United States v. Gerald Franklin Smith, United States of America v. Dale Ray Haley

The defendants, Smith and Haley, challenge the constitutionality of 18 U.S.C. § 3146, claiming that section is violative of the Eighth Amendment prohibition against excessive bail in that the restrictive requirements of § 3146 are in addition to the bail requirements.

The defendants cite no authority for this contention and we think the course of the common law in England and the development of the common law and statutory law in the United States demonstrate that the courts have the inherent power to place restrictive conditions upon the granting of bail.

Bail of course is ordered granted…