Hugo Black

“ This is a two-pronged prerequisite for the loss of eligibility for United States citizenship. The alien must be one who 'applies or has applied for exemption or discharge' from military service and 'is or was relieved or discharged' from that service. There is no question that Astrup applied for an exemption. The United States argues that he was temporarily released from military service but recognizes that the release was not permanent. ”

“ Thereafter the Selective Service System attempted to draft Astrup and would have succeeded in putting him into uniform but for the fact that he was found to be physically unfit for the draft. Later, when Astrup decided that he would like to become an American citizen, the Government attempted to enforce Astrup's promise even though it was unwilling to keep its own promise. When Astrup petitioned for naturalization, the United States District Court for the Northern District of California denied his petition on the ground that he was debarred from citizenship. ”

“ However, there is nothing in the language of § 315 which leads us to believe that Congress intended such harsh and bizarre consequences to flow from an individual's failure to pass a physical examination. ”