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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (April 22, 1976)
ourt sets rules de |or IRS activities IRS not bound by privacy law THE BATTALION THURSDAY, APRIL 22, 1976 Page 5 Bank records can he seized Come To Diamond Country San key Park Diamond Salon d some. : leaiyt®; Associated Press secret] WASHINGTON — Taxpayers ?eking constitutional protection om Internal Revenue Service vinglai » en ts sufiered a double-barreled 1- Kfeat in the Supreme Court Wed- to brim May. ian prai The court ruled 7 to 1 that a tax- ayer under investigation is notenti- jed to the complete statement of anstitutional rights that must be a l iven to a criminal suspect already in M>dy. I 1 In a separate decision, the justices uled 8 to 0 that a taxpayer or his . wr j[| e iwler may be required to surrender ■nt ixl'eturn papers prepared by the M be Bayer’s accountant. They said this >c | ;1 oes not violate the constitutional jrivilege against self-incrimination. )\v sent! I another decision with tax impli- ations, the court ruled 6 to 2 that it notes [jconstitutional to subpoena an indi- ve theaB^'s hank records for use as evi- 1^..lencc against him in his trial. The ase arose out of “moonshining” iV t ] 1( barges involving whisky on which axes had not been paid. )( , r . On an unrelated issue, the justices I uled 5 to 3 that government per- : lorn el files are not protected under he Freedom of Information Act un- ess disclosure would be “a clearly inw hi ranted invasion of personal service tl .1 » * jntacy. llt<11 Bhe Freedom of Information Act involved efforts of law review writers at New York University to ibtkin records of proceedings under l "7 the Air Force Academy honor and f ed ms codes. j ,s re ?Bh e U.S. Circuit Court in New York ordered the records handed over to a federal judge for editing so that they would not identify indi vidual cadets. They were not to be re ava jj a bi e to wr iters unless B judge was satisfied that they did Bd nva de privacy. B^e Supreme Court said this was “a (workable compromise” between individual privacy and the right of access to government information, s ianO"M ust j c e John Paul Stevens took part only in the moonshine whisky case, which was the first on which he ' 1 . heard arguments after his appoint ment in December. The other cases mimic were ar g ue( J before he became a I' the member of the court, ite collM nfer Senator turns ;ervices. w roller 4ft 1 • . • stocks into coins avelitaB Associated Press eSiB WASHINGTON Sen ' John V ' Tunney, D-Calif., has converted f. most of his stock holdings into old e or to , ° n , r s deans coins to avoid any conflicts ot interest, a spokeswoman says, is ftTunney majored in anthropology in college and has long been in- (i them Crested in antiquities. He bought 60 niccess to 70 Roman coins - gradel^Bfhe coins were struck in the re- 1, univi publican period, which predated the custody, Roman Empire, and represent a wkerwi “significant investment,” she said, [inaneialf The spokeswoman declined to put laintainei a value on the coins, sionals. § The decision on questioning of tax suspects arose from what IRS agents said was a “friendly” talk with Alvin A. Beckwith, Jr. of Washington, D.C., about his income tax liability. Following usual IRS practice, the agents did not take Beckwith into custody and gave him only a partial warning of his rights. They told him he could not be compelled to in criminate himself, that his answers might be used against him and that he could seek the advice of an attor ney before answering. The court, in an opinion by Chief Justice Warren E. Burger, said non custodial interrogation might be coercive in some cases, but this question would have to be decided on an individual basis. Justice William J. Brennan, Jr. dissented, saying that “the practical compulsion to respond” when an IRS agent asks a person about his tax returns is equal to the pressure of being interrogated in custody. Associated Press WASHINGTON — The govern ment has the right to seize or study the records of your bank account and you don’t have a constitutional right to know that federal agents are doing so, the Supreme Court says. And in another privacy case, the court handed down a decision that could mean millions of government personnel and medical files will now be open to limited public scrutiny. In a 7 to 2 decision on Wednesday, the court said bank customers have no right to contest government sub poenas of their records because the records belong to the bank. A bank’s customers, the justices said, have “no legitimate expectation of privacy” in bank transactions that naturally involve bank employes who might tell the government what the records contain. Since the customer should not think his account is private, the court said, he has no right to expect that the bank or the government will tell him if his account records have been seized or examined. Justice Lewis F. Powell, writing the decision for the majority, said the bank’s failure to notify the cus tomer constitutes “a neglect without legal consequences, however unat tractive it may be.” Checks, deposit slips and other records the government requires banks to keep “are not