Hugh Bryson v. United States

This case is now before the court on Bryson’s appeal from an order of the District Court denying his motion to reduce sentence under Rule 35 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, 18 U.S.C.

In essence, he contends

Hugh Bryson was tried on two counts of an indictment which charged him with having falsely sworn that he was not a member of the Communist Party nor affiliated with such Party, in an affidavit filed with the National Labor Relations Board, in violation of § 1001, Title 18 United States Code. The evidence adduced at the trial showed that Bryson, beginning in 1937, was an active and militant member of the Communist Party and of the Marine Cooks and Stewards. He occupied positions of leadership in the Communist Party and accepted Party discipline. In 1947, he became the national president of his union. In that year, Bryson attended a meeting called by the Trade Union Director of the Communist Party to discuss the Communist Party attitude towards the recently-enacted Taft-Hartley Act, 29 U.S.C.A. § 141 et seq. The Director announced that Party members in labor unions should boycott the Act unless rival unions attempted to raid their membership or involve them in…