Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1860-03-24
The Habeas Corpus Denied


roe State Rights Oy the way, very
ably conducted journaD, has the follow
ing terse and valuable editorial. It
will do no one harm to read it:
This writ, which the Constitution
says shall not be suspended, sunless
when, Ill eases of invasion or rebellion.
the public safety may demand it" has
been suspended when neither of those
conditions is in existence. Suspended
too, by the same court, but not the.
same Judges, that unanimously decid-
ed that the papers in the original case
were so defective that no offence was
alledged, and therefore the respondent
must be released. There may have
been some blunder in bringing the pres.
ent case before the Supreme Court, of
that we are not advised, SIS VIC have
not the papers by US, but of one thing
we feel sure and that is this: The old
Supreme court, composed of Chief JUS
tice Wilton, Judges Smith and Crsw-
ford, were unanimously of the opinion
that the record was SO defective that
no case was made out against the re-
spondent, Booth. In the language of
J""ge Crawford-"Now, the returns
made by the sheriff OF Milwaukee coun-
ty i'll this ease, contains a record Of
proceedings i'll the dislric. court, Judge
Miller) which not only takes away
mere presumption, bit iac0ntestabM
sh"ecS that tie district court had no H.
ris7iction Of the subject complained of
IN the counts Of tie indictment upon
achich he acaS convicte0"
In this view ofthe case aHthe Judges
OF the Supreme Court were agreed,
and for this reason, and in considera-
ton OF this fact. the prisoner was dis
charged. In this all the Justices Of
the Supreme Court of this State, We re-
peat, agreed.
While Justice Crawford did not
deem that he had right to decide I'D.
Oh the constitutionality of the fugitive
slave law, although he had taken an
oath to support the constitution of the
United States and Of the State of Wis
consin, and, from the necessit, imposed
by his oath, must, AZ we deem it, say
whether a law of Congress had been
passed IN pursuance Of the Constitu-
ton, on the other hand, Chief Justice
Wilton deemed it his duty to pronounce
the law unconstitutional, and acted &C.
cordingly-not going to the question
ol me power OF congress to pass such
la"-J"stice o"ilth covered the whole
ground, ana, not only pronounced the
III" uhcohstitutlonai, bnt pronounced
IT. :" because ne deemed that Congress
'''a Il" a"tlor'ty 10 enact any law up
on tn' subject. II THIS latter opinion
AL state Rights men agree. They
agree that t.'iS, II anything, is a matter
OF comfy between the States. But
these wv" latter positions were not ma
'erlai ~ the ease, IT The record showed,
aS the Justices all agreed, THAI Booth
was conNlc'ed illegally h. Judge ~
ter justice Crawford c"ntiuued-,'lf
tii!S position be true, we may appropri-
ate use the language If Judge Evans
IN the case OF Hi rs Robertson, Ist
9tFahbartS La" Reports, y. 1t would
he waste OF words to attempt to prove
that the proceedings OF court Of Inn
!1ea Jur'>dlcton, Iii case without its
jurisdiction, are absolutely void, and
may be so declared whenever present
ed whether directly or co!l.le,al,y."-
Wisconsin Exports, vol. 3 page 1871.
We have presented the case in this
! li-ht to prove that 1br Snnrrmn Cn,,<
ought to have granted the writ. anv
now, upon the fact Of detect--snch a
defect rs showed to the minds Of a
unanimous court that the counts in the
indictment, upon which the Judgment
was rendered, made no case out, Of
which Judge Miller had jurisdiction.
The proceedings were therefore void