confidential communications but negotiable in struments to be used in commercial transactions,” Powell wrote. He said the documents only contain informa tion the customer has voluntarily al lowed to be exposed to banks and their employes. “The depositor takes the risk, in revealing his affairs to another, that the information will be conveyed by that person to the government,” the majority decision said. The ruling reversed a decision by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Ap peals, which suppressed bank rec ords of Mitchell Miller of Macon, Ga., tried for operating an illegal whiskey still and other charges. In the other case involving per- Robber really wanted to go to jail lent invt tv sayinf ic transo carry pn Associated Press ORLANDO, Fla. — It wasn’t that Wilbur John Hunter wanted to rob the bank when he passed a teller a note demanding money. He simply wanted to go to jail where he could get a meal and shelter. Hunter’s court-appointed attor ney explained to the court Thursday that the gray-haired, homeless wan derer from Spring Lake Heights, N.J., had told about seeking help earlier this year from several agen cies in Daytona Beach. “But they told him he was too old or too young, not a drug addict, not an alcoholic . . . and couldn’t qual ify,” the lawyer, James Shepard said. “It seems that with all the programs available, he would fall into some category. ” When the Landmark Bank met the 52-year-old Hunter’s written demand for money Tuesday, he po litely took the envelope with $1,800 and then took a seat in the bank lobby to await police. Before police arrived, he returned the envelope and money to teller Madelyn Weston saying, “You ought to keep this. It will mess up your accounting.” It wasn t the first time Hunter, unarmed, has pvdled an alleged rob bery and then waited for police to escort him to jail where he knew a bed and food awaited, officers said. He did it April 8 in Osceola County, but the state attorney’s of fice ordered the charge dismissed because the specific elements of the crime of robbery were missing. That put Hunter back on the streets where he wandered about the area for almost a week without food, money or shelter, his lawyer said. Hunter’s caper Tuesday was suc cessful — in a way. He is in the Orange County Jail because he couldn’t put up a $25,000 bond for the federal bank robbery charge. + /5SK + FALSTAFF intr (P'vttniufn It’s Party Time . .. right here in College Station. Why go across town for your party kegs? We have five different keg beers to choose from only 500 yards south of Kyle Field on the Wellborn Highway. Andeker, Pabst Light & Dark, Falstaff and Shiner available in half and quarter barrels. Save money, time, travel and storage cost at SCHAFFHAUSER DISTRIBUTING COMPANY 101 Luther West (About 500 yards South of Kyle Field) call 846-7231 to reserve a keg 'Oenaeil it or foil •<l byiW] i be M TIGER TEAGUE CONGRESSMAN Invites YOU to Join Him 4* for an Informal Coffee & Discussion 10‘-00 -12:00 a. m. Friday, April 23 Ramada Inn Ballroom Ad paid tor by TEAGUE FOR CONGRESS COMMITTEE Dr. James R. Gill, Treasurer sonal privacy, the court ruled that records of honor code enforcement by military academies may not be withheld from the public on the grounds that the privacy of cadets or former cadets may be infringed. In a 5 to 3 ruling that could open millions of government personnel and medical files, the court said fed eral law protecting secrecy of such files applies only if the government can prove disclosure would be a “clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.” The decision broadened the Freedom of Information Act. Justice Harry A. Blackmun said in his dissent “it is almost inconceiva ble” that the court appeared willing to allow public disclosure of medical files “and thereby open to the public what has been recognized as almost the essence of ultimate privacy. Justice John Paul Stevens, who had not been appointed when the court heard arguments on the case in October, did not vote. In other decisions Wednesday, the Court ruled 7 to 1 that a person who is suspected of tax evasion but is not under arrest is not entitled to be advised of his constitutional rights before Internal Revenue Service Agents can question him. And the justices voted 8 to 0 that targets of federal criminal probes cannot es cape subpoenas for financial records by giving the data to their lawyers. 21 3 S. MAIN \ '.I//. DOWNTOWN BRYAN Engagement Rings ^ Wedding Rings •7) mmonds (uSicchf CHARLl'S BOUTIQUE ^siapi 1 JUST ARRIVED! LARGE SHIPMENT OF JEANS. Cafe Crowd and Gotcha Covered 707 TEXAS 846-9626 MANOR EAST MALL MON., THORS., FRI. 10:00430 TOES., WED., SAT. 10:00400 For those in the know about Swimsuit Fashions The Fair has them all! * * * * * Daffy Bobbie Brooks Skinny Dip Eenie Meenie Bikini Beachmates High Tide Sandsweeper Come in and see our delectable collection of pool and beach fashions and make your selections now! You'll find the newest looks for '76 in softer fabrics, five-way bras, earthy, prettier colors and the most flattering styles. Also a super array of swim accessories in cover-ups, tops and swim- dresses. Sizes 5 to 13 and 7 to 15 with D cups. Swimsuits 13 00 to 35 00 Cover ud 7 00 to 23 00