United States v. Lovasco

Lovasco (defendant) was suspected of illegal gun possession and unlicensed gun sales in mid-1973, and a postal inspector's report a month later found strong evidence against him but no proof of how he obtained the guns; he was not indicted until March 1975, about 18 months later. Lovasco moved to dismiss, arguing the delay impaired his defense because two material witnesses had died in the meantime, and the district court dismissed the indictment, with the court of appeals affirming.