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39 Conn. 229

State v. Jackson

Supreme Court of Connecticut

Decided March 15, 1872

Supreme Court of Connecticut · decided 1872-03-15

Grandjuror’s complaint to the police court of the city of Norwich, alleging that the defendant, “ on the 17th day of April, 1871, at and within the limits of the city of Norwich, did hire and use a certain horse belonging to John Rourke, and then and there did wilfully make a false statement and misrepresentation, relative to the distance, time, place and manner of using and driving the same, with intent to defraud the said John Rourke, against the peace, and contrary to the…

Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know

Decided 1872-03-15

How this case has been cited

Cited by 3 later decisions — most recently August 2021

3 state decisions

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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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Butler, C. J.

¶1It is generally sufficient to describe a statutory offence in the words of the statute. But cases occur where, from the nature of the offence, greater particularity is necessary for the protection of the accused. This subject has recently been examined in the case of State v. Lockbaum, 38 Conn. R., 400, and it is not necessary to re-examine it.

¶2This case is exceptional. The gist of the offence created by the statute is a false and fraudulent representation in relation to the use of a hired animal. Such representations may be made to the owner or an agent, and may vary in character and intent according to the circumstances of the case. It is absolutely necessary therefore that the misrepresentation, and the person to whom made, should be alleged with particularity, that the accused may have reasonable opportunity to make defence, and be protected from another prosecution.

¶3The case is analogous to those of misrepresentation which arise under the statute in relation to the obtaining of goods by false pretences. In that class of offences, although created by statute, it has always been holden that from the nature of the offence the statutory description was insufficient, and that the false representation, and the person to whom made, should be set forth.

¶4There is manifest error in the record.

In this opinion the other judges concurred.
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