Transcript Abel v. United States Presentation

ABEL V. UNITED STATES
362 U.S. 217 (1960)
Megan Garrett
BACKGROUND OF
RUDOLPH ABEL (PLANTIFF)
• Rudolph Ivanovich Abel
•
a citizen of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
•
a Colonel in the Soviet government’s espionage agency, K.G.B.
•
entered the United States illegally
•
turned into the F.B.I. by Reino Hayhanen in May of 1957
•
arrested on June 21, 1957 by I.N.S.
FOLLOWING ABEL’S ARREST
• tried for illegal immigration as well as espionage
• convicted and sentenced for both in the Eastern U.S. District
Court of New York
• appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit
• the court arrived at the same conclusion during the appeal
ABEL’S LAWYER
• James B. Donovan
•
American citizen
•
former insurance lawyer
•
defended Abel through the three trials
•
offered to the court the possibility of an exchange with the Soviet Union if they were
to capture an American spy
DEFENDANT
• The United States
• more accurately, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the
United States Immigration and Naturalization Services
CASE
• When appealed to the Supreme Court and was granted the petition for
certiorari, though there was no reason as to why the case was accepted.
• the argument was limited to two questions:
•
whether the Fourth and Fifth Amendments to the Constitution of the United States
are violated by a search and seizure of evidence without a search warrant in the case
of an illegal alien accused of espionage
•
whether the Fourth and Fifth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution are violated when
articles are seized unrelated to the I.N.S. warrant and are introduced as evidence for
espionage
MAJORITY DECISION
• On March 28, 1960, the court held in favor of the United States in the case
Abel v. United States with a final vote of 5-4.
• denied Abel’s claim that the F.B.I. used the I.N.S.’s administrative warrant
for illegitimate purposes
• the departments had every valid reason to cooperate in the situation, thus
there was no evidence of unlawful action in the case
• the Court upheld the lower courts’ belief that the evidence was obtained
solely for the purpose of Abel’s deportation, not to prosecute him for any
other crime
• also upheld that the searches that produced the evidence were proper
searches for the Government to have made and were not in violation of
Abel’s Fourth and Fifth Amendment rights
DISSENTING OPINION
• pointed out that the F.B.I. was the driving force of the arrest and had
plenty of time to get a search warrant
• also stated that the F.B.I. had directly violated Abel’s Fourth Amendment
protections through the arrest procedures
• said this case opens up law enforcement agencies to where they are no
longer under judicial control
POLITICAL IMPACT
• during the height of the Cold War
•
many were mad an American was defending a Soviet spy
• James Donovan used Abel to negotiate
•
made an exchange for :
•
Francis Gary Powers, a downed U-2 pilot
•
Yale student, Frederic L. Pryor
• Donovan was one of the only people who truly gained an understanding
of Abel throughout the cases and worked honestly to make sure he was
treated fairly
• The public hated Abel, so they were appalled that Donovan was audacious
enough to take it to the Supreme Court
MY OPINION
•
I disagree with the Supreme Court’s majority decision in the case
•
I believe that Rudolph Abel’s Fourth Amendment Constitutional rights were violated
when the F.B.I. and I.N.S. searched his belongings and obtained his property without
the proper warrants and approval
•
completely eliminated the judicial branch from the process by ignoring the need for
proper warrants
BRIDGE OF SPIES
• Movie released in 2015 starring Tom Hanks, Mark Rylance, Alan Alda,
Amy Ryan, Austin Stowell
• Based off of a novel by James Donovan called Strangers on a Bridge
•
describes the case and the entire situation, including the prisoner exchange
• Clip of Movie:
•
https://screen.yahoo.com/film-clip-bridge-spies-141803881.html
MOVIE-PHOTO COMPARISONS
WORKS CITED
•
•
•
•
Court Listener. Court Listener. October 13, 1958.
https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/245929/united-states-v-rudolphivanovich-abel-also-known-/ (accessed November 25, 2015).
Google Scholar. Abel v. United States, 362 US 217 - Supreme Court 1960.
March 28, 1960.
https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=12020591751465624112&q=ab
el+v.+United+States&hl=en&as_sdt=6,47&as_vis=1 (accessed November 25,
2015).
Graphiq, Inc. Abel, Alias Mark, Alias Collins, Alias Goldfus, v. United States.
July 2013. http://supreme-court-cases.insidegov.com/I/1548/Abel-AliasMark-Alias-Collins-Alias-Goldfus-v-United-States (accessed November 25,
2015).
History vs. Hollywood. History vs. Hollywood. 2015.
www.historyvshollywood.com/reelfaces/bridge-of-spies/ (accessed November
25, 2015).