Dildy v. State
Supreme Court of Arkansas
Appeal from Howard Circuit Court; Jefferson T. Cowling, Judge; STATEMENT BY THE COURT. Appellant was charged with criminal trespass, upon the following indictment, (caption omitted): • “The grand jury of Howard County, in the name and by the authority of the State of Arkansas, accuse S. C. Dildy of the crime of trespass, committed as follows to wit: “The said S. C. Dildy, in the county and State aforesaid, on the 15th day of May, 1911, did unlawfully and wilfully and without…
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Appeal from Howard Circuit Court; Jefferson T. Cowling, Judge; STATEMENT BY THE COURT. Appellant was charged with criminal trespass, upon the following indictment, (caption omitted): • “The grand jury of Howard County, in the name and by the authority of the State of Arkansas, accuse S. C. Dildy of the crime of trespass, committed as follows to wit: “The said S. C. Dildy, in the county and State aforesaid, on the 15th day of May, 1911, did unlawfully and wilfully and without right enter upon certain land belonging to one J. E. Harris, situated in section 31, township 9 south, range 27 west,…
1Opinion of the Court
Kirby, J.,
(after stating the facts). Appellant was not charged with the violation of a statute, nor with any offense at all, unless the indictment charges an offense under the common law.
“If a trespass does not injure, or threaten to injure the public to such an extent that public policy requires the State to interfere, it is a mere private wrong and not a crime. * * * A trespass that constitutes a breach of the public peace and order, or that threatens a breach of the public peace and order, is a crime at common law. Thus, it is a misdemeanor at common law to commit a trespass on real…
2Cases cited3 opinions
- State v. . LaneySupreme Court of North Carolina · 1882
- State v. . LloydSupreme Court of North Carolina · 1881
- State v. LeathersSupreme Court of Arkansas · 1876