The Emily and the Caroline’s Empirical Analysis
22 U.S. 381 · 1824
Citation profile
15 federal appellate · 18 state decisions
How this case has been cited
Cited by 57 later decisions (8 by the Supreme Court) — most recently June 2024 · most notably United States v. Simmons (1877), United States v. Gooding (1827)
15 federal appellate · 18 state decisions
Later decisions citing this case, by decade. The current decade is in progress, and our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so the latest bars are undercounted — not a real decline.
Appellate journey
reviewedthe decision below (from Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals)
Relationships
Relies on Brig Caroline, William Broadfoot v. The United States
Most-quoted passages
The sentences later courts lift from this opinion, ranked by how many decisions quote each — the parts of the opinion doing the work. These counts are smaller than the citation total above because most of the 57 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.
“The object in view, by the section of the law under consideration, was to prevent the preparation of vessels in our own' ports which were intended for the slave-trade. ' Hence is connected with this preparation, whether it consists in building, fitting, equipping,- or loading, the purpose for which the act is done; The law . looks at the .intention, and furnishes authority to take from the ■ offender-the means designed for the preparation of the mischief. This is not punishing the intention, merely .; it is the preparation of the vessel and the purpose for which she is to be em- ■ ployed that constitutes-the offence, and draws after it the penalty of forfeiture. . . . The intention or purpose for which the vessel is fitting must be made out, so as to leave no reasonable , doubt as to the object. This is a matter of proof, and,, generally speaking, to be collected from the- kind of preparation that . has been made.”
1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority“As soon ... as the preparations have progressed, so far as clearly and satisfactorily to show the purpose for which they are made, the right of seizure attaches. To apply the construction contended for on the part of the claimant, that the fitting or preparation must be complete, and the vessel ready for sea, before she can be seized, would be rendering the law in a great measure nugatory, and enable offenders to elude its provisions in the most easy manner.”
1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority“build, fit, equip, load, or otherwise prepare, any ship of vessel, within any port or place of the said United States ... for the purpose of carrying on any trade or traffic in slaves”
1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
How this case has been treated — in progress
Whether each later court followed, distinguished, criticized, or overruled this decision. The treatment classification (task #35) runs highest-cited cases first and lights up here as it reaches this one.