Ex parte Thomason
| Decision Date | 20 August 1884 |
| Parties | EX PARTE THOMASON. |
| Court | Nebraska Supreme Court |
OPINION TEXT STARTS HERE
Habeas corpus.
J. L. Caldwell, for relator.
This is an original application for a writ of habeas corpus. The petitioner was arrested upon a warrant issued by the county judge of Lancaster county, charging him with the crime of “aiding and abetting one William Thomason in removing chattel mortgaged property out of the county of Lancaster without first obtaining the consent of the mortgagee, with intent to defraud. A preliminary examination was had, and the accused was held to await the action of the grand jury. Failing to give bail, he was remanded to jail. He now applies to this court for his release, and alleges that he is unlawfully imprisoned by the sheriff of Lancaster county.
Two questions are presented for consideration: One, that the complaint does not charge the commission of any acts which are made criminal by the law of Nebraska; or, in other words, that there can be no such thing as aiding and abetting the removal of mortgaged personal property in the sense of the law by one who is not a party to the mortgage. The other question presented is the constitutionality of the law under which it is sought to hold the accused. As the latter question may be said to be the primary one in this case, it demands our first attention; and if the law should be found to be unconstitutional it would obviate any inquiry into the first.
The act to which objection is made may be found at page 5 of the Laws of 1877, (Comp. St. p. 83, § 9.) It is claimed by the petitioner that the title of the act is not sufficient; that it does not comply with the constitutional requirement that “no bill shall contain more than one subject, and the same shall be clearly expressed in its title.” The title is as follows: “An act to prevent the fraudulent transfer of personal property.” The act in question provides “that any person who, after having conveyed any article of personal property to another by mortgage, shall, during the existence of the lien or title created by such mortgage, sell, transfer, or in any manner dispose of the said personal property or any part thereof so mortgaged, to any person or body corporate, without first procuring the consent of the mortgagee of the property to such sale, transfer, or disposal; or shall remove, permit, or cause to be removed said mortgaged property or any part thereof out of the county within which such property was at the time such mortgage was given on it, with intent to deprive the mortgagee of his security, without having first obtained the consent in writing of the mortgagee of such property to such removal,--shall be deemed guilty of a felony, and, on conviction thereof, shall be imprisoned in the penitentiary for a term not exceeding...
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