New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1857-05-26
THE POLICE CONTEST.
TIE POLICE ACT DECLARED CONsrITU-
TTONAI.
SUPREME oOURT-OrSss

30 be passed upon few decisions in other Eases nav
ng been rendered. this up in its order Judge
body delivered the judgment Of the Coart as iono"9
PEABODY, Justice.-Tbe claim o. the P'@n'i''
herein is that the defendants have rsnrPed INC
Of Police Commissioners, and are exercising .'0 p'"
srs Of those Offices in certain territory oil inc STATE 4,
violation of law and they ask TO have thcni ouS'eu
therefrom by the Judgment Of this Court i"9y ai''
k 70 have the relsor adudged entitled to hold the
Office Of such Commissioner, which he dd no'u un'il
removed by the usurpston OF deieod"nos' .
The defendants answer that, pursuant 10 an act oi
The Legislature of the State OF New-forK, passed
April IS 1857, entitled An act 70 establish Meuo-
",oB.an police District and to provide for the gov
"ennen. thereof" they were, by the Governor,
,v;,b tho consent Of the Senate appointed Commits
s,opers of Pc!ice and thereby became and still are
authorized to perform the duties eIoned by said act
To this answer the plaintiffs demur, and to sustain
teir demurrer rely on the unconstituonality OF the
net They say that the act in its general scope and
effect is at variance with the spirit ndpurposes OF the
Constitution:
Pfrst. Tha. il is 20 in creating new district or d.
,;s,on NJ the State unknown to the Constitution, for
governmental purposes
Second. That it conflicts with the spirit Of decen-
trazaon which pervades the Constitution IN confer
ring on the Executive Of the State the power of ap-
po;ntpc COMMISSIONER to these Offices, comparatively
local in their character.
Third. That the act is unconstitutional in giving TO
the use Of the Commissioners the public police prop
erty of the City of New-York which, it is said, is the
private property Of the city
By this act the Counties of York, Kings Rich
mond and Westchester constituted Metropol-
itsn Police District and the Governor with the con-
sent Of the Senate is authorized to appoint five Com
rissoners 10 the offices held by the defendants whose
duty shall be take charge of the police OF said dir
trict appoint and members oi the corps, and
generally 20 take entire control and direction OF the
administration Of police throughout the territory con-
etituted such Police District.
This law erects il is said a new governmental
district unknown 10 the fundamental law. The Con-
titution having recognized all the civil governmental
districts Of the State gave them, II Is arguel perpe-
tuy by its sanction and by necessary implication for
babe the Legislature to erect for any purpose of civil
government permanent districts unknown TO 1t.
The Constitution does it is true, recognize certain
governmental districts of the State then existing
1t does this incidentally than once. II does no
more than recognize them, however. 1t docs not
erect expressly sanction them. They existed PRIOR
10 the Constitution aud not disturbed by it, but
were suffered 10 remain as they had been heretofore
The Constitution, therefore, has had nothing to do
with them the fact of their existence except silent
by tolerate Them and perhaps provide for the alter
alton of some of them under certain circumstances.
These districts are counties, cities, towns and vii
1ages They existed prior to the Constitution, and
were by it left without other sanction than what may
be implied from expressions no more significant than
mere reference 10 them by generic terms in the dstr-
button of the powers of government. Nothing In the
mode Of reference indicates that they must remain as
they were or that they may not be altered in their
form extent that the territory which then con-
ituted of these districts county, city; town or
village was expected 10 continue so. On the con-
sTary as to some of them the power to alter them is
recognized in that fundamental law and, as to the
others there is nothing the face of that instru
neut to suggest the improperly or mpractcabIiy OF
alterations.
But suppose that it had enacted, and so created
these districts Of the extent and proportions they now
possess; and suppose it had gone further, and or
caned that they should remain intact and they were
made until altered oholshed by some power of
equal dignity with that which enacted them aud ''.'
no such alteration had been made; when ior some
pnrpose TO acquire some benefit or avoid some evil
common TO two or three four of them adjacent 10
each other they unite, or are united by legislative
enactment for that single purpose-to supply want
peculiar 20 that particular section OF territory eiu
braced in them would such a law be invalid, as
violating the spirit of the Constitution, by infringing
those divisions they recognized IN II as existing Tor
general governmental purposes Inc four counties
embraced in this district are certainly peculiar IN en-
bracipe and lying contiguous To the great mctropohs
Of the western hemisphere. From tins circumstance,
if for no other, they nrus have wants ana interests
pecuhar 10 themselves and common to them all
Their situation in this respect it is apparent, must call
for an administration of police, which would be quite
unnecessary and nexpedent in most, and perhaps IN
AL other parts OF the State. Inc oouaIes, a. suV III
are not dissolved-as counties they still exist tor all
zeneral purposes, and the governmental departments
sanctioned or recognised by the Constitution are not
violated but remain in their integrity A law apphca-
HE 10 the territory embraced 10 four OF them is made
a. suppy want at once common and peculiar to them
alone OF all the State Indeed, as the Constitution
recognizes the divisions of the State into counties and
Is said thereby to have sanctioned them, 80 does thus
act recognize the districts Of territory embraced IN
these counties respectively as constituting the same
governmental departments as before, and in this re-
spect it may be said in some sense, to lend Its sane
ton to their existence and continuation for the pur
for which they created, certanyto refrain
from any dsintegraing invasion OF them.
Suppose some other local subject OF Legislation 10
exist In several contiguous counfes-a valuable fish
cry for instance, which required Legislation tor It's
preservation or management w0uuo naruly oe
claimed las is claimed here that legislative enact
neat on that subject, applicable to those counties
alone hostile 70 the spirit OF the Constitution be-
Cause it was 50 applicable to more than one county
and less than the whole State-but We are unable 10
zee why might not be claimed with equal prOpriety.
This act provides system of Police Administration
for certain section of the State in which the Legsa
ture have decided that peculiar system was required
We see nothing than this In the act pertinent 10
the objection now considering.
The fact that the section OF country thus provided
for lies in one OF counties orembraces the whole
Of q county or more than one, cannot, we think, be
important in determining the question raised py this
peint-
e not pretended that there is anything expressed
In the Constitution inconsistent in this respect with
the act in question. The claim OF the plainttS /.
only that the Constitution, having recognized and
thereby sanctioned certain governmental divisions,
counties towns, cities and villages &C, other avis
ons for governmental purposes are inconsistent with
its interest unauthorized and by implication forbid
den by II.
This argument would seem TO have more force, il
The Constitution had assumed TO divide the State for
general pun poses o. administration either by declaring
expressly ratiiyng the old districts. IL might
then be argued with more force that the people, with
il he had