7 Op. O.L.C. 75
Authority for the Removal of Fugitive Felons Apprehended Under 18 U.S.C. § 1073
Authority for the Removal of Fugitive Felons
Apprehended Under 18 U.S.C. § 1073
An individual charged with a violation of the Fugitive Felon Act, 18 U.S.C. § 1073, which makes
it a federal offense to travel interstate to avoid a state felony prosecution, among other things,
may be “prosecuted” only in the federal judicial district in which the original state crime was
committed, or from which he fled, and “only upon formal approval in writing by the Attorney
General or an Assistant Attorney General of the United States, which function of approving
prosecutions may not be delegated.”
Under Rule 40 of the FedeAl Rules of Criminal Procedure, an individual who is charged with a
federal offense in one district and is apprehended in another may be brought back before the
court in which the federal charges are pending against him. A court’s duty to order removal
under Rule 40 is not dependent upon a subsequent federal prosecution.
The Department of Justice has interpreted the term “prosecution” in the Fugitive Felon Act to
include all steps in the federal criminal process after a fugitive has been taken into federal
custody, including removal to the district in which the federal charges against him are
pending, pursuant to Rule 40. The Department has also determined that the formal approval
required by 18 U.S.C. § 1073 may not be given if the federal prosecution is not to be
subsequently pursued. Although nothing in the legislative history of the Fugitive Felon Act or
relevant case law mandates this interpretation, it is not clear whether a court would require
formal written approval before issuing a Rule 40 removal order.
Federal removal under Rule 40 has been upheld against a Fugitive Felon Act defendant’s claim
that he was constitutionally entitled to extradition under state law. However, the Fugitive
Felon Act was not intended to supplant state extradition procedures, and federal removal
procedures should not be used to accomplish a Fugitive Felon Act defendant’s return for
prosecution or other appropriate disposition by the State. The policy considerations involved
in making such a determination underscore the wisdom of the Department’s requirement for
formal approval for Rule 40 removal of Fugitive Felon Act defendants.
The cost of transporting a Fugitive Felon Act defendant pursuant to a court order under Rule 40
may be paid out of funds appropriated for the authorized activities of the United States
Marshal. All or part of the cost of transportation may voluntarily be borne by the State seeking
the fugitive’s return, although any monies received from a State must be deposited into the
general fund of the Treasury.
March 21, 1983
M e m o r a n d u m O p i n i o n f o r t h e D i r e c t o r ,
E x e c u t i v e O f f i c e f o r U n i t e d S t a t e s A t t o r n e y s
This memorandum responds to your request for our opinion whether a
fugitive apprehended by federal authorities under the Fugitive Felon Act, 18
75
U.S.C. § 1073, may be removed to the jurisdiction from which he fled, pursu-
ant to Rule 40 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, if the sole purpose of
removal is to return the fugitive to the custody of authorities in the State from
which he fled. In the event federal removal is permissible in this situation, you
wish to know the permissible source of funds to pay its costs.
Your request derives from an exchange of correspondence between the
United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and the Assis-
tant Attorney General, Criminal Division. In 1982, the United States Attorney
for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania wrote to the Criminal Division request-
ing reconsideration of the policy set forth in § 9-69.450 of the United States
Attorneys Manual (Manual). That section provides that “removal proceedings
under Rule 40” shall not be instituted in § 1073 cases without the written
approval of the Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division.1 The United
States Attorney stated that “the present Department policy which prohibits
routine federal removal of [§ 1073] defendants is inconsistent with the
Department’s emphasis on federal-state law enforcement cooperation, and
inhibits effective law enforcement.” The Criminal Division’s position is that
the Department’s policy of requiring written approval before removal in § 1073
cases is mandated by § 1073 itself. Furthermore, such approval may not be
given where the government does not intend to pursue a federal prosecution
under that statute. This latter position, as more fully developed in discussions
with Criminal Division staff, is based not only upon an interpretation of the
federal government’s authority under the Fugitive Felon Act, as amended in
1961, but also upon a concern that a federal defendant removed under Rule 40
for the sole purpose of facilitating a state prosecution could claim some
constitutional or statutory entitlement to be processed under state laws govern-
ing interstate rendition.2
We have examined the legislative history of § 1073 and its judicial and
administrative interpretations in the half century since its original enactment.
Although we find no basis on which to disagree with the Criminal Division’s
position with respect to its policy of requiring written approval for removal in
§ 1073 cases, we do not believe the situations in which such approval may be
given are limited to those in which a decision has been made to pursue a federal
prosecution under that statute. For reasons more fully discussed below, we
believe the federal government’s broad authority under § 1073 to assist local
' The reference in § 9-69.450 to “removal proceedings under Rule 40” does not appear to reflect the 1979
amendments to Rule 40 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure. See Pub. L. No. 96-42, 93 Stat. 326
(1979). The 1979 amendments abolished the “warrant of removal” by which a federal court previously
directed return o f a defendant arrested in “a distant district,” i.e., on a warrant issued in another State at a
place 100 miles or more from the place of arrest. Although a warrant of removal is no longer required under
Rule 40 in order to accomplish the transfer o f prisoners in federal custody from one district to another, the
term “removal" is used throughout this memorandum to indicate the judicial procedure whereby a federal
defendant is returned to the jurisdiction of the court in which the federal charges against him are pending.
2
As we understand it, the Criminal Division’s position is based upon its interpretation of federal authority
under § 1073, and not upon some independent limitation upon a court’s authority under Rule 40 to order
removal if federal charges are not to be pursued.
76
law enforcement agencies in the apprehension of fugitive felons or witnesses
permits it to return a fugitive to the jurisdiction from which he fled for
prosecution or other appropriate disposition by the State. Furthermore, a defen-
dant subject to removal under Rule 40 has no federal constitutional or statutory
right to be extradited under state law. Federal removal should, however, be
sought only in those situations where existing interstate rendition procedures
cannot be relied upon to bring a fugitive to justice.
Finally, the cost of transporting a federal § 1073 defendant pursuant to a
federal court order under Rule 40 may be paid from funds appropriated for the
authorized activities of the United States Marshal responsible for carrying out
the court’s order. Although all or part of this cost may be reimbursed by the
State seeking the fugitive’s return, any monies received from the State must be
deposited directly into the general fund of the Treasury.
I. Section 1073, Rule 40, and Current Departmental
Practice in Fugitive Cases
A. Section 1073
Section 1073 of Title 18, the so-called Fugitive Felon Act, makes it a federal
offense to travel interstate for the purpose of avoiding a state felony prosecu-
tion, or custody or confinement after conviction, or to avoid giving testimony
in a state criminal prosecution or investigation.3 Under the venue provisions of
§ 1073, an individual charged with a violation may be “prosecuted” only in the
federal judicial district in which the original state crime was committed, or
from which he fled, and “only upon formal approval in writing by the Attorney
General or an Assistant Attorney General of the United States, which function
of approving prosecutions may not be delegated.”
