Capps v. State
Supreme Court of Iowa
Error to the Boone District Court. This was an indictment for obstructing a public road. Tbe defendant demurred to the indictment for the following reasons: 1. That the road was not described with sufficient certainty. 2. That the indictment did not charge that the obstruction was placed in the road, either illegally or unlawfully. The District Court overruled the demurrer, and the defendant sues out this writ of error.
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Error to the Boone District Court. This was an indictment for obstructing a public road. Tbe defendant demurred to the indictment for the following reasons: 1. That the road was not described with sufficient certainty. 2. That the indictment did not charge that the obstruction was placed in the road, either illegally or unlawfully. The District Court overruled the demurrer, and the defendant sues out this writ of error. The road is described in the indictment, as “ the public road or highway leading from Port Dodge to Port Des Moines, Iowa, on the east side of the Des Moines river, lying and…
1Opinion of the CourtStockton, J.
The description of the road was sufficient. The statute provides that “ no indictment shall be quashed, if it can be understood -that the offence was committed at some place within the jurisdiction of the court. Code, § 2916. The indictment charged that the defendant “ willfully obstructed the public road, &c., contrary to the law.” This is sufficient averment that the act charged was unlawfully done. In the case of misdemeanors, where the fact laid in the indictment appears to be unlawful, it is unneces*504sary to allege it to have been unlawfully done. Tbe averment is in .no case essential…
2Cited by2 opinions
- State v. PerrySupreme Court of Iowa · 1899
- George v. ParkerSupreme Court of Iowa · 1864