Crone v. Angell
Michigan Supreme Court
Error to Lenawee Circuit. This was an action on the case for slander. There were two counts in the declaration, in both of which the words spoken of the jfiaintiff were alleged to have been that he “ swore to a damned lie, and I will put Mm through for it, if it costs me all I am worth.”
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Error to Lenawee Circuit. This was an action on the case for slander. There were two counts in the declaration, in both of which the words spoken of the jfiaintiff were alleged to have been that he “ swore to a damned lie, and I will put Mm through for it, if it costs me all I am worth.” In the first count they were alleged to have been spoken of the plaintiff’s testimony in a certain cause in the Circuit Court in Chancery, taken before a notary public by virtue of a stipulation of the parties, and a common order entered in the order book of said court. In the second count there was no such…
1Opinion of the Court
Cooley J.
We are of opinion that the Circuit Court erred in sustaining the demurrer to the second count of the plaintiff’s declaration. The slander alleged consisted in the defendant saying of the plaintiff, he “ has sworn to a damned lie, and I will put him through for it, if it costs me all I am worth.” The only question is, whether these words fairly, to the common understand*345ing, impute the crime of perjury. To say that a man has sworn to a lie, is not actionable, because the statement has no reference to a judicial proceeding and conveys no other meaning to the hearer than that the party…
2Cited by1 opinion
- Brace v. BrinkMichigan Supreme Court · 1875