3 Section 1073 provides in full as follows:
§ 1073. Flight to avoid prosecution or giving testimony
Whoever moves or travels in interstate or foreign commerce with intent either (1) to avoid
prosecution, or custody or confinement after conviction, under the laws of the place from which
he flees, for a cnme, or an attempt to commit a crime, punishable by death or which is a felony
under the laws of the place from which the fugitive flees, or which, in the case of New Jersey, is
a high misdemeanor under the laws o f said State, or (2) to avoid giving testimony in any criminal
proceedings in such place in which the commission of an offense punishable by death or which is
a felony under the laws o f such place, or which in the case o f New Jersey, is a high misdemeanor
under the laws of said State, is charged, or (3) to avoid service of, or contempt proceedings for
alleged disobedience of, lawful process requiring attendance and the giving of testimony or the
production o f documentary evidence before an agency of a State empowered by the law of such
State to conduct investigations of alleged criminal activities, shall be fined not more then $5,000
or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.
Violations of this section may be prosecuted only in the Federal judicial district in which the
original cnme was alleged to have been committed, or in which the person was held in custody or
confinement, or in which an avoidance of service of process or a contempt referred to in clause
(3) o f the first paragraph of this section is alleged to have been committed, and only upon formal
approval in writing by the Attorney General or an Assistant Attorney General of the United
States, which function of approving prosecutions may not be delegated.
77
The Fugitive Felon Act has been sustained against constitutional challenge
as a valid exercise of Congress’ power to regulate interstate commerce, U.S.
Const, art. I, § 8, cl. 3. See, e.g.. United States v. Bando, 244 F.2d 833 (2d Cir.
1957); Barker v. United States, 178 F.2d 803 (5th Cir. 1949); Hemans v.
United States, 163 F.2d 228 (6th Cir.), cert, denied, 332 U.S. 801 (1947);
United States v. Brandenburg, 144 F.2d 656 (2d Cir. 1944); Simmons v. Zerbst,
18 F. Supp. 929 (N.D. Ga. 1939). The “general purpose of the Act was to assist
in the enforcement of state laws,” United States v. Brandenburg, 144 F.2d at
659, and its enforcement has been held not to violate the rights of the States
under the Tenth Amendment. See United States v. Miller, 17 F. Supp. 65, 68
(W.D. Ky. 1936); Lupino v. United States, 185 F. Supp. 363, 368 (D. Minn.
1960). In Miller, the district court explained that
[Congress] may make a crime the use of interstate commerce by
a fleeing criminal in order to aid the states in the apprehension of
the guilty and make certain, swift, and sure the punishment of
those who commit crimes against the states. If such power be
not lodged in the Congress, then the unity of our people to deal
with crime is destroyed and the states crippled in punishing
those who violate their laws and flee to another state.
17 F. Supp. at 68.
The venue provisions of § 1073 have been interpreted consistently with this
general purpose of assisting state law enforcement:
[T]he primary purposes of the venue section of § 1073 [are] to
return the felon to the state where the original flight occurred in
order to assist state officials in combating organized crime
there, and to vindicate the federal interest in punishing acts
committed in the judicial district where the original flight took
place.
United States v. Thurman, 687 F.2d 11, 13 (3d Cir. 1982).
B. Rule 40
Rule 40 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure (“Commitment to
Another District”) describes the process whereby a person who is charged with
a federal offense in one district, and is apprehended in another, may be brought
back before the court in which the federal charges are pending against him.
Rule 40(a) provides that “if a person is arrested in a district other than that in
which the offense is alleged to have been committed, he shall be taken before
the nearest available federal magistrate.” Preliminary proceedings are held
before the magistrate to determine that the apprehended fugitive is the indi-
vidual named in the arrest warrant. If no indictment has been returned against
him in the district where the warrant was issued, the magistrate must also
determine that there is probable cause that he committed the crime for which he
78
is to be “held to answer in the district court in which the prosecution is
pending.”4
Rule 40 does not explicitly provide for a federal prisoner’s transportation to
the jurisdiction in which the charges against him are pending. If a defendant is
admitted to bail, or released on his own recognizance, he is expected to present
himself in the proper court at the proper time. If the magistrate has not
approved the prisoner’s release, however, he remains in the custody of the U.S.
Marshal, who is responsible for seeing that the magistrate’s removal order is
carried out by transporting the defendant to the court in which the charges
against him are pending. See 28 U.S.C. § 567; 28 C.F.R. § 0.1 ll(j).
The procedural protections embodied in Rule 40 are not constitutionally
required, but were developed as a matter of sound judicial policy. Unlike
extradition, which involves a demand of one sovereign upon another, and
implicates “the protection owed by a sovereign to those within its territory,”
United States ex rel. Kassin v. Mulligan, 295 U.S. at 396, 400 (1935), the
process by which a federal defendant is returned for trial theoretically involves
only a physical transfer from one judicial district to another within a single
sovereign’s territory. See United States v. Godwin, 97 F. Supp. 252, 255 (W.D.
Ark.), ajfd, 191 F.2d 932 (5th Cir. 1951) (“the several judicial districts are not
foreign to each other . . . but are simply convenient subdivisions . . . of one
sovereign, the United States”). The purpose of Rule 40 is “to afford defendants
reasonable protection, to safeguard them against improvident removal to a
distant point for trial and to curb a defendant’s opportunity for delay and
obstruction of prosecution.” United States v. McCord, 695 F.2d 823, 826 (5th
Cir.), cert, denied, 460 U.S. 1073 (1983). See also Notes of the Advisory
Committee on the 1945 Rules, 18 U.S.C. app. (1976).5
4 Rule 40(a) provides in full as follows:
(a) Appearance Before Federal Magistrate
If a person is arrested in a district other than that in which the offense is alleged to have been
committed, he shall be taken without unnecessary delay before the nearest available federal
magistrate. Preliminary proceedings concerning the defendant shall be conducted in accordance
with Rules 5 and 5 1, except that if no preliminary examination is held because an indictment has
been returned or an information filed or because the defendant elects to have the preliminary
examination conducted in the distnct in which the prosecution is pending, the person shall be
held to answer upon a finding that he is the person named in the indictment, information or
warrant. If the defendant is held to answer, he shall be held to answer in the district court in which
the prosecution is pending, provided that a warrant is issued in that district if the arrest was made
without a warrant, upon production of the warrant or a certified copy thereof.
s A federal court's authonty and duty to effectuate a federal prisoner’s commitment to the distnct in which
federal charges against him are pending was first set forth m § 33 of the Judiciary Act of 1789. That section
provided that “it shall be the duty of the judge of the district where the delinquent is impnsoned, seasonably
to issue, and o f the Marshal of the same district to execute a warrant for the removal of the offender,... to the
district in which the trial is to be had.” 1 Stat. 73, 91 (1789). This provision was later codified virtually
unchanged in § 1014 of the Revised Statutes, and brought forward as § 591 of Title 18 of the United States
Code (1940). It was repealed in 1948, three years after the Supreme Court’s promulgation of Rule 40. In the
early years of the Republic, it was the frequent practice for many district courts to issue a warrant of removal
at the same time they issued a warrant of arrest. Upon his apprehension, the defendant was immediately
returned to the district which had issued the warrant, and was thus effectively deprived of any hearing on the
question of his removal. This practice was disapproved as a matter o f judicial policy in such cases as United
Continued
79
Ordinarily, a court has no discretion to refuse to order removal, provided the
requisite showing of identity and probable cause has been made. A removal
order is not appealable. See Galloway v. United States, 302 F.2d 457 (10th Cir.
