Case Name: The United States v. William Bates
Court: United States Circuit Court of the District of Columbia
Jurisdiction: United States
Decision Date: 1810-06
Citations: 2 Cranch 1
Docket Number: 
Parties: The United States v. William Bates.
Judges: (Fitzhugh, J., absent, but concurring,)
Reporter: Reports of cases argued and determined in the Supreme Court of the District of Columbia (District of Columbia - reported by Mackey)
Volume: 2
Pages: 1–2

Head Matter:
The United States v. William Bates.
The drawee of a forged draft is a competent witness to support the prosecution. To support an indictment for forgery, under the Maryland Statute 1799, c. 75, § 2, it is not necessary that the drawer should have a'righfto draw, or that the draft should purport to be by a person having a right .to draw- .. ‘
Indictment under the Act of Assembly of Maryland 1799, c. 75, § 2, for forging a draft upon Grustavus Higden, with intent to defraud him.
Higden was offered as a witness on the part of the United States. He had paid the order.1
Mr. Caldwell, Mr. Bálch, and Mr. Bprigg, for the prisoner,
cited Peake,'L. E. 96, 97.
But the Couet, (Thruston, J., absent,-) permitted the witness te.be sworn and examined.
“Verdict, guilty.
Motion in arrest of judgment, because, it is not averred in the indictment that Arnol had a right to draw. 2 East, Cr. Law, 936; Mitchell’s case, anno 1754, upon the Act of 7 Geo. 2, c. 22 ; the words of which are like those,of the Act of Maryland, except that it has not thése words, which are in the Maryland Act, “ or draught for the payment of.money, or delivery of goods, or .other valuable articles.”
'.The order, or draft, was in these-words: “ Washington City, jan’y 12, 1810. Mr. Higden — -Sir, you will please let the bearer, James Gray, have 31 dollars’worth out of your store, and oblige, Sir, your most obed’t serv’t, William Arnol.”

Opinion:
The Court
(Fitzhugh, J., absent, but concurring,)
was of opinion that the word " draught," in the Act of Assembly of Maryland, which was not in the English statute, made a difference.; and that a draft might be made by a person who had no right to draw.
The sentence of the Court was twenty stripes.
Cranch, C. J.,
said that it was the first case under this Act of Assembly which had come' before the Court; and perhaps there was some ground to doubt whether the case was strictly within it, as explained by the English authorities. For these reasons, the Court inflicted a lighter punishment than they would otherwise have done.