Show SUPREME COURT OF tiie THE UNITED STATES october term teru 1884 appeals from the supreme court of the territory of utah jesse J murphy appellant no 1027 vs rs alexander ramsey A S paddock G L godfrey A B carleton J R apet pettigrew eb E D hoge and arthur pratt mary ann maratt MP M pratt natt appellant no im 1028 tvs vs alexander ramsey A S paddock G L godf godfrey rey A B carleton carleto a J it pettigrew E D hoge and john S land say mildred E randall and alfred randall ran Ean dall dail appellants no 1029 vs alexander ramsey A S paddock G L godfrey AB A B carleton J R pet E D hoge and harmel pratt ellen C clawson and hiram B clawson appellants no 1030 vs rs alexander ramsey A S paddock G L godfrey A B carleton J R det pet E D nose hose and james T little james M barlow appellant no 1031 vs alexander ramsey A S paddock G L godf godfrey rev A B carleton J R pet ret E D hoge and harmel pratt 1 the board of commissioners appointed for the territory ot of ut utah ail all in pursuance of sec see 9 of the act of congress approved march ibs 1882 2 entitled an act to amend bec sec of the revised statutes of the united states in reference to bixa biga bigamy and for other purposes 22 stats 30 have have no power over the registration of voters or the conduct ductoc of elections their authority is limited to the appointment of regi registration str atlon and c election lec officers to the canvass of the returns made by snell off omm meers officers of election and to the issue of of berti certificates fixates of election to the persons a appearing g by such canvass to be elected 2 the tho registration and election officers thus appointed are required 1 until other provi provisions ions lons be made by the le legislative gisla tive As of the territory to perform their duties under the tile existing laws of the united states including the act of march imand et of the territory so far as not inconsistent therewith 3 As the board of commar commissioners is loners had no lavy lany lawful ful sul power to prescribe conditions of registration or of voting any ru lesot lesef that character promulgated by them to govern the registration and election ost oft officers leers were null and nd void and as is such rules could not be pleaded leaded by the registration officers as lawful ul commands in justification of refusals to register persons claiming the right to be registered as vot voters ers their illegality is ja no ground of liability against the board of commissioners 4 the registration officers were bound to register only such persons as being qualified under the laws lawa previously in la force and offering to take the oath as to such qualifications prescribed by the territorial act of birog were also not disqualified by the eighth section 0 n of tie the act of congress of march 1883 5 that section provides as to males that no polygamist bigamist or any person cohabiting ha biting with more than woman vroman and as to females that no woman cohabiting with any polygamist bigamist or man cohabiting with more than one woman wo man shallie shall shail be entitled to vote and consequently no such person is entitled to be registered as a ayot voter foter cr and the registration officer must either require such dis qualifications to be by a modification fi 11 of the oath the form of which ia is given in the territorial act or otherwise to satisfy himself by due dite inquiry that such dis qualifications do not exist but which course N he Is bound to adolt adopt it is not necessary in these cases to deel deci decide e 6 the plaintiffs in these actions seeking 9 to recover damages for being unlawfully deprived of their right to be registered as voters must allege in their declarations as matter of fact that they were legally qualified voters or that allegation be being omitted must alle aliee allege allee e all the facts necess necessary ar y to 8 show ow as matter of law t hat that they were e quail qualified fie voters and to this end it is ine lne necessary cessa th that t they should negative all the disqualification disqualifications dis s by the law 7 A bigamist or polygamist in the sense of the eighth section of the act of march 2 22 2 1 1882 2 is a man who having a n contracted acted a bigamous or polygamous ma marriage lage and become me the husban husband at 0 one time of two or in more ore wives mal mai maintains ins zat that rel rei relation a tion and status at the time when he offers to be registered gist ered as a voter aad nad this without reference to the tho question vr hether whether he was at any time lime guilty of the tho offense of bigamy or polygamy or whether any tiny prosecution for such buell offense was barred by th the lapse of time neither is it nece necessary thale that he should be guilty lit 1 orpo of polygamy gamy under the first section of t the tte a act ct of march ad 1882 the tho eighth section of the act not is not intended and does docs not operate as an additional penalty prescribed for the punishment of the offense offence of p polygamy aj gamy but bat merely defines it as A disqualification qua atlon of a voter it is not therefore e objectionable as an ex post facto law and and has no retrospective operation thelis thedis operates upon the existing state and condition of the person and not apon upon on a past of fence a it was accordingly iteld held 1 that as to the live five defendants below composing cem cam posing the board of commissioners under the ninth section of the act of march 1 1882 the demurrers were rightly sustained and the judgments are affirmed 2 that in the cases in which jesse amur phy and james jamea 31 barlow respectively were plaintiffs they do not allege that they were not polygamist ies les iss les ies or bigamists biga mists at the time they offered to re register ister lster although they deny that they were at that time liable to a criminal prosecution for tor polygamy or bigamy antl anil deny that they tiley were cohabiting with more than one won anand and not sh showing owin thease themselves ves res to be legally ega y qua qualified ifie vot voters ers the judgments on the demurrers as t to alithe all ail the defendants is affirmed 3 that in the case in which ellen C clawson with her husband