United States v. Parker

The State may not prosecute an individual under 18 U.S.C. § 1382 unless that person violates the rule on land which is either owned or under the exclusive right of possession of the military.

Parker was cited numerous times for protesting military activity at the Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. On three separate occasions, Packer carried protest signs on a public byway (Ocean Avenue) that paralleled the perimeter of the base. He was prosecuted under 18 U.S.C. § 1382 and convicted of three misdemeanors for unlawfully entering a military installation. Parker raised various issues on appeal, the Ninth Circuit reviewed for sufficiency of the evidence and reversed. The issue in this case is what kind of control the military must have over property before it can move to prosecute people under 18 U.S.C. § 1382. The United States argued that there was no discernable precedent which indicates the level of control that military branches must exercise before applying § 1382. The Ninth Circuit disagreed and said that this Circuit as well as others have required the government to own or have the exclusive right of possession of property before applying § 1382. REVERSED.