Speech or Debate Clause
Favorable and Noteworthy Decisions in the Supreme Court and Federal Appellate Courts
By Don Samuel
Garland, Samuel & Loeb, P.C.
Garland, Samuel & Loeb, P.C.
Sep 1, 2015
In re Grand Jury Subpoena, 571 F.3d 1200 (D. C. Cir. 2009)
The grand jury may not subpoena either documents provided by a Congressman, or statements made by the Congressman to an ethics panel of Congress.
United States v. Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2113, 497 F.3d 654 (D.C. Cir. 2007)
A search of Congressman Jefferson’s office violated the Speech or Debate Clause, to the extent that law enforcement officers were permitted to review legislative materials in an effort to find evidence of corruption. In order to conduct such a search, the seized material must first be reviewed by the court, not the agents, to ensure that no legislative materials are reviewed by the agents.