The enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1804-1815, 1807-09-09
RICHMOND, WEDNESDAY MORNING. sEp7EMHER 9, 1907

= fouer 81 las been particularly quoted, art
certainly he is preciiey in point. g Il is wei
known, fays Foiter, that in The language of tn,
cafe there are no accet;aries in hivl, treafon, a,
are principals Every inaarce Of inciiemeat
AID, or protection, which in the cafe of fslon,
will render 4 man an accefIary before or after
the iaft, m the cafe of high trcafon whether /,
he t'ea'on at common law or y natute, viii
| make him principal in treafou." The cafe.
ot Indictment and aid are cafes put as examples
! OF mans becoming principal in irealcr, no,
becauie he was legally preieut, bu, by force OF
that MAXIM IN the common law that whatever
'"lii render a man an acceillry NJ common law
VIII render him principal in treaion. In other
paflgcs The words command" or " prccurc''
are uied to indicate the fame Rate of things,
'ha; is treaionable antmbage produced by a
man who is not himfclfin that aGemb!age.
| In point of law then. the man who incites,
aids, or procures treafonablc aet, is not merely
| IN con!sqneuce of that Indictment. aid or pro-
| cnrement, legally pteient when tina set is COM
mt:ed.
If it does not refult from the nature of the
| crme that all who are concerned in it are legal
~ prefent ut every overt att, then each cafe de-
pends upon its own circumstances, aud TO Judge
how tar the circumstances of any cafe can make
him legally prefent who is in fact abfcr., the
doctrine OF coritrueiive preience muf be exam
incd.
Hale in his vol. p. eI5 fays regularly no
man can be principal in felony unlers he Re
pretsnt." In ,hc fame page he Jays 60 an accef-
iary bct0re is he that being abltnt at the lime OF
the felony committed, doth yet procure, ccun-
lei, or command another tn commit felony"
The books are full of raliiCes which Rate this
TO be the law. Fofter i'll ihowing what acts df
concurrence will make a man principal, fays
he mutt be preient at the perpsiration, other
vile he can be no more than an acceiiary before
the fact"
Thefe ftrong dilintfions would be idle TO
treaion, at any rate they would be inapplicable,
if they were to be entirely loA in the doctrine
of conhru6tive preence.
FOfer adds (p. $40 when the law reouir-
eth the Preftnce of the accomplice at the per-
petration of the fact in order TO render him
principal, it doth not require ftritt actual I'M
| mediate prefence, fuch 4 rrcicncc as would
make him an eye or ear witprl7 cf what paf-
eth" The terms uted by Fnfer are iuch as
would be employed by man intending TO
lhow the nectnity that the abfent Derfon fiouid
be near at hand, although from the nature of
the thing no preciie diltancc could he marked
out. An nfpection of the cafes from which
Foter drew this general principle will ferve to
liiuitrate Il; Hale $50. In all theie cafes, put
by Hale, thc@hole party iet out together to
commit the We y fatt charged in the india ment,
or 10 commit fone other unlawful act, in which
they are all to be Perfonally cor ,erncd at the
fame time and place, and are at the very time
when the criminal fact is committed, rear E.
nough to give actual perforal aid and sdfance
to the man who Perpetra,ei il. Hale in D. 40
giving the reafon for the deciGon in The cafe of
the word Decree fays "they all came with an
intent to TEAL the deer and consequently the law
fnppotes that they came al! with the intent TO
oppoie AL that fhou!d hinder them in that de-
fgn. The original cafe fays this was their re-
foiution. This oppotition would be psrfonal
oppoiition. This cafe even as nated by Haze
would clearly not comprehend any man who
entered into the combination, but who, inGcad
of going 10 the park where the murder was
committed, ihould not fet cut with the othere,
fhoud go to 4 different park, or fhoud even
lofe his way. Hale 53f.
In both the cafes here ftated, the perfong ac-
tnally fct out together and were near enough 70
aiIif in the commliion of the fast. That in
the cafe of Pudiy the felony was as Rsted by
Hale, different felony from that originally in
tended is unimportant in regard to the
particular principle now under confederation.
70 far as reipscted diltance, "a refpeGted
capacity TO afii1 in cafe of refitance, il is
the fame as if the robbery had been that
which was originally defgned. The cafe in Is :
original report lhows that the felony commit
4
de6gned. Potter $50 plainly fnppo(cs the fame
, particular defign, not general defgn compof-
ed of Nancy particular diltinct fats. RE fup-
pofes them TO be cooperating with reipeta to
that particular dehgn. This may be iluGrated
by cafe which is perhaps common. Suppore
band of robbers coBfederated for the general
purpofe of robbing. They let out together, or
in parties, TO rob particular individual, and
each performs the part aligned to him. Some
ride up to the individual and demand his purfe,
others watch out Of fight TO intercept thofe who
/ might be coming to aiiit the man on whom u e
robbery is TO be committed. Ifmurder or rob.
/ berry actually take place, all are principals, and
! al in contribution oil law are preEeni. f1u; ftp
: poie hey fet ont 1T the fame time or It differ
ent times, hy different roads, to attack and rob
| different individuals or different conpan'es: TO
, commit dinaE acts Of robbery. j. has never
/ been con,erded that thofe WHO con- nliftcd one
! act Of robbery or who failed altogether, were
! coufructvejy pre..ut at the ACT Of thofs who
were aif,ociatei with them in the common OBJ
e6t Of robbery, WHO were to ihlrs the plumber,
bot who did not agit at the particular fact.
They do indeed belong tn the general party.
but they are not e tie particular party which
Committed this fdC. FoGer concludes this
fubieet by obf.rvnC that q" in order to render
perfnn an accompHce and principal ia felo-
NY, he uuG be aiding and abetting 1T the f1et
or ready 10 afford aniltsnCe ifuecehary." That
is, ~ the particular fact which ie charged DC
mutt be ready TO render alIihance 30 thoie who
are COMMITTING that particular fact he ruut{ a.