Lámar v. United States

Background

David Lamar was charged with pretending to be a member of the U.S. House of Representatives (specifically A. Mitchell Palmer) and using that false identity to try to defraud Lewis Cass Ledyard and others. He was tried in the Southern District of New York by a judge temporarily assigned from another district, convicted under a federal statute that forbids falsely claiming to be a federal officer with intent to defraud, and sentenced to two years in prison. The case reached this Court after a complex set of competing appeals and procedural steps.

Reasoning

The central question was whether a member of the House counts as an “officer” under the federal impersonation statute and what acts the statute forbids. The Court held that members of Congress are covered by the statute and that the law punishes falsely assuming such an office and doing overt acts to carry out a fraud, even if the acts would not have been legally authorized had the official capacity actually existed. The Court also found the indictment sufficiently specific and the evidence adequate, and rejected the claim that the trial court lacked authority because the judge had been assigned from another district.

Real world impact

As a result, people who impersonate members of Congress to obtain money, documents, or other benefits can be prosecuted under this statute without needing proof that the impersonated acts would have been lawful if the office were real. Trials conducted by judges temporarily assigned from other districts are not automatically void. The Court affirmed the conviction and sentence.

Dissents or concurrances

One justice, McReynolds, took no part in the decision.