Van Dresor v. King
Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
Error to the Common Pleas of Brie county. This was an action on the case by Robert King against Henry Van Dresor, a constable, for selling the plaintiff’s goods under an execution, in disregard of his claim to have the same appraised and set apart to him, under the provisions of the exemption law of the 9 th April 1849. The only point raised was, whether the plaintiff could recover in this form of action.
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Error to the Common Pleas of Brie county. This was an action on the case by Robert King against Henry Van Dresor, a constable, for selling the plaintiff’s goods under an execution, in disregard of his claim to have the same appraised and set apart to him, under the provisions of the exemption law of the 9 th April 1849. The only point raised was, whether the plaintiff could recover in this form of action. The defendant below requested the court to instruct the jury that the plaintiff’s remedy, if any, was in trespass, and that an action on the case would not lie. The court below (Derrickson,…
1Opinion of the Court
The opinion of the court was delivered by
Thompson, J.
In Wilson v. Ellis, 4 Casey 238, afterwards recognised in Freeman v. Smith, 6 Id. 264, it was determined that trespass would lie against a sheriff or constable for neglecting or refusing to give the defendant in the writ the benefit of the $300 act, when it had been properly demanded. It was so ruled, upon the principle, that the abuse of authority, under the writ, made the officer a trespasser ab initio, and placed him in the same situation as if the writ had been void; for he was not entitled to use it as a justification, in consequence…
2Cases cited1 opinion
- Hoover v. HeimSupreme Court of Pennsylvania · 1838
3Cited by1 opinion
- McIntire v. Westmoreland Coal Co.Supreme Court of Pennsylvania · 1888