Caminetti v. United States

Background

Three men were tried and convicted under the federal "White Slave Traffic Act" (the Mann Act) for moving women across state lines. The cases involved trips from Sacramento to Reno and from Oklahoma City to Wichita, where the women were taken for debauchery or to become mistresses; each man was convicted, sentenced to prison and fines, and the Circuit Courts of Appeals affirmed those convictions, bringing the cases to the Supreme Court.

Reasoning

The core question was whether the law only punished a commercial traffic in women or whether it also covered noncommercial acts that moved women for sexual or immoral purposes. The majority said the statute’s words are plain and that "any other immoral purpose" includes transporting a woman to be debauched or to become a mistress, even if no money changed hands. The Court relied on the statute’s language, prior decisions, and Congress’s power over interstate commerce. It also held that when a defendant chooses to testify, a jury may consider his failure to explain incriminating events, and it did not require special jury warnings about accomplice testimony.

Real world impact

Practically, the ruling means federal prosecutors can pursue cases where people move women across state lines for sexual or immoral aims even without proof of commercial prostitution or payment. The convictions, sentences, and fines in these cases were left in place. The majority noted that if Congress thinks the law is too broad it can amend it, but as written the law is enforceable as applied here.

Dissents or concurrances

A dissent argued the statute should be read narrowly to target organized, mercenary "white-slave" traffic only. That dissent warned the majority’s broad reading risks overreach, misuse, and blackmail, and urged that legislative history and the act’s title limit its scope.