left the grand jury, went into the court room with the bill of indictment, and handed it to Judge Purnell, the presiding judge, in person, the judge being then on the bench and the court open, and that the judge looked over the indictment and handed it to the clerk in open court, and that the foreman then returned to the grand jury room and proceeded with the business of the grand jury there assembled; that the grand jury did not accompany him when he brought the bill of indictment into the court room and handed it to the court.' The mode of proceeding was the same as that prescribed by the laws of North Carolina. The clerk filed the indictment and made the following entry: 'United States v. W. E. Breese, W. H. Penland, and J. E. Dickerson, Indct.: Conspiracy and embezzlement, Oct. Term. 1897. 'A true bill. J. M. Allen, foreman.' In the above-entitled cause it is ordered by the court, upon motion of the district attorney, that the said cause, together with all the papers therein, be transferred to Asheville, to be there tried at the next term of the said court, to be held on the 1st Monday in November next.'

Six questions are certified, which are intended to present in detail whether, in the circumstances stated, the indictment should have been quashed. It is enough to

1. Is such an indictment absolutely void?

2. Should such indictment be quashed on motion of the defendants, first made after the expiration of the term at which the indictment was found, and after the final discharge of the grand jury which found it, the defendants not having, at or before the time of moving to quash, pleaded to said indictment?

3. Should such indictment be quashed on motion of the defendants, first made after the expiration of the term at which the indictment was found, and after the final discharge of the grand jury which found it, and after the overruling of an earlier verified motion to quash, made by the defendants on other grounds, in which said earlier motion to quash they had alleged that said indictment had been duly returned into open court by the grand jury, said second motion to quash having been made before the defendants had otherwise pleaded to the indictment?

4. Should such indictment be quashed on motion of the defendants, first made after the expiration of the term at which the indictment was found, and after the final discharge of the grand jury which found it, and after the defendants had pleaded not guilty to such indictment, but before a jury was sworn upon the issue joined upon such plea?

5. Would the defendants be entitled to have judgment arrested upon a verdict of guilty, returned upon such indictment?

6. Would defendants, who had pleaded not guilty to such an indictment under an order of court, by the terms of which such plea of not guilty should not operate or have the effect to prevent their taking advantage, upon motion in arrest of judgment or on motion for a new trial, of all matters and things which could be taken advantage of by motion to quash or demurrer, be entitled to have such indictment quashed on motion made by them after the expiration of the term at which the indictment had been found, and after the final...