McBoyle v. United States

McBoyle v. United States, 283 U.S. 25 (1931), was a United States Supreme Court case regarding whether the theft of an airplane was illegal under federal law, given that the law only criminalized theft of a "vehicle."

Contents

• 1 Background

• 2 Case

• 3 Decision

• 4 See also

• 5 References

• 6 External links

Background

(https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=McBoyle_v._United_States&action=edit&section=1 "Edit section: Background")

William McBoyle transported a plane that he knew to be stolen from Ottawa, Illinois to Guymon, Oklahoma and was arrested. He was accused of violating the National Motor Vehicle Theft Act on the theory that the plane was a type of "vehicle" covered by the act.

He was sentenced to three years' imprisonment and a fine of $2,000 (equivalent to $38,000 in 2025). The judgment was affirmed by the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit . The Supreme Court granted certiorari on the question of whether the National Motor Vehicle Theft Act applied to aircraft.

Case

(https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=McBoyle_v._United_States&action=edit&section=2 "Edit section: Case")

The petitioners claimed that since the act did not specifically mention aircraft, it should not apply to McBoyle's case. Furthermore, the petitioners argued that Congress likely did not intend to criminalize the theft of aircraft when the law was passed, since airplanes barely existed at the time.

Decision

(https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=McBoyle_v._United_States&action=edit&section=3 "Edit section: Decision")

The court held that, since other acts, such as the Tariff Act of 1930

, specifically excluded aircraft in their definitions of a vehicle, the law must be interpreted narrowly. Justice Holmes stated:

Although it is not likely that a criminal will carefully consider the text of the law before he murders or steals, it is reasonable that a fair warning should be given to the world in language that the common world will understand, of what the law intends to do if a certain line is passed. To make the warning fair, so far as possible the line should be clear.

This case is widely regarded as a strong example of the use of the canon of _ejusdem generis _ ("of the same kind, class, or nature").

See also

(https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=McBoyle_v._United_States&action=edit&section=4 "Edit section: See also")

• List of United States Supreme Court cases, volume 283

References

(https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=McBoyle_v._United_States&action=edit&section=5 "Edit section: References")

1. ↑ National Motor Vehicle Theft Act, October 29, 1919, c. 89, 41 Stat 324
2. ↑ "McBoyle v. United States, 283 U.S. 25 (1931)" . Justia Law. Retrieved February 4, 2024.
3. ↑ How Someone Stole a Plane Without Breaking Federal Law , January 31, 2020, retrieved February 4, 2024
4. ↑ Tariff Act, June 17, 1930, c. 997, § 401(b)

External links

(https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=McBoyle_v._United_States&action=edit&section=6 "Edit section: External links")

• Works related to McBoyle v. United States at Wikisource
• Text of 283 U.S. 25 (1931) is available from: Internet Archive (docket files) Justia Library of Congress

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=McBoyle_v._United_States&oldid=1351348126 "