Peachee v. State

63 Ind. 399
CourtIndiana Supreme Court
DecidedNovember 15, 1878
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 63 Ind. 399 (Peachee v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Peachee v. State, 63 Ind. 399 (Ind. 1878).

Opinion

Howe, C. J.

The appellant and two other persons were jointly indicted, in this case, by the grand jury of the Daviess Circuit Court, at its March term, 1878.

The indictment contained but one count, in which it was charged, in substance, that the appellant, “one Jamos F. Peachee, one John Doherty and one Harry Faulkner, late of said county, on the 15th day of October, A. D. 1877, at said county and State, did then and there unlawfully, feloniously, wilfully and knowingly, send to one Joseph Cabel. a certain letter and written communication, signed with a fictitious name, to wit, ‘Vengeance,’ directed to the said Joseph Cabel, by the name and description of ‘ Mr. Joseph Cabel, Washington, Indiana, Personal,’ threatening to do injury to the person and property and family of the said Joseph Cabel, which letter is in the words and figures following, to wit: ”

Here follows a copy of the letter referred to, which is very long and full of threats, but we need not set it out in this opinion. The indictment then proceeds as follows :

“ And on divers other days and at divers times, from said date up to the time of returning this indictment, did then and there unlawfully, feloniously, wilfully and knowingly, send and cause to be sent to the said Joseph Cabel other letters and written communications, signed with a fictitious name, to wit, ‘ Vengeance,’threatening to do injury to the person and property and family of the said Joseph Cabel, all with the intent then and there and thereby to extort and gain from the said Joseph Cabel a certain sum of money, to wit, five hundred dollars, contrary to the form of the statutes,” etc.

The appellant moved the court to quash the indictment, which motion was overruled, and to this ruling he excepted.

On the appellant’s written motion, the court struck out of the indictment the averments therein in relation to the sending of “ other letters and written communications.”

[401]*401On arraignment, the appellant’s plea to said indictment was, that he was not guilty as therein charged.

On his application, the appellant was awarded a separate trial.

The cause was tried by a jury, and a verdict was to-turned finding the appellant guilty as charged in the indictment, and assessing his punishment at imprisonment in the state-prison for the period of two years.

The appellant’s motions for a new trial and in arrest of judgment, in the order named, were severally overruled, and to each of these decisions the appellant excepted, and judgment was rendered on the verdict.

The appellant has assigned, in this court, the following decisions.of the circuit coui’t, as errors:

1. In overruling his motion to quash the indictment;

2. In overruling his motion for a new trial; and,

3. In overruling his motion in arrest of judgment.

We will consider and decide the questions presented by the appellant’s counsel, arising under these alleged errors, in the order of their assignment:

1. The indictment in this ease charged the appellant and his codefendants with the commission of one of the felonies mentioned in the 1st section of an act entitled “ An act defining certain felonies and prescribing punishment therefor,” approved March 10th, 1873. Acts 1873, p. 138; 2 R. S. 1876, p. 449. It is insisted in argument, on behalf of the appellant, that his motion to quash the indictment ought to have been sustained, because, as his counsel say, the above entitled act, under which the indictment was found, is unconstitutional and void. It is said, “ that the act referred to is in violation of the 19th section of the 4th article of the constitution of the State, which requires every act to embrace but one subject and matters properly connected therewith, ‘ which subject shall be expressed in the title.’ ” The appellant’s counsel claim, as [402]*402we understand them, that no subject is expressed or embraced in the title of said act, because the particular felonies defined are not designated by their particular names, in ■■said title.

"We can not approve of that view of the subject. If the act were unconstitutional, for the reason suggested, then, for the same reason, the felony act of June 10th, 1852, would also be unconstitutional, and we would have no law in this State defining or prescribing punishment for treason, murder, manslaughter, rape, larceny, and many other felonies.

The felony act of June 10th, 1852, is entitled “An act defining felonies, and prescribing punishment therefor.” It will be seen that this title is open to the same objection which the appellant’s counsel urge against the constitutionality of the act of March 10th, 1873, for no particular felony is designated by name in the title of the felony act of June 10th, 1852. The subject of the act of March 10th, 1873, we think, is expressed in the title of the act with sufficient certainty to comply with the requirements of the constitution, and the act is not unconstitutional on that ground.

The appellant’s counsel insist, that the act of March 10th, 1873, is void, for another reason. It is provided in section 2 of “ An act declaring the law governing this State,” approved May 31st, 1852, that “ Crimes and misdemeanors shall be defined, and punishment therefor fixed, by statutes of this State, and not otherwise.” 1 R. S. 1876, p. 606.

It is claimed by the appellant’s counsel, as we understand them, that the act of March 10th, 1873, under which the appellant was indicted, is void, for the reason that it does not conform to the requirements of said section 2 of said act of May 31st, 1852, declaratory of the law governing this State. If it was true, that the act of [403]*403March. 10th, 1873, was open to this objection, the act ■■would certainly not be void for that reason ; for, where two statutes passed at different dates are in conflict, the later .act stands as latv, and the older act, if either, is thereafter void. But it seems to us that the act of March 10th, 1873, is not open to this objection of appellant’s counsel; for, in said act, the felony thereby created is accurately defined, .and its punishment fixed, as provided for in the said section 2 of said act of May 31st, 1852. In truth, the objection •of counsel, to the act of March 10th, 1873, seems to be, not that the felony is not defined and its punishment fixed in the act, hut that the General Assembly forgot or failed to give a name to the felony, hy which it should be designated and known. The act is open to this objection, but .as the constitution did not, nor did any prior statute, require that the felony defined should be christened by a particular name, the act is certainly not void for the want •of any such name. In common parlance, the felony defined in theactis ordinarily denominated “blackmailing;” and, if a name is- desired, that is sufficiently expressive,'we think, to answer the purpose. The act of March 10th, 1873, is not void. The circuit court did not err in overruling the appellant’s motion to quash the indictment.

2. The second alleged error, complained of by the appellant, is the decision of the court below in overruling his motion for a new trial.

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63 Ind. 399, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/peachee-v-state-ind-1878.