Brown v. Swineford
Wisconsin Supreme Court
APPEAL from tlie Circuit Court for Monroe County. Action for an assault and battery. It appeared on tbe trial that tlie defendant bad been prosecuted criminally, and fined, for tbe assault and battery here charged.
Read the full summary
APPEAL from tlie Circuit Court for Monroe County. Action for an assault and battery. It appeared on tbe trial that tlie defendant bad been prosecuted criminally, and fined, for tbe assault and battery here charged. Tbe court instructed tbe jury that in assessing damages they might allow, among other things, “reasonable damages for any loss of health, or bodily or mental suffering, caused by the personal injury inflicted, and also, if the wrong was inflicted wantonly or maliciously, for the personal indignity and insult to the plaintiff hy the assault, for the public exposure and contumely,…
1Opinion of the CourtRyaN, C. J.
The court would be wanting in self-respect, to decide this appeal without some word of censure for an indecency committed on the trial. During his examination as a witness, the respondent was permitted, without apparent objection of court or counsel, to uncover and exhibit to the jury his organs of generation. No such indecency is ever necessary, or should be tolerated in court. If the condition of any private part of the body of any party, male or female, is material on any trial, it should be privately examined by experts out of court, and expert testimony be given of it. Such an exposure…
2Cases cited17 opinions
- Craker v. Chicago & Northwestern Railway Co.Wisconsin Supreme Court · 1875
- Taber v. HutsonIndiana Supreme Court · 1854
- People v. GoodwinNew York Supreme Court · 1820
- United States v. GibertU.S. Circuit Court for the District of Massachusetts · 1834
- Hedrick v. Ilwaco Railway & Navigation Co.Washington Supreme Court · 1892
12 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.
3Cited by124 opinions
- Wangen v. Ford Motor Co.Wisconsin Supreme Court · 1980
- People v. . FieldingNew York Court of Appeals · 1899
- New York Central Railroad v. JohnsonSupreme Court of the United States · 1929
- State v. FerroneSupreme Court of Connecticut · 1921
- State v. KentNorth Dakota Supreme Court · 1896
119 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.