[12645] in Commercialization & Privatization of the Internet
Gov demanding PGP key
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (DAN L. BURK)
Wed May 25 04:48:07 1994
Date: 24 May 94 23:08:00 EST
From: "DAN L. BURK" <DBURK@gmuvax.gmu.edu>
To: "com-priv" <com-priv@psi.com>
Willis Marti writes:
> Whatever happened to the 4th amendment? How can you advocate someone being
> imprisoned (for not responding to a subpeona, constitutional or not) without
> bail or without even being convicted of a crime?
The imprisonment is for contempt or court, and contempt comes in two flavors:
criminal and civil.
Civil contempt is (usually) for refusing to do something that the court has
ordered you to do. Criminal contempt is for doing something that the court has
ordered you *not* to do.
Persons jailed for civil contempt don't need to be convicted of a crime because
they haven't been accused of committing one. Bail isn't an issue, because they
can walk free any time that they decide to comply with the order -- they "have
the keys to the jailhouse in thier pocket" the lawyers say.
This occurs quite frequently, as for example with news reporters who refuse to
divulge their sources despite a subpeona to do so. Highly principled reporters
have stayed in jail for long periods of time because they refused to comply.
In the mntime, of course, you can attempt to convince the court that the
subpeona was wrongly issued, you can sometimes appeal, or whatever -- but
flat refusal is not going to get you anywhere but the slammer.
Unless, of course, the court decides to fine you instead of imprison you -- my
personal favorite is the geometrically progressive fine: $100 the first day you
refuse to comply, $200 the second day, $400 dollars the third day -- you get theidea.
If the contempt charge is criminal instead of civil, then the 4th, 5th and 6th
amendments kick in and you can demand bail, right to counsel, jury trial, and
all that other stuff you saw on "Perry Mason."
Dan L. Burk
dburk@gmuvax.gmu.edu