1962). Neither the sufficiency of the charges nor the constitutionality of the
statute on which those charges are based can be raised in a removal hearing,
though these may of course be challenged in the district court in which the
charges are pending. See United States v. Winston, 267 F. Supp. 555 (S.D.N.Y.
1967); Wright v. Cartier, 10 F.R.D. 21 (D. Mass. 1950).6
A district court’s authority and responsibility under Rule 40 and its statutory
predecessors has never been held to depend upon the likelihood of subsequent
federal prosecution. There is, for example, no requirement that an indictment
be returned in the court to which removal is sought. See Fetters v. United
States, 283 U.S. 638 (1931); Greene v. Henkel, 183 U.S. 249 (1902). This is
evident on the face of the Rule, which requires that the government prosecutor
establish probable cause only if no indictment has been returned or information
filed in the district to which removal is sought. A court’s duty to order removal
is thus not conditioned upon the government prosecutor’s declared willingness
to seek an indictment and proceed to trial.
C. Departmental Enforcement Policy in § 1073 Cases
The Department’s policy on enforcement of § 1073 is set forth in the United
States Attorneys Manual at §§ 9-69.400 et seq. As stated in the Manual, that
3 (. . . continued)
States v. Shepard, 27 F. Cas. 1056 (E.D. Mich. 1870) (No. 16,273); United States v. Jacobi, 26 F. Cas. 564
(W.D. Tenn. 1871) (No. 15,460); and United States v. Yarborough, 122 F. 293 (W.D. Va. 1903). In these
early cases, the courts recognized the importance of ensuring against mistaken identity or the absence of
probable cause before ordering a defendant transported what might be hundreds of miles for trial. At the same
time, however, they were unwilling to allow a defendant to force a trial on the merits at the removal stage, at
best delaying his return and potentially frustrating prosecution entirely. In promulgating Rule 40 in 1945, the
Supreme Court sought to strike a balance between these two concerns. See generally Holtzoff, Removal o f
Defendants in Federal Criminal Procedure, 4 F.R.D. 455 (1945); 8B M oore's Federal Practice *2 40.04 at
40-24(1980).
As originally promulgated in 1945, Rule 40 distinguished between persons taken into federal custody in a
“nearby district” {i.e., on a warrant issued in the same State or within 100 miles) and persons arrested in a
“distant district.” Persons in the latter category could be returned for prosecution only upon the issuance of a
“warrant o f removal” by a district judge. No warrant of removal was necessary to return a person arrested in
a “nearby district,” who, like a state prisoner transported across the State for trial, was “transported by virtue
of the process under which he was arrested.” See Notes of the Advisory Committee on the 1945 Rules, Rule
40(a), 18 U.S.C. app. (1976). The 1979 amendments to Rule 40 abolished the “warrant of removal” and
elim inated the distinction between the procedures applicable to arrest in “distant” and “nearby” districts. The
Notes o f the Advisory Committee on the 1979 amendments to the Rules explained that the preliminary
proceedings previously applicable under Rule 40(a) to persons arrested in a “nearby” district were “adequate
to protect the rights o f an arrestee wherever he might be arrested,” and would henceforth apply in all cases of
commitment to another district. See Rule 40(a), 18 U.S.C. app. (1980).
6
We are aware of two cases in which a district court declined to order removal on grounds that “special
facts were disclosed that seemed to make questionable the propriety of removal.” United States v. Johnson,
63 F. Supp. 615, 616 (D. Or. 1945); United States v. Parker, 14 F.R.D. 146 (D.D.C. 1953). In Johnson, the
district court in Oregon refused to order the defendant's removal to the District of Columbia, declining to
give the latter jurisdiction's criminal child support statute “extraterritorial application.” In Parker, the court
refused to order removal in a situation suggesting government harassment of the defendant.
80
policy is grounded in the theory that “the primary purpose of the [Fugitive
Felon] Act is to permit the Federal Government to assist in the location and
apprehension of fugitives from State justice.” Accordingly, federal § 1073
charges are rarely pursued beyond the point of a fugitive’s apprehension by
federal law enforcement authorities.7 Ordinarily, after the federal § 1073 pris-
oner has been taken before the nearest available federal magistrate pursuant to
Rule 40(a), he is turned over to authorities in the State of arrest for extradition
to the State from which he fled.8
Occasionally, however, a federal § 1073 prosecution will be pursued. In
such a case, once preliminary proceedings under Rule 40 have been completed
(or waived), the magistrate is requested to issue an order under Rule 40(a)
directing that the apprehended fugitive be committed to the jurisdiction of the
federal court in which the § 1073 charges are pending against him. It is this
latter court which, under the venue provisions of § 1073, has jurisdiction over
the federal criminal case.
Section 9-69.450 of the Manual restates the statutory requirement that
§ 1073 “prosecutions” may be “initiated” only upon the written approval of the
Attorney General or an Assistant Attorney General:
The 1961 amendment to the Act incorporated existing adminis-
trative practice by requiring approval by the Attorney General
or Assistant Attorney General, in writing, before initiation of
prosecution for unlawful flight to avoid prosecution, or custody
or confinement after conviction, or to avoid giving testimony.
Accordingly, under no circumstances should an indictment un-
der the Act be sought nor an information be filed nor should
removal proceedings under Rule 40, F. R. Crim. P., be instituted
without the written approval of the Assistant Attorney General,
Criminal Division.
Section 9-29.450, as interpreted by the Criminal Division, incorporates two
legal conclusions: (1) The statutory term “prosecution” in the final paragraph
7 We understand from the Criminal Division that there have been only two or three federal § 1073
prosecutions since 1961.
8 Under Rule 40(a) it is the magistrate’s responsibility to conduct preliminary proceedings to determine that
the defendant is the person named in the federal arrest warrant, and that there is probable cause to believe that
a violation of § 1073 was committed. See supra note 5. The fugitive “should remain in Federal custody or on
bail or other conditions of release only so long as is necessary to permit his commitment to the authorities in
the State where apprehended.” See § 9-69.430. Asylum state authorities are generally willing to take custody
o f the fugitive, and the magistrate is willing to approve release from federal custody with this understanding.
The demanding State may already have begun the extradition process by the time custody has shifted. The
United States Attorney in the district where the federal complaint was filed then moves for its dismissal, and
there is no further federal involvement. See § 9-69.431; see also 8B M oore's Federal Practice, 140.04 at 40-
23(1980).
The process o f extradition is not always a smooth one. The Manual notes the possibility that the demanding
State will be unwilling to extradite, or that extradition will be attempted but fail. See § 9-69.431. The same
section also mentions the possible difficulties associated with the return of fugitive witnesses, to whom State
extradition procedures do not apply. In addition, State courts may release the fugitive on low bail before the
extradition process can be completed, providing a new occasion for interstate flight and federal involvement
under § 1073.
81
of § 1073 for which written approval is required includes all steps in the federal
criminal process after a fugitive has been taken into federal custody, including
removal to the district in which the federal charges against him are pending;
and (2) such approval may not lawfully be given if the federal prosecution
under § 1073 is not to be subsequently pursued. Accordingly, the Criminal
Division’s position on the questions hereinafter considered is that § 1073 itself
precludes removal of a defendant in a § 1073 case unless there has been a
formal departmental decision, approved in writing by the Assistant Attorney
General, to indict and bring to trial on the federal charges.
