Rensselaer Republican, Volume 27, Number 51, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 August 1895 — An Indiana Judge Criticized. [ARTICLE]

An Indiana Judge Criticiz ed.

The decision of Judge Taylor recently rendered at Te,rre Haute declaring certain sections of the Nicholson liquor law inoperative, is criticized by the Indianapolis Journal as {follows. The decision of Jadge Taylor, of Terre Haute, construing certain sections of the Nicholson law, is a good illustration of legal quibbling. Sections 2, 3 and 4of the law pontain several prohibitory clauses, and declare the prohibited things unlawful, and Section 4 says, “Upon conviction for the violation of this or either of the foregoing sections of this act the defendant shall be fined,” etef Judge Taylor holds that there can 'be no conviction under this clause the ueteuuuut is Bhown to have violated every provision in a particular section. In other words, he holds that a section ia

not violated until it is violated in every part. Under this ruling it would be no violation of Section 2 for a saloon keeper to have partitions in his room unless he also has devices for amusement, and music, and so of the prohibitory clauses in other sections. Where the intenhofrrlawTs as plain as it is in this case, courts snould not try to wrest words from their natural meaning. The ~j|gnal clause in Section 4 might have been better expressed and more explicit, but- its meaning is plain enough for anybody but a quibbler. It does not take a lawyer to see that each prohibitory clause in Sections 2, 3 and 4 constitutes a separate offense, and that the penalty Ms intended to apply to the violation of either. y