Ex parte Chamberlain
New York Supreme Court
Motion for a mandamus to the Justices of the General Sessions of the Peace of the county of Oneida, commanding them to attach and punish John Garter, for non-attendancc in that Cqurt as a witness.
Read the full summary
Motion for a mandamus to the Justices of the General Sessions of the Peace of the county of Oneida, commanding them to attach and punish John Garter, for non-attendancc in that Cqurt as a witness. Chamberlain had beeh in-dieted for an assault and battery, which was tried at the February term of that Court, 1825. He subpoenaed Garter to attend as a witness in his behalf; he neglected to appear> anq was attached ; but was discharged by the Court, upon his answering, to the interrogatories, that no fees had been tendered to him. Against the motion, the 2 R. L. 29, which prescribes the fees of…
1Opinion of the Court
The Court, said they had looked into this subject, and thought the distinction lay between misdemeanor and felony ; that in the former case the defendant must tender his witnesses their fees, as in 'civil cases; but that in prosecutions for felonies they were compellable to attend without fees. They should have denied this motion at once, on the ground that it sought for a mandamus to compel an inferior Court to punish for a contempt, had the matter rested there ; for every Court must he the sole judge whether a contempt has been committed against it or not; but as the private rights of an…
2Cited by5 opinions
- State ex rel. Thatcher v. HornerMissouri Court of Appeals · 1884
- State v. WatersSupreme Judicial Court of Maine · 1854
- Montgomery v. PalmerMichigan Supreme Court · 1894
- People ex rel. Barnes v. Court of SessionsNew York Supreme Court · 1894
- In re LitchfieldDistrict Court, E.D. Michigan · 1882