The text of § 1073 affords no clear guidance on the scope to be given the
statutory term “prosecution,” or more generally on the permissibility of using
federal removal procedures to secure the return of § 1073 defendants in aid of a
state prosecution. Accordingly, we must review the legislative history of
§ 1073 to determine whether the Criminal Division’s position on these issues,
as described above, is correct.
M. LegisDative Hnstory of § 1®73
A. The 1934 Act
The Fugitive Felon Act, Pub. L. No. 73-233,48 Stat. 782 (1934), was one of
a series of thirteen major crime bills proposed by the Roosevelt Administration
and passed by Congress in 1934. As originally enacted, the Act made it a
federal offense to travel interstate to avoid prosecution for certain specified
state felonies, or to avoid giving testimony in certain state criminal proceed-
ings. The Act originated in a series of hearings on organized crime held in 1933
in different parts of the country by a subcommittee of the Senate Committee on
Commerce. Investigation of So-Called “Rackets": Hearings Pursuant to S.
Res. 74, 73d Cong., 2d Sess. (1933) (1933 Senate Hearings). The hearings
explored the difficulties which state law enforcement agencies were experienc-
ing in dealing with interstate crime. One of the frequently mentioned problems
was the complicated and inefficient process of state extradition. See, e.g., 1933
Senate Hearings at 177 (statement of Hon. William M ’Kay Stillman, Judge of
the Criminal Court in Detroit); 210 (statement of John P. Smith, Chief of Police
of Detroit, Michigan); 293 (statement of H.D. Harper, Chief of Police of
Colorado Springs, Colorado).
During the course of the hearings, Harry S. Toy, the Prosecuting Attorney of
Wayne County, Michigan, introduced into the hearing record a legislative
proposal which would make interstate flight a federal crime. 1933 Senate
Hearings at 198. Mr. Toy was particularly concerned with the problem of
fugitive witnesses, to whom most state extradition procedures did not apply.9
Senator Copeland, who chaired the subcommittee, questioned Mr. Toy closely
9
Id 1934, only ten States had enacted statutes providing for the interstate rendition of witnesses in criminal
proceedings. See Commissioner’s Prefatory Note to 1936 Revision of Uniform Act to Secure the Attendance
of W itnesses from W ithout the State in Criminal Proceedings, 11 U.L.A. 2 (1974).
82
about the possibility whether, under the legislation he had proposed, “a witness
brought back by the Federal court might then be turned over to the State court
for such action as it proposes.” Id. at 199. He was concerned that Mr. Toy’s
proposed legislation would be held unconstitutional because it would “evade
the extradition clause of the Constitution to bring this man back into the
jurisdiction of the Federal court,” only to “serve the papers upon him for action
in the State court.” Id. at 204.10 Senator Vandenburg disagreed on the constitu-
tionality of the proposed legislation. Significantly, however, both Senators
believed that the legislation would permit federal return of a fugitive felon or
witness for state prosecution.
On January 11, 1934, Senator Copeland introduced Mr. Toy’s proposed
legislation, with certain changes in its venue provisions." In his floor state-
ment, he again expressed his reservations about the constitutionality of a bill
which would permit the “circumvention” of state extradition procedures:
[Senator Vandenburg] thinks he sees in this an opportunity to
help the State courts . . . . He hopes that a witness to a crime
against the State law may, by the operation of this proposed law,
be brought back by the United States district court, and then,
when the witness is returned and within the jurisdiction of the
State court, that he may be turned over to the State court for the
benefit of the State authorities in carrying on the prosecution. Of
course, I do not think that can be done . . . .
78 Cong. Rec. 453 (1934). The Attorney General, in comments on the bill
prepared for the House Committee on the Judiciary, appeared to explain that
the bill would assist the States in providing an alternative to extradition to
secure the return of fugitives:
This bill will not prevent the States from obtaining extradition
of roving criminals but the complicated process of extradition
has proved to be very inefficient. . . . By an amendment in the
Senate this bill was clarified to assure that the defendant shall be
tried only where the ‘original crime is alleged to have been
committed.
H.R. Rep. No. 1458, 73d Cong., 2d Sess. 1-2 (1934).
The “amendment in the Senate” to which the Attorney General referred was
an addition to the bill’s venue provisions made on the floor of the Senate.
Senator Steiwer had expressed concern about whether the venue provisions in
10 It is not clear whether Senator Copeland* s constitutional concern related to possible rights of States under
the Extradition Clause, or to the possible right of an individual to be extradited, or to both. Charles F. Boots,
Legislative Counsel to the Senate, who also commented for the record on the constitutionality of Mr. Toy's
draft legislation, was concerned that “such procedure could well be challenged as withholding from the
defendant the right to a speedy trial on the Federal charge.” 1933 Senate Hearings at 200-03.
11 The venue provisions in Mr. Toy’s bill would have permitted federal prosecution in any federal district
“from, through, or into which any person shall flee.” 1933 Senate Hearings at 1989. The analogous provisions
of S. 2253 limited venue to the “Federal judicial district in which the cnm e was committed.”
83
the bill as originally introduced could be construed to require trial on the
federal charges in the district where the fugitive was apprehended. Senator
Copeland agreed to a clarifying amendment, explaining that the bill’s purpose,
at least in the case of fugitive witnesses, was to facilitate state prosecutions by
securing their return to the jurisdiction from which they had fled:
Of course the State could make it a felony for a witness to flee
the jurisdiction of the court, but the State would have no power
to bring the witness back. In this case, however, if he is an
important witness to a murder, or to a gang operation, and flees
to another State, he becomes guilty of a felony, and may be
brought back by the district court or by the Federal Govern-
ment. So there can be no doubt that in apprehending criminals
and in bringing them to book this is an important bill, and one
which should be passed.
78 Cong. Rec. 5736 (1934) (emphasis added). Senator Steiwer responded that
“I think the purpose just explained by the Senator is a very proper purpose,”
and that “I agree thoroughly that the accused ought to go back to the State from
which he flees .. . .” Id. at 5936-39.
The foregoing legislative history indicates that the sponsors of the 1934 Act
expected that it could be used to assist state authorities by securing the return of
fugitives. Although existing state rendition procedures might have been avail-
able to obtain the return of fugitives from another State’s criminal justice
system, those procedures were often “inefficient,” and in any event did not
always apply to fugitive witnesses. To be sure, there was disagreement among
the sponsors of the bill as to how far federal law enforcement agencies could
constitutionally go in “assisting” the States in this regard, if state extradition
procedures were otherwise available. But there seems little doubt that its
sponsors intended the bill which passed in 1934 to authorize federal removal to
the extent constitutionally permissible.12
B. The 1961 Amendments to § 1073
In 1961 the Kennedy administration proposed amendments to the Fugitive
Felon Act which brought within its scope all felonies or offenses punishable
under state law by more than one year in prison.13 See Pub. L. No. 87-368, 75
Stat. 795 (1961). The purpose o f the amendments was to “permit the Federal
government to give greater aid and assistance to the States.” The Attorney
G eneral’s Program to Curb Organized Crime and Racketeering: Hearings
12 There is no suggestion in the legislative history of the 1934 Act that Congress considered the scope of a
federal court's authority and obligation to order a federal prisoner's commitment to another district under
then-existing law. In 1934, federal removal was governed by the provisions of 18 U.S.C. § 591, which made
it the “duty" of a federal court to execute a warrant for a prisoner's removal “to the distnct where the trial is
to be had." See 18 U.S.C. § 591 (1934)
13 As originally enacted, the Fugitive Felon Act applied only to specifically enumerated crimes. See S. Rep.
No. 586, 87th Cong., 1st Sess. 2 (1961).
