The Volokh Conspiracy
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Today in Supreme Court History: October 29, 1942
10/29/1942: Published decision in Ex Parte Quirin released. At that point, six of the saboteurs had already been electrocuted.
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Alexander v. Holmes County Board of Education, 396 U.S. 19 (decided October 29, 1969): Court attempts to end “all deliberate speed” stalling by declaring that as of now any segregated school system is per se illegal
New York v. Eno, 155 U.S. 89 (decided October 29, 1894): federal courts can’t spring someone from state jail until state appeals process on federal question has run its course
Shell v. Mississippi, 498 U.S. 1 (decided October 29, 1990): capital murder conviction reversed because definition of “especially heinous, atrocious or cruel” given to jury was too vague
In Massachusetts there are three ways for a murder to be first degree murder: (1) premeditation, (2) felony murder involving a felony with a life sentence, (3) extreme atrocity and cruelty. The last is almost entirely subjective. If the victim did not die instantly, the victim suffered and that is cruelty. If the victim did die instantly, obviously the killer used too much force and that is atrocity. Sometimes it gets used for the guy who keeps hacking up his ex long after she is dead, but most of the time it’s an arbitrary choice by the prosecution and jury.
Massachusetts never reinstated capital punishment after the 1960s and the law never got reviewed under the special rules since made up for capital cases. First degree murder simply means not eligible for parole. And life without parole can be handed out at will. Except, in recent years, not to minors.
Thanks
The case of George Dasch represents just one more episode of FBI lies, manipulation and near failure followed by claims to have been the agency which was responsible for capturing the group of saboteurs.
If one does not know the complete story of FBI lies, even lying to President Roosevelt, it is worth reviewing:
https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/fbi-director-j-edgar-hoover-and-the-nazi-saboteur/
IIRC, one saboteur voluntarily turned in all his colleagues but Hoover wanted to make it look like the FBI’s meticulous detective work deserved the credit.
See my comment to “Today in Supreme Court History” for July 31.
Thanks for the link. Very interesting read.
Seems like in the intervening 80 years, nothing about how the FBI works has changed.
By the way, was it the right thing to apply the death penalty to the saboteurs?
The Germans tried this a 2nd time,– in Dec of 1944 put two guys ashore in DownEast Maine, in a snowstorm, wearing city clothing.
They very much were noticed.
A local gave them a ride to Bangor and then told the FBI they were on the train to Bangor. FBI did nothing and then one went to them. Military trial but Truman commuted execution with Eisenhower releasing them
I had not heard that before! Interesting and it sounds like another repeat of the incompetence of the FBI.
Operation Magpie http://www.americainwwii.com/articles/nazi-spies-come-ashore/
We don’t know about those who didn’t get caught.
Of course a surfaced submarine drew 15 feet (a lobster boat is 2-3) and Penobscot Bay is FULL of volcanic ledges just below the surface. I’d be REALLY worried about bringing a sub in close.
When the Nazis sent saboteurs to America, they weren’t sending their best.
That might be true, or it might just be a judgment based on the caliber of the ones we happened to catch.
This line in the linked decision puzzled me: “On the night of June 13, 1942, Burger, Heinrich, Quirin, and Dasch landed near Long Island, New York wearing German uniforms and carrying explosives.”
If they were in uniform, on what grounds could the non-Americans have been tried rather than merely captured and held? Or did they change into mufti before proceeding further?
They changed shortly after landing. The idea was they were most likely to be captured during the landing, so they wore uniforms (or partial uniforms, enough to trigger POW status under the Geneva Conventions) but then ditched the uniforms once they felt they could safely blend in with the populace.
Obviously they wouldn’t want to be traveling around the US committing acts of sabotage while wearing German uniforms lol.
Nice elaboration. Thanks.
That explains it. I wondered how the first paragraph could say the saboteurs were in uniform and the Supreme Court opinion could say they were not.
Perfect, thanks!
FWIW I recall some British ops in WWII where the saboteurs had clothes that could pass for uniforms, and small buttons with Union Jacks, so that if captured they could argue that they were not in civilian clothes. I don’t recall if any were captured and tried that line, and IIRC Hitler wanted saboteurs summarily shot anyway.