In the 1908 case of MacFadden v. United States, the Supreme Court ruled on a matter involving customs duties and importation laws. The defendant, MacFadden, had imported diamonds into the U.S., which were seized by customs officials for alleged undervaluation. He sued to recover them but was unsuccessful in lower courts due to his failure to produce evidence that he declared their true value at the time of importation as required by law. On appeal, he argued that this requirement violated his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination because it compelled him to disclose information about potential criminal activity (i.e., smuggling). However, the Supreme Court rejected this argument and upheld his conviction. It held that requiring an importer to declare goods' value does not violate constitutional rights since such declaration is part of regular business transactions rather than incriminating testimony forced from an accused party in a criminal case.

In the dissenting opinion for MacFadden v. United States, the justice argued that there was insufficient evidence to convict MacFadden of conspiracy to defraud the government by using mail fraud. The justice believed that while it was clear that a fraudulent scheme had been carried out through the mails, it wasn't evident whether MacFadden knowingly participated in this scheme with intent to defraud. He pointed out inconsistencies and lack of clarity in witness testimonies regarding MacFadden's involvement and knowledge about the fraudulent activities. Additionally, he noted that some witnesses were unreliable due to their own participation in illegal activities or personal bias against MacFadden. Therefore, he concluded that without more concrete proof of his guilt beyond reasonable doubt, it would be unjust to uphold his conviction.