84
Before the Senate Comm, on the Judiciary, 87th Cong., 1st Sess. 15 (1961)
(1961 Senate Hearings) (testimony of Attorney General Kennedy). See also
Legislation Relating to Organized Crime: Hearings Before a Subcomm. o f the
House Comm, on the Judiciary, 87th Cong., 1st Sess. 42 (1961) (1961 House
Hearings) (the purpose of the amendments is “to help and assist the States”).
The legislative history of the 1961 amendments reflects Congress’ expecta-
tion that the law, as amended, would “provide either for Federal trials of the
persons apprehended or their return to the proper State jurisdiction fo r pros-
ecution or other appropriate State a c t i o n H.R. Rep. No. 827, 87th Cong., 1 st
Sess. at 2 (1961) (1961 House Report) (emphasis added). See also id. at 7
(expressing concern that, should the category of covered state crimes be
expanded, “State officials would ask for Federal help in seeking the return of
every one of these fugitives, especially since the request would relieve the State
of costs”) (minority views of Rep. Libonati).
Both the House and Senate Reports referred with approval to the Justice
Department’s then-existing enforcement policy. They also noted that “the
Department of Justice does not anticipate that its established practice under
existing law will be altered by the proposed broadening of the Fugitive Felon
Act.” S. Rep. No. 586, 87th Cong., 1st Sess. 2 (1961). See also 1961 House
Report at 2. Inter alia, that policy “require[d] the approval of an appropriate
Assistant Attorney General before an indictment or a Federal removal proceed-
ing may be instituted.” See Letter from Deputy Attorney General Byron R.
White (Aug. 23, 1961), reprinted in 107 Cong. Rec. 15757 (1961) (House); id.
at 19240 (Senate).14
During the debates on the bill in the House, there were several unsuccessful
attempts to write certain aspects of the Department’s practice into the law
itself. The consensus of the House members, however, was it would unneces-
sarily hamper federal law enforcement efforts to attempt to legislate the details
of what was regarded as a successful experiment in federal-state cooperation.
Thus, for example, the House rejected an amendment which would have
limited the issuance of a federal complaint under the statute to situations in
14
It would appear that, at least prior to 1961, the Department interpreted the Fugitive Felon Act to permit
the use of federal removal procedures to secure the return of a fugitive for state prosecution:
Having once apprehended a fugitive defendant or witness the Department has solved the first
problem for the local prosecutor who can then follow the well- established rendition procedure.
Should this fa il fo r a variety o f reasons the way is still open to remove the fugitive under Federal
process and return him to the jurisdiction where the original crime was committed. There the
federal government could turn him over to state authorities or try him under the Fugitive Felon
law, or both.
From the debates in Congress it is evident that uppermost in the minds of some Senators was
the thought that the Act would operate to secure the return of the fugitive felon or witness. The
venue provision alone makes that plain and it was agreed that such return was a proper purpose.
Memorandum from M.H. Helter, Head, Common Crimes Unit to F.X. Walker, Chief, General Crimes Section
(June 21, 1951) (emphasis added). See also Memorandum from Theron Caudle, Assistant Attorney General,
Criminal Division to S.A. Andretta, Administrative Assistant to the Attorney General, re: “Expenses of
Transporting Pnsoners under Fugitive Felon Act who are Turned over to State Authorities for Prosecution”
(Apr. 4, 1947). In United States ex rel. Mills v. Reing, 191 F.2d 297, 300 (3d Cir. 1951), the court referred to
the government's concession during argument that “there have been cases where [§ 1073 defendants]
have been removed to the federal district of indictment and then surrendered forthwith to state custody.”
85
which a state prosecution had already been commenced. 107 Cong. Rec. at
15767-71 (1961).
On the other hand, Congressman Libonati was successful in adding to the
venue provisions of the statute a requirement that violations of the Act could be
prosecuted only upon the formal written approval of the Attorney General or
Assistant Attorney General. See 107 Cong. Rec. 15767 (1961). The amend-
ment by which this was effected was not the subject of any extended discussion
on the floor, but appears to have been responsive to the desires of several
House members to give a statutory framework to existing Justice Department
enforcement policy.
During the House debates, several Congressman referred specifically to the
use of federal removal procedures in § 1073 cases. Acknowledging that most
fugitives apprehended under § 1073 were returned through state extradition
procedures, they appear to have assumed that federal removal procedures had
been, and could continue to be, used to bring back fugitives for prosecution by
state authorities. For example, Rep. Corman stated:
It appears from the committee report and the letter of the
Department that the Fugitive Felon Act is used primarily as an
expeditious means of apprehending fleeing criminals to be re-
turned to the scene of their alleged crime for prosecution. It
further seems apparent that in those instances when this mission
is accomplished and State authorities do prosecute that the
Federal Government refrains from prosecution. I see no vio-
lence to justice under such procedure.
107 Cong. Rec. at 15771 (1961). See also id. at 15761 (objecting to the use of
§ 1073 to bring back fugitive witnesses to States which had not yet adopted
interstate rendition procedures for securing the return of witnesses) (remarks of
Rep. Whitener). In the Senate, there was some concern expressed that States
would attempt to use the federal removal process to secure the return of
fugitives in cases raising civil rights issues, where extradition was not likely to
succeed. See id. at 19242 (referring to alleged “misapplication” of the Act “in
cases involving civil rights matters”) (remarks of Sen. Keating).
In summary, the legislative history of the 1961 amendments to § 1073
indicates no intention on the part of Congress to remove any part of the
authority given federal law enforcement agencies under the 1934 Act. And,
although Congress expressed its approval of the existing Department of Justice
policies on enforcement of the Act, it resisted most proposals to write those
policies into the statute itself. The sole statutory limitation placed on federal
enforcement activities by the 1961 amendments was the requirement of formal
Department of Justice approval for “prosecution” of a violation. There is no
indication in the legislative history of the 1961 amendments that Congress
considered the potential applicability of this requirement to different phases of
a prosecution. Nor is there any evidence that Congress intended to limit the
86
Department’s discretionary authority to approve removal to those cases in
which a federal indictment would subsequently be sought.
III. Judicial Precedents Relating to Federal Removal of a § 1073
Defendant in Aid of a State Prosecution
Although several courts have referred in dictum to the government’s author-
ity to return a § 1073 defendant in aid of a state prosecution, only two cases
have directly considered and ruled upon the availability of federal removal
procedures for this purpose.15 In Wright v. Cartier, 10 F.R.D. 21 (D. Mass.
