Finch v. State

Decided October 15, 1886

Mississippi Supreme Court · decided 1886-10-15

HoN. S. H. Terral, Judge. Sampson W. Finch was indicted by the grand jury of Jackson County upon the charge that he “ Sampson Finch, in said county, on the first day of October, A. D. 1882, did willfully disturb the peace of Rebecca Jones, then and there by offensive conduct there, against the peace and dignity of the State of Mississippi.” The defendant moved to quash the indictment because it failed to set out the particular acts charged as offensive.

Cited by 3 later decisions — most recently May 1938

3 state decisions

Relies on Jesse v. State · Harrington v. State · Sarah v. State

Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know

Decided 1886-10-15

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ARNOLD, J.,

¶1delivered the opinion of the court.

¶2The motion to quash the indictment should have been sustained. It was not enough to allege in the words of the statute that the disturbance was caused by offensive conduct. As a general rule, it is sufficient to charge a statuary offense in the words of the statute, but this rule does not apply where there are in the language of the statute no sufficient words to define any offense. What constituted the offensive conduct, or the nature or character of the offensive conduct, should have been stated in the indictment. Harrington v. The State, 54 Miss. 490; Jesse v. The State, 28 Miss. 100; Sarah v. The State, 28 Miss. 267.

¶3Reversed.