Martin Thomas Manton (August 2, 1880 – November 17, 1946) was a
United States circuit judge
In the United States, federal judges are judges who serve on courts established under Article Three of the U.S. Constitution. They include the chief justice and the associate justices of the U.S. Supreme Court, the circuit judges of the U.S. Cou ...
of the
United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (in case citations, 2d Cir.) is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals. Its territory comprises the states of Connecticut, New York and Vermont. The court has appellate juri ...
and previously was a United States District Judge of the
. Manton was acquitted of bribery, but convicted of conspiracy to obstruct justice. He served 19 months in federal prison.
[Mark Grossman, ''Political Corruption in America: An encyclopedia of scandals, power, and greed'' (2003) pp. 219-20.]
Education and career
Born on August 2, 1880, in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
,
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
,
Manton received a
Bachelor of Laws
Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...
in 1901 from
Columbia Law School
Columbia Law School (Columbia Law or CLS) is the law school of Columbia University, a private Ivy League university in New York City. Columbia Law is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world and has always ranked i ...
.
He entered private practice in New York City from 1901 to 1916,
part of that time partnered with
William Bourke Cockran
William Bourke Cockran (February 28, 1854March 1, 1923), commonly known as Bourke Cockran or Burke Cochran in contemporary reports, was an Irish-American politician and orator. He served as a United States representative from the East Side of M ...
.
[Borkin, 1962]
Notable client
In 1915, Manton was attorney for
Charles Becker
Charles Becker (July 26, 1870 – July 30, 1915) was a lieutenant in the New York City Police Department between the 1890s and the 1910s. He is known for the scandal of being tried, convicted, and executed for the first-degree murder of the Man ...
, the New York City police officer who was convicted and executed in the
Rosenthal murder trial.
Federal judicial service
![Marshall - Manton - Cochran (i](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/06/Marshall_-_Manton_-_Cochran_%28i.e.%2C_Cockran%29_LCCN2014695844.jpg)
Manton was nominated by President
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...
on August 15, 1916, to a seat on the
vacated by Judge
Charles Merrill Hough
Charles Merrill Hough (May 18, 1858 – April 22, 1927) was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and previously was a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the S ...
.
He was confirmed by the
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and pow ...
on August 23, 1916, and received his commission the same day.
His service terminated on March 22, 1918, due to his elevation to the Second Circuit.
Manton was nominated by President Wilson on March 12, 1918, to a seat on the
United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (in case citations, 2d Cir.) is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals. Its territory comprises the states of Connecticut, New York and Vermont. The court has appellate juri ...
vacated by Judge
Alfred Conkling Coxe Sr. He was confirmed by the Senate on March 18, 1918, and received commission the same day. He was a member of the Conference of Senior Circuit Judges
The Judicial Conference of the United States, formerly known as the Conference of Senior Circuit Judges, was created by the United States Congress in 1922 with the principal objective of framing policy guidelines for administration of judicial cour ...
(now the Judicial Conference of the United States
The Judicial Conference of the United States, formerly known as the Conference of Senior Circuit Judges, was created by the United States Congress in 1922 with the principal objective of framing policy guidelines for administration of judicial cour ...
) from 1926 to 1938. His service terminated on February 7, 1939, due to his resignation.
Supreme Court consideration
In 1922, President Warren G. Harding
Warren Gamaliel Harding (November 2, 1865 – August 2, 1923) was the 29th president of the United States, serving from 1921 until his death in 1923. A member of the Republican Party, he was one of the most popular sitting U.S. presidents. A ...
considered appointing Manton to the Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...
to succeed Justice William R. Day
William Rufus Day (April 17, 1849 – July 9, 1923) was an American diplomat and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1903 to 1922. Prior to his service on the Supreme Court, Day served as Unit ...
in what was then regarded as the "Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
seat" on the Court. Manton encountered opposition led by Chief Justice William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) was the 27th president of the United States (1909–1913) and the tenth chief justice of the United States (1921–1930), the only person to have held both offices. Taft was elected pr ...
, and Harding ultimately appointed Justice Pierce Butler Pierce or Piers Butler may refer to:
*Piers Butler, 8th Earl of Ormond (c. 1467 – 26 August 1539), Anglo-Irish nobleman in the Peerage of Ireland
*Piers Butler, 3rd Viscount Galmoye (1652–1740), Anglo-Irish nobleman in the Peerage of Ireland
*Pi ...
to the seat.
Notable cases
During the 1930s, Manton's seniority made him the Senior Circuit Judge of the Court (the rough equivalent of the Chief Judge
A chief judge (also known as presiding judge, president judge or principal judge) is the highest-ranking or most senior member of a lower court or circuit court with more than one judge. According to the Federal judiciary of the United States, th ...
position today). He wrote a memorable dissenting opinion in the obscenity
An obscenity is any utterance or act that strongly offends the prevalent morality of the time. It is derived from the Latin ''obscēnus'', ''obscaenus'', "boding ill; disgusting; indecent", of uncertain etymology. Such loaded language can be use ...
litigation instigated by Bennett Cerf
Bennett Alfred Cerf (May 25, 1898 – August 27, 1971) was an American writer, publisher, and co-founder of the American publishing firm Random House. Cerf was also known for his own compilations of jokes and puns, for regular personal appearanc ...
concerning the book ''Ulysses'' by James Joyce
James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (2 February 1882 – 13 January 1941) was an Irish novelist, poet, and literary critic. He contributed to the modernist avant-garde movement and is regarded as one of the most influential and important writers of ...