1950), an escapee from a Georgia prison was arrested in Massachusetts on a
federal § 1073 warrant issued by the district court in Georgia. He was brought
before a federal commissioner in Massachusetts, his identity was determined
and probable cause found, and he was “ordered returned to the State of
Georgia.” 10 F.R.D. at 22. The defendant filed a writ of habeas corpus,
charging that § 1073 was unconstitutional, “not because of its express provi-
sions or purpose, but because of its mode of operation with regard to him.” Id.
Specifically, he charged that:
the federal authorities never prosecute under the federal statute,
but simply turn over the fugitive to the state authorities for
prosecution under the state statute with the violation of which he
is charged. Petitioner contends that for members of the Negro
race this results in a deprivation of the opportunity at an extradi-
tion hearing to allege that the fugitive will not be given a fair
trial in the state seeking extradition and to petition exercise of
executive clemency in the state of refuge to prevent his return
for trial.
Id. at 22-23. The court refused to rule on the statute’s constitutionality in the
context of a habeas proceeding, however, stating that “if this petitioner makes
demand upon the United States Court in Georgia for his prosecution so that he
may there test the constitutionality of the Fugitive Felon Act, the Court will be
open to him.” Id. at 23.
In United States v. Love, 425 F. Supp. 1248 (S.D.N.Y. 1977), a fugitive from
a North Carolina murder charge, arrested in New York on a federal § 1073
warrant, attempted to avoid being turned over to New York authorities by
invoking removal procedures himself under Rule 40. The federal magistrate
15
See United States v. Thurman, 687 F.2d at 13 (one of “the primary purposes of the venue section of
§ 1073 is to return the felon to the state where the original flight occurred in order to assist state officials in
combatting organized crime there”); United States v. McCarthy, 249 F. Supp. 199, 203 (E.D.N.Y. 1966) (“the
1961 amendment did not diminish the power of the federal government to return the fugitive felon for state
prosecution”); Hemans v. United States, 163 F.2d at 240 (“if Congress regarded it as a duty to aid the states in
bringing back to their local jurisdictions fugitives from justice, or essential witnesses, that power exists”);
United States v. Miller, 17 F. Supp. at 67 (“The right o f extradition guaranteed to the states by the federal
government becomes too slow as a vehicle for swift punishment of criminals, and oftentimes any punishment
at all.”)
87
refused to issue the warrant, and directed the federal authorities to release the
fugitive to New York authorities for extradition. On review of the magistrate’s
order, Judge MacMahon held that
removal under Rule 40 is inappropriate in this case, for it would
result in the circumvention of valid state extradition laws as well
as unnecessary and extraordinary expense to the government in
the transportation of prisoners throughout the country.
425 F. Supp. at 1250. Judge MacMahon’s holding appears to be based on his
reading of the 1961 amendments to § 1073, which added to the statute the
requirement of written Department of Justice approval for any § 1073 prosecu-
tion. He noted that Congress had been “aware” of existing departmental en-
forcement practices when it amended § 1073 in 1961, and had “reinforced”
them by writing into the statute itself the requirement of written approval. 425
F. Supp. at 1249.
Notwithstanding some dicta that suggest a somewhat broader holding,16 the
Love opinion holds no more than that it would be “inappropriate” for a court to
order removal in a § 1073 case except in accordance with established Depart-
ment of Justice policies.17 Because in Love the federal defendant himself had
sought to invoke Rule 40, apparently without the support of any federal
official, the removal order would not be issued.18 No court has directly ruled
upon whether the requirement of formal written approval added to § 1073 in
1961 extends to removal as well as to subsequent stages in a federal prosecu-
16 Judge M acM ahon’s reference to a defendant’s “right to formal extradition proceedings,” 425 F. Supp. at
1250, is discussed in Part IV below.
17 Judge MacMahon did not invoke the principle that a court may in its discretion refuse to order removal
under Rule 40 whenever “special facts w ere disclosed that seemed to make questionable the propriety of
rem oval.” United States v. Johnson, 63 F. Supp. at 616. See supra note 6. However, his use of the term
“inappropriate” suggests that he regarded his refusal to order removal as an exercise of discretion rather than
required by law.
18 This reading of the Love opinion is consistent with Judge MacMahon’s citation of Wright v. Cartier and
M oore ’s Federal Practice. 425 F. Supp. at 1249. At the cited page in Moore *s, the Wright case is relied upon
as authority for the following proposition:
If the fugitive is willing to waive a removal hearing, or the government has sufficient evidence
available to prove probable cause, the fugitive may presumably be returned to the demanding
state by way of removal under Rule 40, rather than by way of extradition.
8B M oore’s Federal Practice^ 40.04 at 4 0 -2 3 (1980). In one recent case, a defendant convicted under § 1073
sought unsuccessfully to invoke the Love case in support o f his argument that his removal under Rule 40 had
violated his constitutional right to formal extradition under state law. United States v. McCord, 695 F.2d 823,
826 (5th Cir. 1983). He urged an interpretation of § 1073, and of Judge MacMahon’s holding in Love, which
would preclude Rule 40 removal in any § 1073 case, because the “underlying offense” is a state not a federal
offense. The court o f appeals rejected this interpretation o f § 1073, pointing out that the “underlying offense”
is a federal one, and that Rule 40 removal is accordingly “the appropriate procedure” for returning a federal
§ 1073 defendant to the jurisdiction from which he fled. The court of appeals contrasted McCord’s case, in
which “the Federal Government sought and intended to prosecute the defendant for violation of § 1073,” with
the situation in Love, in which the government did not seek removal but “merely sought to aid the state in
obtaining custody of one of its prisoners.” The court in McCord did not have before it, and accordingly did
not address, the issue whether Rule 40 rem oval may be available at the request of the Federal Government,
where the federal § 1073 charges are not to be pursued upon the defendant’s return to the State from which he
fled.
tion. It has, however, been interpreted by at least two courts not to extend to the
issuance of a federal § 1073 complaint or warrant of arrest. See United States v.
Diaz, 351 F. Supp. 1050 (D. Conn. 1972); United States v. McCarthy, 249 F.
Supp. 199 (E.D.N.Y. 1966). Although neither case required the court to rule on
the applicability of the requirement to federal removal, both courts remarked
on that issue in dictum. In Diaz, Judge Newman rejected a construction of the
statutory term “prosecution” which would have extended the requirement of
written approval to “every step of the criminal process including the issuance
of an arrest warrant.” 351 F. Supp. at 1051. He suggested, however, that the
requirement of written approval might extend beyond formal indictment to “the
preliminary step of a removal proceeding.” Id. at 1052.
In McCarthy, Judge Mishler took a different view of the 1961 amendment:
It is clear that the amendment was intended to aid local law
enforcement agencies apprehend fugitive felons through federal
agencies [sic] and return them to the State jurisdiction for pros-
ecution there. Implicit in the language of the report is the inten-
tion that federal prosecution for the offense was of secondary
consideration. The choice of federal prosecution was therefore
withdrawn from the United States District Attorney and lodged
with the Attorney General. The 1961 amendment did not dimin-
ish the power o f the federal government to return the fugitive
felon for state prosecution.
249 F. Supp. at 203 (emphasis added).
In summary, while judicial precedent confirms our conclusion that the
availability of removal in § 1073 cases does not depend as a matter of law upon
whether a federal indictment will subsequently be sought, it is less clear
whether a court will require formal written Justice Department approval before
issuing a removal order.
