In Re Grand Jury Investigation. Appeal of Joseph Braun, Witness

OPINION OF THE COURT

ADAMS, Circuit Judge.

In this appeal we must decide whether appellant’s confinement for civil contempt pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1826(a) exceeds the period of time permissible under the due .process clause, and whether an evidentiary hearing must be held before a decision is made not to terminate his confinement pri- or to the time set forth in the statute.

I

A federal grand jury was empanelled on February 28, 1978, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania to investigate a number of alleged federal violations, including loansharking, mail…