State v. Norman

52 P. 986, 16 Utah 457, 1898 Utah LEXIS 36
CourtUtah Supreme Court
DecidedApril 4, 1898
DocketNo. 855
StatusPublished
Cited by20 cases

This text of 52 P. 986 (State v. Norman) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Utah 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. Norman, 52 P. 986, 16 Utah 457, 1898 Utah LEXIS 36 (Utah 1898).

Opinions

Bartch, J.:

The defendant was prosecuted for and convicted of the crime of adultery. Upon being sentenced to the penitentiary for one year, he appealed to this court.

Counsel for the appellant contend that, at the time the act was charged to have been committed, there was no law in íorce in this state which made adultery a public offense. They argue that the act of the territorial legislature respecting polygamy, adultery, and other «kindred offenses, approved February 4, 1892 (Sess. Laws 1892, p. o) was never a valid law of the territory of Utah, and, except as to polygamy, never became effective in the state by any provision of the constitution, and that the law of congress which provided for the punishment of adultery as a crime ceased to have force in Utah upon the transition of the territorial to the state form of government.

The provision of the act of 1892, respecting the crime of adultery, is found in section 3, which reads: “That whoever commits adultery shall be punished by imprisonment in the penitentiary not exceeding three years; and' when the act is committed between a married woman and a man who is unmarried, both parties to such act shall be deemed guilty of adultery; and when such act is committed between a married man and a woman who is unmarried, the man shall be deemed guilty of adultery." This provision prescribes the punishment for, and defines the acts which constitute adultery, and is the same as section 3 of the act of congress of March 3, 1887, known, as the “Edmunds-Tucker Law.” The territorial act contains other provisions concerning polygamy, bigamy, and other offenses which are similar to provisions contained in the “Edmunds-Tucker Law,” and in the act of congress approved March 22, 1882, known as the “Edmunds Law,” but none of the provisions of the act of 1892 appear to be [460]*460repugnant to any provision contained in either of the acts of congress.

It is insisted, however, for the appellant, that the acts of congress fully covered the whole subject, and deprived the legislature of the power to legislate concerning the same, and that, therefore, the act of 1892 was absolutely void. It is true the territory of Utah was a nfere dependency of the United States, but as organized by congress its governmental functions were almost -as extensive as those of a state. Like a state, it had an executive, a legislative, and a judicial department, and, unless disapproved by congress, the enactments of the legislature1 were as binding upon the people of the territory as the statutes of a state are upon its people. A person who violated the statutes of the territory could be apprehended and punished the same as one who violated the laws of a state. Although a mere dependency, and not a sovereignty like a state, the territory had, subject, of course, to the constitution of the United States and laws of congress applicable to it, all the governmental power necessary to constitute, in all respects, an adequate and o'omplete government for its people. True, its supreme power was lodged in congress, and congress could legislate directly for the territory. The laws of congress enacted for it constituted its fundamental law, the same as the con-titution constitutes the fundamental law of the state. It follows that, where the laws of congress upon any subject were exclusive, the legislature of the territory had no power to legislate, and so, where the power vested by the constitution of the United States in congress to legislate upon a subject is exclusive, the legislature of a State cannot legislate. Both governments are subject to the constitution of the United States. Exclusiveness, therefore, is the test which, in each government, determines [461]*461tbe right of tbe legislature to legislate as to any subject upon wbicb tbe power to legislate is vested in congress, for neither a state nor territorial legislature has a right to enact laws respecting a subject concerning wbicb tbe power to legislate is exclusively vested in congress, whether it be so vested by express provision of tbe constitution or by necessary intendment. Tbe doctrine on this subject was stated by Mr. Chief Justice Marshall in Sturges v. Crowninshield, 4 Wheat. 122, 193, thus; “Whenever the terms in which a power is granted to congress, or the nature of the power, require that it should be exercised exclusively by congress, the subject is as completely taken from the state legislature as if they had been expressly forbidden to act on it.” The true object to be attained, then, and the nature of the power, are to be considered in determining its exclusiveness, and evidently the controlling principles are the same, whether it be attempted to declare an enactment of a state void, because of an exclusive power in congress to legislate upon the subject, by reason of a provision of the constitution of the United States, or to declare an enactment of a territory void because of the exclusiveness of the legislation of congress on the subject for the territory.

The organic act under which the government of the territory of Utah was constituted, provided, in section (V thereof, as follows: “That the legislative power of said territory shall extend to all rightful subjects of legislation, consistent with the constitution of the United States and the provisions of this act; but no law shall be passed interfering with the primary disposal of the soil; no tax shall be imposed upon the property of the United States; nor shall the lands or other property of nonresidents be taxed higher than the lands or other property of residents. All the laws passed by the legislative as[462]*462sembly and governor shall be submitted to the congress of the United States, and if disapproved shall be null and of no effect.”

■ Under the first clause, the territorial legislature had power to legislate as to “all rightful subjects of legislation” consistent with the constitution of the United States and with that act. Then follow restraining provisions as to legislation concerning certain subjects, and a .provision whereby any enactment lof the legislature might be disapproved by congress, and thereby rendered void and of no effect. It will be noticed there is no restraint whatever imposed in this section as to legislation respecting crimes. While it is true that any enactment of the" legislature was susceptible of being disapproved by congress and rendered invalid, the converse is equally true that if an enactment was not so disapproved it was valid, unless in conflict with the constitution of the United States, or unless the legislation of congress on the same subject was exclusive, or the territorial law was in conflict therewith.

In Clinton v. Englebrecht, 18 Wall. 434, 446, where the principal controversy was concerning a territorial statute, it was observed: “The law has received the' implied sanction of congress. It was adopted in 1859. It has been upon the. statute book for more than twelve years. It must have been submitted to congress soon after it was enacted, for it was the duty of the secretary of the territory to transmit to that body copies of all laws on or before the 1st of the next December in each year. Thus simple disapproval of congress at any time would have annulled it. It is no unreasonable inference, therefore, that it was approved by that body.” The power which thus could be exercised by the territorial legislature was [463]*463nearly as extensive as that exercised by any state legislature. Hornbuckle v. Toombs, 18 Wall. 648.

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Bluebook (online)
52 P. 986, 16 Utah 457, 1898 Utah LEXIS 36, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-norman-utah-1898.