Whitney v. Dick

Background

A man charged with bringing liquor into Indian country sought immediate relief from the Court of Appeals by filing extraordinary petitions instead of pursuing a normal appeal. The trial judge had ruled the place was Indian country, a bill of exceptions was prepared, and the case was ready for review by writ of error. The Supreme Court first noted that appeals to it require a certain amount in dispute, and because no monetary amount appeared, an ordinary appeal to this Court was unauthorized and dismissed.

Reasoning

The central question was whether the federal Courts of Appeals can issue original habeas corpus or certiorari to end litigation at once. The Court explained that habeas corpus is an important, extraordinary remedy and that Congress did not expressly give the newly created Courts of Appeals power to issue original habeas writs. Those courts are statutory appellate courts, and the statute allows auxiliary writs only when necessary to exercise existing appellate jurisdiction. Certiorari may be used in rare cases as an auxiliary tool, but not to replace the ordinary route of appeal or writ of error. Here the petitioner sought a shortcut to terminate the case, and there was no special need to depart from normal appellate procedure, so the Court reversed the Court of Appeals and ordered the certiorari quashed.

Real world impact

The decision means litigants cannot routinely use habeas corpus or certiorari in the Courts of Appeals to bypass ordinary appeals. Appellate disputes must normally proceed by appeal or writ of error, and Courts of Appeals may only use extraordinary writs when truly necessary to perform their appellate role. The ruling leaves the underlying criminal question unsettled for normal review.