, ''United States v. One Book Entitled Ulysses'', 72 F.2d 705 ( 2d Cir. 1934). Judges Learned Hand
Billings Learned Hand ( ; January 27, 1872 – August 18, 1961) was an American jurist, lawyer, and judicial philosopher. He served as a federal trial judge on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York from 1909 to 1924 a ...
and Augustus Noble Hand
Augustus Noble Hand (July 26, 1869 – October 28, 1954) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York and later was a United States Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals ...
decided that the book was not obscene, but Manton voted to ban it. Manton was also involved in a series of controversial decisions concerning control and financing of the companies then operating the New York City Subway
The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system owned by the government of New York City and leased to the New York City Transit Authority, an affiliate agency of the state-run Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). Opened on October 2 ...
.
Resignation and conspiracy conviction
Manton suffered severe financial reverses during the Great Depression
The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
and began to accept gifts and loans from persons having business before his court, some of which allegedly constituted outright bribes for selling his vote in pending patent litigation. Rumors of corruption spread and in 1939, Manton resigned under pressure of investigations by Manhattan District Attorney
The New York County District Attorney, also known as the Manhattan District Attorney, is the elected district attorney for New York County (Manhattan), New York. The office is responsible for the prosecution of violations of New York state laws ...
Thomas E. Dewey
Thomas Edmund Dewey (March 24, 1902 – March 16, 1971) was an American lawyer, prosecutor, and politician who served as the 47th governor of New York from 1943 to 1954. He was the Republican candidate for president in 1944 and 1948: although ...
, who wrote a letter to the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee
The U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary, also called the House Judiciary Committee, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. It is charged with overseeing the administration of justice within the federal courts, a ...
recommending impeachment
Impeachment is the process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements.
In ...
proceedings by a federal grand jury
A grand jury is a jury—a group of citizens—empowered by law to conduct legal proceedings, investigate potential criminal conduct, and determine whether criminal charges should be brought. A grand jury may subpoena physical evidence or a pe ...
.
Following his resignation, Manton was indicted in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York where he once sat as a judge. The government was represented at trial by John T. Cahill, the United States Attorney
United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal c ...
for the Southern District of New York. Judge William Calvin Chesnut of the District of Maryland presided over the jury trial at which Manton called former Democratic Presidential candidates Alfred Smith and John W. Davis
John William Davis (April 13, 1873 – March 24, 1955) was an American politician, diplomat and lawyer. He served under President Woodrow Wilson as the Solicitor General of the United States and the United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom ...
as character witnesses. Manton was convicted for conspiracy to obstruct justice.
Manton's conviction was affirmed by a specially constituted Second Circuit panel consisting of retired Supreme Court Justice George Sutherland
George Alexander Sutherland (March 25, 1862July 18, 1942) was an English-born American jurist and politician. He served as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court between 1922 and 1938. As a member of the Republican Party, he also repre ...
, Supreme Court Justice Harlan Fiske Stone
Harlan is a given name and a surname which may refer to:
Surname
*Bob Harlan (born 1936 Robert E. Harlan), American football executive
*Bruce Harlan (1926–1959), American Olympic diver
*Byron B. Harlan (1886–1949), American politician
*Byron G ...
, and newly appointed Second Circuit Judge Charles Edward Clark
Charles Edward Clark (December 9, 1889 – December 13, 1963) was Dean of Yale Law School and a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
Education and career
Born on December 9, 1889, in Woodbridg ...
. Manton was sentenced to two years in Lewisburg Federal Penitentiary
The United States Penitentiary, Lewisburg (USP Lewisburg) is a medium-security United States federal prison in Pennsylvania for male inmates. It is operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons, a division of the United States Department of Justice. ...
and served 17 months.
Death
Manton died on November 17, 1946, in Fayetteville, New York, where he had moved following his release from prison.
Honor
To this day, a park in Queens
Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...
, New York bears Manton's name.
Legacy
The 1940 Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made h ...
for reporting was awarded to S. Burton Heath for his coverage of the Manton trial for the ''New York World-Telegram
The ''New York World-Telegram'', later known as the ''New York World-Telegram and The Sun'', was a New York City newspaper from 1931 to 1966.
History
Founded by James Gordon Bennett Sr. as ''The Evening Telegram'' in 1867, the newspaper began ...
''.
Further reading
*Borkin, Joseph, ''The Corrupt Judge'' (Clarkson N. Potter, Inc. 1962)(pp. 25–137)
*Danelski, David J., ''A Supreme Court Justice Is Appointed'' (Random House 1964).
*Gould, Milton S., ''The Witness Who Spoke with God and Other Tales from the Courthouse'' (Viking Press 1979).
*Younger, Irving, ''Ulysses in Court: The Litigation Surrounding the First Publication of James Joyce's Novel in the United States'' (Professional Education Group transcript of Younger speech)
References
Sources
*
, -
{{DEFAULTSORT:Manton, Martin
1880 births
1946 deaths
20th-century American judges
American people convicted of bribery
Columbia Law School alumni
Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
Judges of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
United States court of appeals judges appointed by Woodrow Wilson
United States district court judges appointed by Woodrow Wilson