United States v. Ross
U.S. Circuit Court for the District of Rhode Island
The prisoner [William Ross] was indicted for being present, aiding, and abetting, in the murder of a colored man, on board of the American schooner Pocahontas, on the high seas, near the Cape de Verd islands. At the trial it appeared, that on or about the 5th of June, 1812, the schooner lay at anchor in an open roadstead or bay, near the isle of St. Jago, one of the Cape de Verd islands, about a half mile from the shore, and about a mile from the town of Praga.
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The prisoner [William Ross] was indicted for being present, aiding, and abetting, in the murder of a colored man, on board of the American schooner Pocahontas, on the high seas, near the Cape de Verd islands. At the trial it appeared, that on or about the 5th of June, 1812, the schooner lay at anchor in an open roadstead or bay, near the isle of St. Jago, one of the Cape de Verd islands, about a half mile from the shore, and about a mile from the town of Praga. There were several passengers on board (and among them the person, who was murdered) who were to have been landed at the island of…
1Opinion of the CourtStory, Circuit Justice
(after summing up the facts). The first question to be decided is, whether the court has jurisdiction over the offence, as proved in the evidence; or in other words, was the offence committed on the high seas, within the true intent and meaning of the act of the 30th of April, 1790, c. 9, § 87 From the language of the act I am of opinion, that the words, “high seas,” mean any waters on the sea coast, which are without the boundaries of low water mark; although such waters may be in a roadstead or bay with'n the jurisdictional limits of a foreign government. Such is the meaning attached to the…
2Cited by19 opinions
- Gore v. StateSupreme Court of Georgia · 1926
- Powers v. CommonwealthCourt of Appeals of Kentucky · 1901
- Guiteau's CaseDistrict Court, S.D. New York · 1882
- People v. ChapmanMichigan Supreme Court · 1886
- In Re: Air Crash Off Long Island, New York, on July 17, 1996Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit · 2000
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