IV. The Extradition Clause of the Constitution
Having concluded that federal removal in aid of a state prosecution is
authorized by the Fugitive Felon Act, we turn to the Criminal Division’s
concern that such removal might be inconsistent with some federal constitu-
tional or statutory right of a fugitive to extradition under state law. We also
discuss what federal constitutional or statutory rights, if any, the States them-
selves may have in connection with federal removal of a § 1073 defendant.
A. Rights of a § 1073 Defendant With Regard to Extradition
The Supreme Court has consistently interpreted the Extradition Clause of the
United States Constitution, U.S. Const, art. IV, § 2, cl. 2, to confer no rights on
individuals. Its sole purpose is to benefit the States. See, e.g., Michigan v.
89
Doran, 439 U.S. 282, 287 (1978); Biddinger v. Commissioner o f Police of New
York, 245 U.S. 128 (1917).19 And, the procedural safeguards provided to
individuals in state extradition statutes have been held by the Supreme Court to
be inapplicable to persons charged with a federal crime who are otherwise
properly subject to removal under Rule 40. See United States ex rel. Kassin v.
Mulligan, 295 U.S. 396 (1935); United States ex rel. Hughes v. Gault, 271 U.S.
142 (1926); United States v. Guy, 456 F.2d 1157 (8th Cir. 1972).
Federal removal under Rule 40 or its statutory predecessors has been held
proper in several § 1073 cases, in the face of a defendant’s claim that he was
constitutionally entitled to be processed under state extradition laws. See, e.g.,
United States v. McCord, 695 F.2d at 826 (Rule 40 removal appropriate
because “underlying offense” a federal one); Lupino v. United States, 185 F.
Supp. at 368 (“Congress, not the states, has established the punishable offense,
and it is, therefore, federal, not state, arresting and removal process which is
relevant.”); United States v. Miller, 17 F. Supp. at 68 (federal removal of a
§ 1073 defendant does not “interfere[] with the right of extradition of a crimi-
nal from a state to which he has fled to one where the crime was committed.”).
There is dictum in the court’s opinion in United States v. Love, 425 F. Supp.
at 1250, which suggests that a federal § 1073 defendant, returned to the custody
of state authorities under federal process, may have some “right to formal
extradition,” deprivation of which could be raised by him in the context of his
state prosecution. The court did not, however, indicate what the source of that
right might be. It is possible that under the laws of some States, a defendant
could claim an entitlement to be brought within the jurisdiction of its courts in
a particular manner. Cf. Ker v. Illinois, 119 U.S. 436,444 (1886). We have not
examined that issue, and express no opinion on it.20 However, an individual has
no “right to formal extradition” under the federal Constitution or under any
federal statute of which we are aware.21
B. Rights and Obligations o f the States
in Connection with Extradition
Although a § 1073 defendant can claim no entitlement to be extradited
deriving from the Extradition Clause of the Constitution, the rights and obliga-
tions of the States themselves under that provision must be recognized when-
19 The Extradition Clause provides:
A Person charged in any State with Treason, Felony, or other Crime, who shall flee from Justice,
and be found in another State, shall on Demand of the executive Authority of the State from
which he fled, be delivered up, to be removed to the State having Jurisdiction of the Crime.
20 Perhaps the demanding State’s requirements in this regard would therefore be a valid consideration for
the Department in determining whether to give approval under § 1073 for removal in any particular case.
21 The Uniform Criminal Extradition Act has been adopted by a majority of the States, but has no
independent force as federal law. Where applicable, its due process protections can be enforced by suits under
the Fourteenth Amendment. See Cuyler v. Adams, 449 U.S. 433 (1981). By their terms, however, the
protections in the Uniform Criminal Extradition Act apply only to a person arrested on a warrant signed by
the Governor of the asylum State. See §§ 7, 10.
90
ever federal removal is proposed in any § 1073 case. It is all the more important
to do so whenever federal removal is intended simply to facilitate a state
prosecution.
The Extradition Clause imposes upon the executive authority of each State
an obligation, on the demand of another State, to “deliver up” a fugitive from
that other State’s justice. See supra note 19. The right given a State to demand
is an “absolute” one, and implies a “correlative obligation to deliver, without
any reference to the character of the crime charged, or to the policy or laws of
the State to which the fugitive has fled.” Kentucky v. Dennison, 65 U.S. (24
How.) 66, 103 (1861). “The duty of the Governor of the State where the
fugitive was found is, in such cases, merely ministerial, without the right to
exercise either executive or judicial discretion.” Id. at 104. However, the
Clause and its federal implementing statute, 18 U.S.C. §3182, have been
characterized as merely “declaratory of a moral duty,” because neither pro-
vides “any means to compel the execution of this duty.” Id. at 107. See also
Taylor v. Taintor, 83 U.S. (16 Wall.) 366, 370 (1872). Accordingly, the federal
courts have no power to compel authorities in one State to surrender a fugitive
to those of another. See also South Dakota v. Brown, 20 Cal. 3d. 765, 772, 576
P.2d 473 (1978) (state courts have no power under state extradition laws to
“control executive discretion in extradition matters.”).22
Even if, under existing law, a State’s duty under the Extradition Clause
cannot be enforced directly by a federal court, it does not follow that the
Extradition Clause gives States an affirmative right to refuse or delay extradi-
tion. Indeed, the history of the Extradition Clause itself suggests that any such
claimed right would be inconsistent with the Framers’ intention “to preserve
harmony between States, and order and law within their respective borders.”
See Kentucky v. Dennison, 65 U.S. at 101-03. Accordingly, the Extradition
Clause gives a State no basis for resisting otherwise constitutional federal
efforts to assist another in obtaining custody of a fugitive who has sought
refuge within its borders. Cf. Prigg v. Pennsylvania, 41 U.S. (16 Pet.) 539, 612
(1842). The Fugitive Felon Act, with its provisions for apprehending and
returning fugitives who have fled from one State to another, cannot therefore
be challenged as an unconstitutional intrusion on some hypothetical “right” of
one State to give asylum to another’s fugitives, or otherwise control the process
of extradition.23 In fact, far from an intrusion, this statute provides, in effect, a
federal means of enforcing the mandatory duty imposed upon States by the
22 In Kentucky v. Dennison, the Supreme Court held that a federal court could not issue a writ of mandamus
to compel the Governor of Ohio to surrender a fugitive indicted in Kentucky for assisting a slave to escape:
“the Federal Government, under the Constitution, has no power to impose on a State officer, as such, any duty
whatever, and compel him to perform it.” 65 U.S. at 107. Dissenting in South Dakota v. Brown, Justice Mosk
observed that “[t]here is serious question whether the rigid federalism of Dennison would be followed today
when a constitutional issue is involved.” 20 Cal. 3d at 781 n. 1 (citing Brown v. Board o f Education, 349 U.S.
294 (1955) and Green v. County School Bd., 391 U.S. 430 (1968)).
23 In any event, we think it unlikely (hat a court would permit a defendant to rely upon any right belonging
to the asylum State as a defense to prosecution in the demanding State. See United States v Miller, 17 F.
Supp. at 68.
