United States v. King

MERRITT, Circuit Judge.

After a bench trial, District Judge Douglas Hillman convicted seven members of an unorthodox religious commune of two federal crimes: (1) willfully holding John Yar-bough, a minor, to “involuntary servitude” *1278in violation of § 1584, Title 18;1 and (2) conspiring to deprive Yarbough and other children living at the religious commune of their constitutional right to be free from “involuntary servitude” as guaranteed by the Thirteenth Amendment.2 On appeal the seven defendants’ principal contentions are that Judge Hillman erred for two reasons:

First, because he did not…