Langbord-Switt 1933 Double Eagle Case

i

First, thank you for your thoughtful question.

I believe melting these economic and legally significant artifacts would be compounding another crime on top of the original one. But that does not mean I believe they should be in private hands. I see them as the historical heritage of a never to be repeated piece of history - the practical end of metals based money and the gold standard for all time, never to be resurrected. I truly believe a gold standard is one of the purest forms of economic evil.

I believe the U.S. government should retain title in perpetuity, but that they be distributed as widely as is practical so that they may be widely enjoyed by the maximum number of people possible. Without relinquishing title, I believe the government should display one at the ANA museum in Colorado Springs, the ANS museum in New York, the visitor center of each Federal Reserve regional bank that has such a thing (Chicago - yes, Dallas - no), and whatever public building is attached to Fort Knox, KY if any. With some thought, appropriate venues should be found for all 10. The Smithsonian already has two, so they're covered. I also believe one should accompany the first manned mission to Mars whenever that happens and returned to the Earth.

They are a joint public asset that needs to be treated with the respect they are due, not consigned to the furnace. On the other hand, perhaps one, maybe the most worn one, should be melted along with other gold for a special commemorative, so that all purchasers can own a microscopic piece of a real 1933 double eagle. See? I speak "marketing" when I need to.

By the way, I proudly work for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, not the U.S. government. We like to say, "The United States Government - made in Pennsylvania."

 

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Oh no, a government regulator? Does your organization go around the Constitution and make laws/regulations with no regard to that duty assigned to the US congress? Just curious...

 

It's only stealing if you steal from the government. If the government steals from another country it's okay because it's for the best of the nation.

How Germany's gold looking? Maybe they can start by giving them these 10oz of gold.

 

No, but our present majority party (you can look it up) in the Pennsylvania General Assembly has a seemingly bottomless propensity to pass unconstitutional laws. I work for the minority party's caucus. The other guys keep our Supreme Court from getting lonely.

In one case, our brothers across the aisle stated we didn't need to apply the SCOTUS's prohibition against "life without parole" sentences for minors retroactively, until the SCOTUS directed them, "Oh yes you do!" Lifers who were sentenced as minors are getting out by the hundreds "as we type".

 

Great, you had me going there.

 

It's not so much what we as individuals will tolerate. In my view, what has changed radically is what we are EXPECTED to tolerate.

 

Well said you silver-tongued munchkin.

 

LOL

 

I'm coming into this thread late, but from what I understand a final judgment was made that went against the Langborg Family. I've always looked at this case as not so much the 10 the Langborg family turned over to the Treasury Department for verification (not the best move to make), but what the government decided to do with the Siam specimen. The decision, briefly, was to auction off the coin and split the proceeds with the person who possessed the coin.

I am not an attorney and do not pretend to know or understand the laws that caused this final decision, but I do understand precedence. I feel that the Siam coin set a precedence that has been ignored and that is not fair.

I live in New Mexico where it is very common to give light sentences or just probation to people in government who break the law. As a result most people look at local, county and state government with a very weary eye here. I am not going to go off of the topic by listing the government people, both elected or appointed who have broken the law and gotten ridiculously low or non existent punishment, but because of this people who live here tend to favor the little guy in a dispute with government. Right now we have the Senate majority leader being accused of kickbacks in a government building project and no judge will hear the cage. I believe at last count six judges have recused themselves from hearing the case.

I'm sure New Mexico is not the only state that has corruption in government (boy I'll bet Homeland Security is having fits over this post) so that might explain why the average person tends to question any decision that comes out with the government prevailing.

Have any of you had to deal with the IRS lately? There was a minor mistake on my 2013 tax return and it took the IRS until June of 2015 to send me a letter telling me of my problem. It just seems, IMHO, that there is one set of rules for your average citizen and another if you are a government employee.