91
Extradition Clause.24 This is not to say that the Fugitive Felon Act was
intended to provide a routine substitute for state extradition procedures. The
legislative history of the 1934 Act and its 1961 amendments makes clear that
Congress did not intend the Act to supplant state extradition procedures.
Congress was concerned not only with the possible federal intrusion in an area
historically left to the States, but also with the financial burden which frequent
use of federal removal procedures would place on the Federal Government.
Thus, Congress appears to have contemplated that federal removal procedures
would be used only in those rare situations where interstate rendition proce-
dures would not be effective in bringing the fugitive to justice.
The statute’s intended deference to state extradition procedures requires that
federal removal be used very sparingly in § 1073 cases. Accordingly, federal
removal of a § 1073 defendant should not be sought routinely, or when state
extradition procedures are determined to be adequate to accomplish the
defendant’s return for prosecution or other appropriate disposition by the
demanding State. The important policy considerations involved in making such
a determination simply underscore the wisdom of requiring formal departmen-
tal approval of any request for removal in a § 1073 case. Factors to be consid-
ered in making this determination could include whether the extradition pro-
cess will be likely to deliver the defendant to the demanding State in a timely
fashion; whether the interest of the demanding State in obtaining return of the
fugitive is sufficiently strong to warrant using federal resources for this pur-
pose; and whether the federal interest in the particular case is sufficiently
strong to overcome whatever interest the asylum State may have in implement-
ing its own extradition procedures. In a case in which extradition has been
refused, the Department should consider whatever findings the asylum State’s
Governor has made which caused him to make such a refusal.
V. Payment off Expenses off Traumsportiinig
Deffemdainits Umdler § 1®73
The United States Marshal has the authority and responsibility to execute a
federal court order directing that a prisoner in federal custody be transported to
another district. 28 U.S.C. § 567; 28 C.F.R. § 0.1 llj. Appropriated funds are
available for this purpose. See Pub. L. No. 96-68, Title II, 93 Stat. 416, 420
(1979). These funds are available for the court ordered transportation of § 1073
24
If the integrity o f an asylum State’s extradition procedures were guaranteed by the Extradition Clause, we
doubt that the venue provisions o f § 1073 could have withstood constitutional challenge. Those provisions in
effect require circumvention o f state extradition procedures insofar as they lead, sooner or later, to the
fugitive’s return by federal process to the custody of authorities in the State from which he fled. Whether the
governm ent wins or loses its § 1073 prosecution, the defendant is subsequently made to answer in state court
for the state crime. See United States v. M iller, 17 F. Supp. at 68. We see no reason why this constitutional
issue would depend upon whether a federal prosecution preceded the fugitive’s being turned over to state
authorities. The federal interest would appear to be as great, and that interest would appear to be equally
served, and perhaps in a fairer way to defendants, when the federal government chooses to decline prosecu-
tion for what is essentially a derivative crim e, in deference to the demanding State’s disposition of the
fugitive under state law.
92
prisoners to the same extent that they are available for the transportation of
other federal prisoners.
The State seeking the return of the § 1073 defendant could voluntarily
reimburse the United States for expenses incurred by the U.S. Marshal in
connection with transportation in this situation. See United States v. Bumison,
339 U.S. 87, 90 (1950).25 However, the Marshal could not recoup his own
expense from any such reimbursement, because an agency may not augment its
appropriations without specific statutory authority. See 49 Comp. Gen. 572
(1970); 5 Comp. Gen. 289 (1925). See generally General Accounting Office,
Principles o f Federal Appropriations Law, ch. 5, subpart C (1982). With a few
exceptions apparently not applicable here, any money an agency receives for
the use of the United States from a source outside the agency must be deposited
in full into the general fund of the Treasury. See 31 U.S.C. § 3302b (formerly
31 U.S.C. § 484). See also 46 Comp. Gen. 31 (1966). Once money has been
deposited into the general fund, there must be an appropriation to permit its
expenditure. See 3 Comp. Gen. 599,600 (1923). The Marshal is not authorized
to accept gifts of money for his own use, nor is he otherwise authorized to
accept reimbursement for expenses incurred in carrying out his authorized
functions. Thus, any funds received from a State for the interdistrict transporta-
tion of prisoners would therefore have to be deposited in the general fund of the
Treasury.26
Conclusion
A federal § 1073 defendant may in appropriate circumstances be removed by
federal process to the jurisdiction from which he fled in aid of a state prosecu-
tion. Accordingly, a prosecutor may seek removal, and a court may order it,
even if the government does not intend to pursue the federal charges against the
defendant once he has been returned. On the other hand, because § 1073 is not
intended to supplant state law procedures for interstate rendition, removal
25 We have not studied whether the State could be required to reimburse the United States for expenses
incurred by the Marsha) in this situation, as a condition of the Department’s willingness to request removal,
and express no views on that issue. We note, however, that the authority to charge a fee for services contained
in 31 U.S.C. § 9701 (formerly 31 U.S.C. § 483a), the so-called “user fee statute," has been held inapplicable
to state and local governments and agencies thereof. See Beaver, Bountiful, Enterprise v. Andrus, 637 F.2d
749 (10th Cir. 1980). The Intergovernmental Cooperation Act of 1968 provided a mechanism whereby
governmental agencies can recover the cost of certain “specialized or technical services'* provided to State
and local entities. See 42 U.S.C. §§ 4222, 4223 (1976). These provisions were amended and reenacted in
1982 as part of Title 31. See 31 U.S.C. § 6505. Services may be provided, however, only if “prescribed by the
President.” Id. § 6505(b).
26 Although the Marshal may not accept cash reimbursement without implicating the rule against augmen-
tation of appropriations, it is possible that all or part of the personnel costs of transporting federal § 1073
prisoners could be defrayed by deputizing state Ipw enforcement officers to assist the Marshal in carrying out
this function. Under 28 C.F.R. § 0.112, the Director of the U.S. Marshals Service is authorized to make such
deputations “whenever the needs of the U.S. Marshals Service so require.” See also 28 U.S.C. § 569(b)
(conferring authority on U.S. Marshals to “command all necessary assistance to execute their duties”).
Although 31 U.S.C. § 665(b) prohibits the acceptance of voluntary services for the United States, this
provision has been construed not to prohibit the acceptance of services that are truly “gratuitous,” i.e., for
which no federal compensation is expected. See 54 Comp. Gen. 560 (1975).
93
should not be sought in such circumstances unless it is clear that state proce-
dures are inadequate to the task of returning the fugitive.
Although it is unclear whether § 1073’s requirement of formal written
Department of Justice approval applies in connection with such removal, it is
possible that a court would not be willing to issue a Rule 40 order unless such
approval had been given. Accordingly, we believe the Criminal Division’s
policy of requiring departmental approval of all requests to remove represents
the safer course.
Finally, funds appropriated for the authorized activities of the U.S. Marshal
may be used to pay the cost of transporting a § 1073 defendant pursuant to a
federal court order under Rule 40. All or part of the cost of transportation may
voluntarily be borne by the State seeking the fugitive’s return, although any
monies received from a State must be deposited into the general fund of the
Treasury.
R a l p h W . T a r r
Deputy Assistant Attorney
General Office of Legal Counsel
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