ARE WE ALL FEDERAL CRIMINALS

Monday, August 19^th, 2024

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

ARE WE ALL FEDERAL CRIMINALS IN LOUISIANA?

 

US Justice Neil Gorsuch has written a new book called “Over Ruled.”  The premise is simple. There are just way too many federal and state laws on the books.  He concludes that there are numerous average citizens that are slapped down by overbearing prosecutors.  I can tell you from personal experience that I could not agree more.

Anyone who actually takes the time to read the U.S. Constitution will see that there are only three crimes specifically enumerated as federal offenses: treason, piracy and counterfeiting. So why has Congress undertaken an overzealous expansion of criminal laws?

Today, there are more than 5,000 federal crimes listed in the U.S. Code. It used to be that Congress would create one particular crime by passing a new law. But in recent years, multiple crimes are listed within the same statute. One new law enacted right after 9/11 contained 60 new crimes. Was that really necessary?

Our representatives in Washington now want to delve into any number of local crimes, flaunting the intention of our country’s founders. Drugs, robbery, car theft, the list goes on and on. What happened to the 14th amendment and states’ rights?

Many of the federal crimes on this expanded list are bewildering and seem to be punitive and arbitrary. Harvard law professor William Stuntz puts it this way: “We are coming even closer to living in a country where laws on the books makes everybody a felon, and prosecutors get to decide what the law is and who has violated it.”

Did you know that it is a federal crime to deal in the interstate transport of unlicensed dentures? For this you get one year in jail.

Another law says you can go to jail for six months if you pretend to be a member of the 4-H club?

And you can get six months for degrading the character of Woodsy Owl, or his associated slogan: “Give a hoot — Don’t pollute.” I’m not making this up.

You will love this one. It’s a federal crime to disrupt a rodeo. Now in Louisiana, we yield to no one in our desire for orderly rodeos. But getting taken into federal custody for excessive heckling? Give me a break!

State law in Louisiana is certainly not immune from ridiculous intrusions into the rights of the average citizen. In New Orleans, you violate the law when you tie your alligator up to a fire hydrant.  It is illegal to practice voodoo in the city limits.  (Darn!  I’ll miss Marie Laveax.) There is a “three sandwich rule” at any funeral in the Bayou State.  No more or face the consequences. And New Orleans Saints fans may also be surprised to find out that in Louisiana, it’s a crime at a sporting event to insult or disparage the players.  I guess no more paper bag heads.

Our members of Congress go to Washington today and seem to get intoxicated with the power that comes with the job. It’s similar to the effect of Tolkien’s ring. Decent and intelligent people get the ring of power and it changes them. They can’t put it down. They can’t let it go. The more laws you pass, the better you look back home. And when there’s crime involved, you come across as a tough guy, right?

Congress today doesn’t seem to understand the difference between the violation of a regulation and a crime. There are a number of actions that are illegal, but not criminal. Further, a crime does not necessarily have to be a federal crime. Have we reached the point where people in Louisiana and throughout the country have come to accept that any federal agency with power is somehow a police power? Both conservatives and liberals ought to be worried about the expansion of federal criminal law if we value our liberty, which our Founders specifically understood to mean leaving general police powers at the local level.

In 400 B.C., the Greek orator Isocrates stated: “Where there is a multitude of specific laws, it is a sign that the state is badly governed.” Tacitus wrote in the 1st century A.D. of Rome: “Formerly we suffered from crimes. Now we suffer from laws.”

A little more common sense in Washington and Baton Rouge would go a long way in allowing legislators to deal better with problems they actually make a difference in a citizen’s life.  And for goodness sake, let us get a little rowdy at our rodeos.

Peace and Justice

Jim Brown

Jim Brown’s syndicated column appears each week in numerous newspapers throughout the nation and on websites worldwide. You can read all his past columns and see continuing updates at http://www.jimbrownusa.com.