Baker v. Warner
Supreme Court of the United States
ERROR TO THE COURT OE APPEALS OE THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA. The plaintiff, Baker, United States District Attorney for the District of Columbia, sued the defendant, Warner, for libel.
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ERROR TO THE COURT OE APPEALS OE THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA. The plaintiff, Baker, United States District Attorney for the District of Columbia, sued the defendant, Warner, for libel. Briefly stated, the complaint changes that— The Washington Jockey Club owned a race track .in the District where races were run and bets were made and in January, 1908, the plaintiff, as District Attorney, had obtained from the Grand Jury an indictment charging one Walters with betting at this race track, contrary to the statute against gaming in the District. A demurrer was filed which was sustained on March 11,…
1Opinion of the CourtJustice Lamar
The plaintiff, who was United States District Attorney for the District of Columbia, sued the defendant in an action for libel and recovered a verdict for $10,000. The Court of Appeals (36 App. D. C. 493). held that the judgment should have been arrested, for the reason that the publication was not libelous per se and was nqt shown to be defamatory by any averment of fact in the Inducement or in the Colloquium.
The publication was not libelous per se, The meaning of the article and person to whom it referred were so ambiguous that, in order to constitute a cause of action, it was necessary to…
2Cases cited1 opinion
- M'Claughry v. WetmoreNew York Supreme Court · 1810
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- Pizer v. HuntMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court · 1925
- Bank of Commerce & Trust Co. v. SenterTennessee Supreme Court · 1923
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