Wong Wing v. United States, 163 U.S. 228 (1896) (U.S. Supreme Court)
Wong Wing v. United States marks a defining moment at the intersection of immigration law and constitutional criminal procedure.
May Congress, through immigration statutes, authorize the imprisonment at hard labor of noncitizens found to be unlawfully present based solely on a summary administrative or commissioner proceeding, without indictment or jury trial, consistent with the Fifth and Sixth Amendments?
The Fifth and Sixth Amendments apply to all persons within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States, including noncitizens. While Congress may provide for civil deportation of unlawfully present noncitizens without a jury trial, the government may not impose punitive imprisonment at hard labor—an infamous punishment—without the constitutional safeguards of a criminal prosecution, including indictment by a grand jury and trial by an impartial petit jury.
No. The statute is unconstitutional insofar as it authorizes imprisonment at hard labor based on a summary, nonjury proceeding. Although deportation may be ordered as a civil measure, punitive imprisonment at hard labor cannot be imposed without indictment and trial by jury.
Wong Wing is a cornerstone of constitutional law and immigration law because it demarcates the civil-criminal boundary in immigration enforcement and confirms that noncitizens within the United States are protected by the Fifth and Sixth Amendments when the government seeks to impose criminal punishment. The case is frequently cited to: (1) uphold Congress's plenary power to deport as a civil mechanism; (2) prohibit punitive imprisonment without indictment and jury trial; and (3) reaffirm that due process protections extend to all persons, not only citizens. For law students, Wong Wing is essential to understanding the limits of administrative adjudication, the meaning of "infamous" punishment, and the persistence of constitutional constraints even in domains of broad federal power.