State v. Nelson

67 L.R.A. 808, 79 P. 79, 10 Idaho 522, 1905 Ida. LEXIS 1
CourtIdaho Supreme Court
DecidedJanuary 14, 1905
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 67 L.R.A. 808 (State v. Nelson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Idaho Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Nelson, 67 L.R.A. 808, 79 P. 79, 10 Idaho 522, 1905 Ida. LEXIS 1 (Idaho 1905).

Opinion

STOCKSLAGER, C. J. —

This action was commenced before the police magistrate of Boise, and charged defendant with permitting a female, one Rena Morrow, to enter and remain in a saloon maintained by defendant, in violation of an ordinance of the said city. A trial was had and defendant was convicted in that court, and an appeal taken to the district court. A trial was had in that court at the February, 1904, term, and defendant was convicted and sentenced to pay a fine of $25 and costs. The appeal is from this judgment.

This prosecution is based on the following section of the ordinance of the city of Boise: '“Section 858. It shall be unlawful for any person maintaining any saloon, barroom or drinking-shop, or any apartment thereto attached, to permit females to enter their said place of business or maintain any sign, or offer any inducement or any invitation to females to enter any such saloon, barroom or drinking-shop kept within the city of Boise. Approved Sept. 24, 1903.”

This section was introduced in evidence and was the state’s exhibit “A.” State’s exhibit “B” follows: “Any person violating any of the provisions of sections 855, 856, 857 or 858, shall, upon conviction before the police magistrate be punished by a fine not less than $25, nor more than $200, or by imprisonment in the city jail for not less than ten days nor more than sixty days.” Section 872 provides: “In all cases where a fine pball be imposed upon a person for a violation of any of the ordinances of said Boise city, such fine may be collected under the ordinances of said city and laws of Idaho, or by imprisonment at har-d labor in the city prison, or by working any person sentenced to such imprisonment upon the streets, parks, public squares, workhouse or house of correction, during the term thereof, until such fine and costs be paid, at the rate of one day for every two dollars of said fine and costs, provided the total time of imprisonment shall not exceed sixty days.”

It is first urged by counsel for appellant that “this objection to the introduction in evidence of sections 858, 859 [plaintiff’s exhibits A’ and B’], should have been sustained, for the reason that such sections of the revised ordinances of Boise city are invalid, void, unreasonable and an interference with [525]*525individual liberty granted to the citizens of Idaho by the constitutional laws of Idaho, and in its operation imposes an unjust and illegal punishment upon the owners of places where liquors are sold, whenever a female enters said places, although she may enter there upon lawful business, and creates an unequal, unjust and illegal discrimination against women who enter such places upon lawful business.”

This seems from the record to be the sole question presented for our consideration in this appeal. If the section of the ordinance, state’s exhibit “A,” is valid, we do not think the penalty "provided by state’s exhibit “B” too severe. The evident intent of both sections above referred to is in the interest of morals and for the general good of the people of the city. All good citizens should join in an effort to protect the people from immoral influences, and especially the young people of the community. With this object in view, we will examine the provisions of the ordinance in controversy. In support of his contention that the provision of the ordinance under discussion is invalid, void, unreasonable and an interference with individual liberty, counsel for appellant cites Gastenau v. Commonwealth, 108 Ky. 473, 94 Am. St. Rep. 386, 56 S. W. 705, 49 L. R. A. 111. The ordinance in that case is dissimilar in somfe particulars to the one under consideration, but the reasons for declaring the ordinance unconstitutional seem to be applicable to the case at bar. The language of the ordinance is as follows: “Be it ordained by the board of council of the city of Middlesboro, Bell county, Ky.: (1) That it shall be unlawful for any woman to go in and out of any building where a saloon is kept offering for sale any spirituous, vinous, and malt liquors, or to frequent, loaf, or stand around said building within fifty feet thereof. (2) That it shall be unlawful for any saloon-keeper, or his clerk or employees to allow or permit any woman or women to come in or out of his building where spirituous, vinous, and malt liquors are sold or offered for sale, and it shall be the duty of said saloon-keeper, clerk or employees to immediately notify the officers that the first section of this ordinance has been violated, giving the name and color of the offender.” These two sections are followed by section 3, [526]*526which provides for the punishment of the proprietor if he violates section 2, and for the ofender if she violates section 1. The Kentucky court, speaking through Mr. Justice Gaffy, disposes of the case in the following concise and forcible language: “It is contended for appellee that the sole object of the ordinance is to regulate and control the sale of liquors by reason of the fact that very disreputable, low and vile women congregate in and about saloons and places where liquor is sold, thereby causing affrays, fights, murder and other crimes.It seems to us that the ordinance in question is unreasonable and an unnecessary interference with individual liberty, and tends to subject the vender of liquors as well as citizens to unreasonable prosecutions. If the ordinance only included the persons mentioned in appellee’s brief, we are not prepared to say that it would be invalid. But it might be that very good women would, for proper and legal purposes, find it necessary to go into a building where liquors are sold, .... and besides, we know of no rule which prohibits a well-behaved woman, for a lawful purpose, and in a lawful manner, from going into or near a saloon. It may be taken for granted that it is not often that such would be the case, but the ordinance in question makes no exceptions. If the citizens of Middlesboro choose to have saloons established where liquor is sold, it follows that all orderly and well-behaved persons have a right in an orderly manner, and for a lawful purpose, to visit such saloons.” The judgment was reversed and .the lower court directed to adjudge the ordinance in question invalid and unconstitutional. For the reason that this case is particularly applicable to the case at bar, we have quoted almost the entire opinion.

Counsel for respondent urges that the ordinance under consideration in the ease above cited, after making it a misdemeanor for “a woman to go into a building where liquor was sold,” went further, and provided that it was a misdemeanor also for a woman to “stand within fifty feet of such building.” Counsel for respondent further say: “The last clause of this ordinance is an obviously unnecessary interference with personal liberty which finds no parallel in the ordinance in question in the case at bar.” It is true that the ordinance in the [527]*527Kentucky case does add the last clause as suggested by counsel, and that no such provision is contained in the ordinance under consideration, but it will be observed that the court in passing upon the provisions of the ordinance devoted nearly the entire opinion to a discussion of the clause that prohibited women from entering a building where intoxicating liquors were sold.

In Re Ah Jow, 29 Fed.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
67 L.R.A. 808, 79 P. 79, 10 Idaho 522, 1905 Ida. LEXIS 1, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-nelson-idaho-1905.