United States v. Central National Bank
Opinion of the Court
This is an appeal from the judgment entered on July 18, 1969, by the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota in an interpleader action instituted under 28 U.S.C. §§ 1335, 1397 and 2361 by the United States. The res of the suit was $4,350.71, lawfully taken by F.B.I. agents from the person and home of Edward Owen Watkins upon his arrest on December 2, 1966, in Montana for bank robbery. The amount seized was deposited in the registry of the district court. The United States claimed no interest in the sum and was, on its motion, dismissed from the action and discharged from any further liability. The rival claimants were 10 banks and savings and loan institutions claiming losses from robbery by Watkins
Appellant claims that all but $300 of the amount disbursed pro rata by the district court was in fact his own personal money. He concedes that return of the “bait money” was proper. In answer to the cross-claims, appellant had
The district court properly adjudged that appellant was liable to the respective institutional claimants for a total sum of $128,342.26. The source of the unmarked $4,050.71, whether from one or more of the robbed institutions or from elsewhere, is unascertainable. But we need not, as appellees suggest, raise and rely upon a presumption that the unmarked money in the court’s registry is part of the loot stolen by appellant, and then invoke the common law tenet that a thief possesses no ownership rights in property which he has purloined. We need only hold that where, as here, one of the rival claimants obtained large sums Of money from the other claimants in the course of the commission of felonies, that as between the felon and his rival claimants the felon is not entitled to participate in the distribution of the money properly the subject of an interpleader action. On this record, it would indeed be shocking to the dictates of equity, justice, and conscience to allow appellant, adjudged a debtor because of multiple serious crimes against the creditor-victims, to receive any of the money properly on deposit, which money may well be stolen and is, in any event, subject to no legally superior claim by the self-confessed debtor-robber. See People’s National Bank v. Jones, 249 Ky. 468, 61 S.W.2d 17 (1933). The court’s pro rata distribution was in all respects proper. See Ruddle v. Moore, 134 U.S.App.D.C. 3, 411 F.2d 718 (1969).
Affirmed.
. One of the banks joined as defendant in tlie complaint, Union Commerce Bank of Lakewood, Ohio, filed no responsive pleading and made no claim to the monies on deposit with the district court. Accordingly, that bank did not participate in the pro rata distribution.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- United States v. CENTRAL NATIONAL BANK OF CLEVELAND, DETROIT OFFICE Central National Bank of Cleveland, Collingwood Office Cuyahoga Savings Association Union Commerce Bank the Cleveland Trust Company Union Federal Savings and Loan Association, Maple Road Branch State Savings Company Minneapolis Federal Savings and Loan Association Greenwood Savings and Loan Asosciation Swedish-American Savings and Loan Association Bayview Federal Savings and Loan Association California Federal Savings and Loan Association, Edward Owen Watkins, and Kathleen Watkins
- Cited By
- 1 case
- Status
- Published