Was I rooting for the Langborgs? Yes, in a sense, the fact that they sent the 10 coins to the Treasury shows that they weren't trying to hide anything. Did I think they should get to keep the coins? I don't really know, but I do know they should have received some king of compensation, even if it was just the bullion value of the coins.

 

I can tell you with no fear of contradiction that in Pennsylvania, government employees are treated like dirt by prosecutors. We/they are perhaps even viciously pursued. Staffers of a Speaker of the House acting on direct orders of that Speaker merely mixing campaign work with public work WENT TO PRISON. So did that Speaker. So did his Whip. So did two Senators. So did a Supreme Court justice. Another Supreme Court justice was forced to resign because he resent racy emails. Don't give me any crap about public employees getting special treatment. 'Taint so here. Maybe you need to experience real life beyond your borders. We are all required to attend regular ethics classes, and we have a full time ethics staff.

By the way, the settlement in what you call the Siam piece (actually the Fenton - Farouk) stated that it would be the ONLY ONE EVER TO BE SO TREATED. So much for understanding precedence.

 

First of all, of course your going to defend your state, you work for it. I could have mentioned I was born, raised, and educated in New Jersey, so I don't just know about New Mexico, I was just stating the problems we had here. New Jersey? Something about Christie closing a tunnel? Something about the voters having to bring the issue of the state upholding their contributions to public employee pension funds and going as far as a constitutional change? Outside my borders? How about the time I spent in Vietnam serving my country? How about the 27 years I spent teaching in an inner city school that most teachers wouldn't dream of entering, let alone teaching in? How about donating my time as a special sheriffs officer, in New Jersey, so that the regular sheriffs officers wouldn't have to ride alone.

I compliment the prosecutors in Pennsylvania going after corrupt public officials/employees. If they did not carry out the duties of their office or committed a crime, they should be prosecuted. Sometimes state employees and elected officials forget they are there to serve the people, not themselves.

You talk about Pennsylvania, but at last count there where fifty states in the union. From your attitude I guess you're an expert on all fifty. I don't pretend to know everything, but being the USA I do have the right to express my opinion.

 

Heck, no one more corrupt than right here in Suffolk County (NY). The DA is under scrutiny for misdeeds and the selection of judges is done under the table and not at the voting booth........

 

We have elected judges in Louisiana. Some of the idiots that get elected are beyond belief. On the other hand, there are some good ones in my community.

 

What exactly was the point, or points of law decided? I would like the facts. Kind of unseemly to smear the family long after the principals are dead.

 

I sure don't claim to know the details of all of this, but I have questions. First if my grand father took something from someone and hid it and later much later I found it does it become mine? (I say yes) Now if the said thing was something that people knew was stolen and had looked for or had reason to believe with evidence to support it had been taken and I find it does it become mine? (I say no) Possession of stolen property even if you had no prior knowledge it was stolen doesn't make you the rightful owner. Also I don't believe there should be any compensation due because I had to return it to the rightful owner. If it has been proven that old grand dad managed to get out of the candy store with the golden wrapper when in fact he had no business getting any candy at all I shouldn't get to own the factory or even be given a tour. Sometimes the right thing just has to be done.

 

I seriously doubt it. I think it has reached it's end.

If what was deemed illegal? The Farouk coin was made legal, with the understanding that it would be the only one.

 

All you wrote here is correct except the first one. No matter how many generations have passed, you don't own it legally.

 

And he said he'd return it........do the right thing.

 

Virtually the ONLY point of law at question was whether the government is obligated to pursue a forfeiture action when the property at question has always been legally the government's. The fact that it was the goverment's property and that Switt and McCann conspired to steal it was decided years ago by the jury. Federal appeals courts almost never overturn jury findings. They order new trials if error of law occurred, and led a jury astray. In this case, the appeals court found minor errors of law that they found were not dispositive. The court of appeals decided no formal forfeiture petition was necessary. Advisable? Preferable? Maybe. Necessary? No. The government merely seized the property.

 

We elect them all in PA as well. We have largely lucked out. Even the most sketchy seeming at election often turn out quite able.