United States v. Salerno, 794 F.2d 64 (2d Cir. 1986)

Second Circuit opinion of July 3, 1986 holding the preventive-detention provision of the Bail Reform Act unconstitutional as applied to Anthony Salerno and Vincent Cafaro. The Supreme Court reversed it the next year.

Date: 1986-07-03
Kind: court-opinion
Source: CourtListener (Free Law Project), text of the opinion
Retrieved: 2026-10-12
Docket: 86-1197, 86-1198
Rights: Opinion of a United States court. Works of the federal judiciary are in the public domain in the United States. The text was read on CourtListener.

United States Court of Appeals, Second Circuit, dockets 86-1197 and 86-1198. Argued May 29, 1986, decided July 3, 1986, before Judges Feinberg, Newman and Kearse. CourtListener lists the lead opinion by Judge Kearse and a dissent by Judge Feinberg. The appeal was from the Southern District’s order detaining Anthony Salerno and Vincent Cafaro before trial (631 F. Supp. 1364).

The opinion restates what the government offered at the detention hearing: “The proffer indicated that Salerno was the ‘boss’ of the Genovese Crime Family of La Cosa Nostra, that Cafaro was a ‘captain’ in the Genovese Family.” That is the government’s proffer as the court summarized it, not a finding of the Court of Appeals.

The majority held the Bail Reform Act’s provision for detention on the ground of dangerousness unconstitutional as applied. The Supreme Court reversed in United States v. Salerno, 481 U.S. 739 (1987).

itemUnited States v. Salerno, 631 F. Supp. 1364 (S.D.N.Y. 1986)District Judge Walker's April 2, 1986 order detaining Anthony Salerno and Vincent Cafaro before trial on a Genovese Family racketeering indictment. It names the two Manhattan social clubs where the government's recordings were made, the Palma Boys Social Club and the club at 2244 First Avenue.itemUnited States v. Salerno, 481 U.S. 739 (1987)Supreme Court decision of May 26, 1987 upholding pretrial detention on the ground of dangerousness under the Bail Reform Act of 1984, in the case of Anthony Salerno and Vincent Cafaro.itemUnited States v. Salerno, 868 F.2d 524 (2d Cir. 1989)Second Circuit opinion on the appeal from the Southern District of New York trial of Anthony Salerno and seven other defendants, decided January 31, 1989.