26 Mo. 255
Decided January 15, 1858
Supreme Court of Missouri · decided 1858-01-15
This was an action for slanderous words. The words charged, leaving out the innuendoes, are as follows: “He whipped his mother“ he whipped his mother and-told me so “ one Mr.-told me that he had whipped his mother and left.” The court sustained a demurrer to the petition. The words charged are actionable. The gravamen in an action of slander is social degradation.
Relies on Birch v. Benton
Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know
Decided 1858-01-15
Cited by 5 later decisions — most recently February 1980
4 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.
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¶1delivered the opinion of the court.
¶2This was a suit for slander, and the words alleged to have been spoken are- that the plaintiff had whipped his mother. This charge imputed only an assault and battery, and the words laid in the petition are not actionable without the averment of special damage. (Birch v. Benton, 26 Mo. 153.) The demurrer to the petition was properly sustained; and the other judges concurring, the judgment will be affirmed.