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Saac: DTVIA is Constitutional (Part I)

By Tim Cone

In U.S. v. Saac, No. 09-14204 (Feb. 9, 2011), the Court upheld the constitutionality of the Drug Trafficking Vessel Interdiction Act of 2008 (DTVIA). The defendants were convicted under the DTVIA of operating a semi-submersible vessel in international waters.The Court rejected the argument that the defendants? unconditional guilty pleas waived their right to challenge the constitutionality of the DTVIA on appeal. The Court ruled that the constitutionality of a criminal statute to which a defendants pleads guilty is a jurisdictional issue that a defendant does not waive upon pleading guilty.The Court rejected the argument that the ?High Seas? clause of the Constitution, which vests Congress with power to define crimes on the High Seas, requires that the crime have a connection with the United States...continue to full post

Full post as published by Defense Newsletter Blog on February 15, 2011 (boomark / email).