Duvernay v. United States

THORNBERRY, Circuit Judge: Raymond Joseph DuVernay, a twenty-two year old Negro from New Orleans, Louisiana, first registered with the Selective Service in 1964. He received a student deferment and remained in a student classification until the early part of 1966 when he left Louisiana State University, New Orleans, which he had attended for one-half semester. He was reclassified I-A on January 19, 1966 by Local Board No. 42 in New Orleans. No administrative appeal was taken from the I-A classification. On April 13, 1966 he was ordered to report for induction on May 20, 1966. Subsequent to this order, he attempted to obtain first a student deferment, then a hardship deferment, and finally an occupational deferment.1 The local board refused to grant him a personal appearance or to reopen the matter of his classification. His efforts to obtain a deferment having failed, he reported to the Induction Center on May 20 and informed the officers in charge that he would refuse to be inducted. The consequences of a refusal to be inducted were explained, but at the critical moment he declined to take the required one step forward. On August 30, 1966, he was convicted by a jury of violating the Universal Military Training and Service Act, 50 U.S.C. App. § 462, and was given a five-year sentence by the court.