Chapter 8 Reports and Subpoenas Silver Platter Doctrine

Chapter 8 Reports and Subpoenas

Silver Platter Doctrine Revisited n n Elkins v. United States, 364 U. S. 206, 80 S. Ct. 1437, 4 L. Ed. 2 d 1669 (1960) n State police illegally obtain evidence and had it to federal police n No silver platter doctrine, both are state actors We are talking about a non-state actor getting the evidence. 2

Criminal versus Administrative Investigations and the Constitution n n The popular notion of the constitutional limits on the government's right to invade your privacy are based on criminal law standards n Probable cause n Warrants n Right against self-incrimination Forget all that for administrative law n A key question becomes the nature of the investigation because that drives the protections 3

Authority for Reporting and Subpoenas n n n Most state and federal agencies that have significant regulatory powers may require reporting under the general grant of authority If the agency has a limited grant of authority or does not have a regulatory role (CDC), they will need a specific authorization to require reporting Subpoena power requires a specific 4

First Party or Third Party Reporting n n First party reporting is reporting about your or your businesses own activities n Most of the book's discussion is about first party reporting n Can raise 4 th & 5 th amendment issues Third party reporting is about other people n Privacy issues, but no 4 th and 5 th amendment issues 5

4 th and 5 th Amendment n n n Why are there no 4 th and 5 th amendment issues in third party reporting? n Self-incrimination? n Improper search? Where does the silver platter doctrine come in? How far can the government go in using third party reporting to avoid 6 constitutional limits?

State Police Power Reporting n n The first agency reporting requirements were promulgated by state agencies Communicable disease reporting began in the colonies and was carried over to the state and city governments n Reports of smallpox were critical to quarantines and vaccination programs n Third party reporting 7

Contemporary Third Party Reporting n n n Communicable diseases n STIs n Tuberculosis Vital statistics and disease registries Child, spousal, and elder abuse Violent injuries, including gun shots Cash transactions over 10 K What else? 8

What are the Privacy Issues? n n What privacy issues are implicated by each of these types of reporting? What about privilege issues? n Can child abuse reporting be applied to lawyers? n Priests? n Is there any constitutional medical privilege? 9

Whalen v. Roe, 9 US 589 (1977) n n n Required reporting of narcotics prescriptions by physicians and pharmacies n Intended to develop data on abuse n Also intended to collect data for prosecution What are the privacy concerns of the patients? What about the physicians and 10

Enforcement of Third Party Reporting n n Governmental n Loss or limitation of professional license n Administrative fine n Criminal prosecution n There are few enforcement actions Private n Negligence per se claims n Slightly different from Tarasoff claims 11

First Party Reporting n n What is the purpose of the report? Is the report targeted at identifying illegal behavior? n Marijuana tax stamps n Gambling reports Is the report overly burdensome? At federal level, does the report comply with the paperwork reduction act? 12

Paperwork Reduction Act n n Intended to require agencies to be more thoughtful about reporting requirements n Requires review by OMB n Applies to most agencies, including independent agencies n OBM does not have the authority to veto requests by independent agencies Provides a defense against claims by the government that the individual did not provide the requested information. 13

What is Covered? n n n Reports required of 10 or more people Also covers requirements to give information to the public n MSDS n Food labels n Hazardous materials inventories Applies to investigations of a class of persons 14

Exceptions n n Law enforcement investigations Civil lawsuits Adjudications Investigations of a single person or company 15

Standards n n n Is the information required for the agency's function? Does it duplicate information collected by other agencies? Is it overly burdensome? 16

Public Notice n n If the data collection is part of a notice and comment rule, the Federal Register posting of the proposed rule serves as public notice n The public may object through comments n ORIA may also file comments for objections If it is not part of a rule, there must be a 17

ORIA Review n n Can veto requests unless they are in a rule n They can only comment on rules Independent agencies can ignore the veto Executive agencies usually negotiate to resolve the problem Limited authority for judicial review 18

Administrative Requirements n n n Agency must assign a control number n If they do not do so, they will have trouble enforcing the reporting requirements The agency must explain why the info is needed and how to complete the form You see this with tax forms 19

Subpoenas v Reporting Laws n n Reporting requirements - class of persons n Usually require the creation of a report n Usually have agency sanctions for noncompliance Subpoena - individual n Like a reporting requirement directed at a single, identified individual or company n Ask for already existing documents n Enforced through judicial orders and contempt, not agency process 20

Contesting an Agency Subpoena Procedure n n Does the agency have the power to issue the subpoena? n You can ask a court to quash the subpoena n You can wait for the agency to go to court to get an order and contest the authority for the subpoena then n The agency may provide their own administrative review of subpoenas Do you have a duty to contest an illegal subpoena or request for records? 21 n What should the telcom companies have

4 th Amendment Issues (Morton Salt Test) n n Is a reporting requirement or a subpoena a search? n How is it different from an inspection? Morton Salt factors n Is the subpoena sufficiently specific? n Is the subpoena unduly burdensome? n Does the agency have a proper purpose? Basically a reasonableness test Hard to beat an agency subpoena n Courts do not like to quash interlocutory orders n General deference to agencies, plus no criminal prosecution 22

Fifth Amendment Issues Self-incrimination n Only applies to people, not corporations Only applies if there is a threat of criminal prosecution n You can claim it in a civil proceeding to avoid producing evidence that could be used in a criminal case n You will lose the civil suit You will suffer the administrative sanction for not producing the evidence n Evidence may be excluded in a criminal trial if coerced by an administrative sanction like firing or loss of a law license 23

Required Records n n Assume you must keep wage and hour records n You cheat on the tax withholding, which is a crime Can you resist producing the records because they will incriminate you? n Shapiro v. United States, 335 U. S. 1 (1948). n What if you voluntarily created the 24

Marchetti v. United States, 390 U. S. 39 (1968) n n The law required gamblers to register and pay an occupational tax? n Why? n What about the requirement that owners of sawed off shotguns get a license for them? The court found that these violated the 5 th amendment because they targeted criminal activity n The key is that the law was not requiring a general business record but a specific 25

Act of Production Doctrine n n Document would implicitly “testify” that n (1) the document existed; n (2) the document was authentic -- e. g. , not a forgery; and n (3) that she had possession of the document at the time of production. It is admitting that you have it that is the testimony. 26

U. S. v. Ponds, 454 F. 3 d 313 (D. C. Cir. Jul 14, 2006) n "In Hubbell, the Supreme Court held that Hubbell's act of producing over 13, 000 documents in response to a broad subpoena was sufficiently testimonial to implicate the Fifth Amendment because “the prosecutor needed [Hubbell]'s assistance both to identify potential sources of information and to produce those sources. ” Some of the broadest demands of that subpoena asked for all documents referring to “any direct or indirect sources of money or other things of value received by or provided to Webster Hubbell” and “Webster Hubbell's schedule of activities. ” The Court held that “the collection and production of the materials demanded was tantamount to answering a series of interrogatories asking a witness to disclose the existence and location of particular documents fitting certain broad descriptions, ” in which it was “unquestionably necessary for [Hubbell] to make extensive use of ‘the contents of his own mind’ in identifying the hundreds of documents responsive to the requests in the subpoena. ” 27

Tax example n n You claim income of 50 K You have a document that says you were paid 100 k in a business deal Just having evidence that you had higher income is incriminating What about records about your client's dope dealing? 28