is plaintiff as the declaration does not deny the tho disqualification of one who is at the timo time cohabiting ha with a polygamist or bigami fht fet the judin nent as ar to all the defendants is affirmed 4 that in the cases in which mary ann M pratt aud and mildred E randall ran Ean dall dail with her husband are arc the respective plaintiffs as all the dis qualifications are denied and it is alleged that the defendants tile the tian officers wilfully and maliciously refused to register them as voters the judgments as to hoge and lindsay i in n one i and nd as to eloge and pratt in the other afe aie fe reversed a and the causes remanded for further proceedings in these actions five tive in number alexander ramsey A S paddock G L godfrey A B carleton and J it pettigrew defendants in all were persons who composed the tle board appointed under section 9 of the act of congress approved march 22 1882 entitled an act to amend section litty lifty three hundred and nifty fifty afif tv two of the revised je statutes of the united states in reference to bigamy and for other purposes 22 stats 30 3 0 E 1 hoge also a defendant in all the cases was appointed registration officer for the county of salt lake in tile the territory of utah by that ardin beardin bo pursuance u of df that section of the act th the e other defendants fend ants one of whom is joined in each action to wit arthur pratt john S lindsay pratt ana and james T litt little littie e were respectively ely deputy registration officers in designated election precincts in which the plaintiffs in the actions seve severally raddy raffy claimed the right tobe to be registe registered redas dedas as voters the object of the actions was to recover cla damages mages alleged to have arisen by reason of the defendants wrongfully and maliciously ref refusing using to permit the plaintiffs respectively to be registered as qualified voters in the territory of utah whereby they were deprived of the right to vote at an election held hold in that territory on november fth ith 1882 I 1 1 for the election of a delamate Dele Jele cate sate to tie tic the forty eighth congress in the gase base case in which jesse jcsse J murphy is plaintiff below and appellant here the complaint is as follows fol foi lovs the plaintiff above named complains plains of the defendants and on information or and belief alleges that after the day of march 1882 and klor glor prior to the first day of july 1882 under er the provisions of section 9 of an act ot of the congress of the united states approved march 1882 and entitled an act to amend section of the revised statutes of tile the united states in reference to bi bigamy gainy and for other purposes the president of the united states by and with the consent of the senate of the united states duly duty appointed the defendants alexander ramsey A S paddock cr G L godfrey AB cart Cari carleton eton and anti JU jit pettigrew to perform the duties mentioned in said section to be performed by a board of five persons and by virtue of said appointment they became a board of five persons with the powers named in said section and ow information and belief the P plaintiff lain laih tiff alleges that after such a appointment and prior to the first day of august 1882 the last named five defendants fend ants duly quail qualified fled as such appointees point poin tees tes came to utah and land organized as a board and entered upon theeb the exercise of the powers and the discharge of the duties granted and imposed by said sald section 9 ot said sald acl act of congress that after said organization sald salad five defendants were commonly called commissioners and are hereinafter referred to and called he die board of commissioners anat said board of commissioners afterward ordered directed and supervised a registration of the voters ot the Teni Teril tory of utah for the general election in said territory to be held on the seventh day of november 1882 for fur the election of a delegate for said territory to the forty eighth congress and for such other elections as be held prior to another registration of voters of said sald territory and on or about the loth day of august iru the said board of commissioners made and published rules providing for lor sald baid registration for the appointment of registration officers and judges of election and the canvass and return of the votes directed said registration to be made durina during g the weal week wece commencing on the second monda monday of september 1882 1883 and among oti other er rules wilfully illy all ali ail and maliciously made and published the following rule I 1 there shall be appointed one registration officer for each county and one deputy registration officer for each precinct thereof rule II 11 9 such registration officer shall on he second monday of september next by himself and h his bis Is deputies in the he manner following T the he registration officer of each county sha shall procure from the clerk of the county court the last pi seceding preceding registry list on tile file in his bis and shall shail by himself or liis his deputies require of each cach person whose name Is on said list or who who applies to have nave his name placed on said list list to take and subscribe the following follow laz lag oath or affirmation or OF UTAH utan county cf ef I 1 ja ss 1 I being first duly s sworn iv rn or affirmed depo depose seand and say that I 1 am over twenty one years of age and have llave resided in the territory of utah for six months and in the pre precinct inci cinet of one month immediately preceding the date dale hereof and it if a ama nial c am a native born boin oi 01 naturalized aa as the case rise may be citizen of the united states and a taxpayer tax ta haenn payer in this territory or if a female femal e I 1 am nuno natii c born or naturalized or the wile widow or daughter as the tile case may be ot a t native boin loin or 01 naturalized citizen of the uni united ted states alil and I 1 do further solemnly swe ir or affirm that I 1 am not a bigamist nor a pow poh that I 1 am not a violator of the ain ilu m s of tho the united states prohibiting bigamy or polygamy poin bailly gailly talat I 1 do not live oj 01 co cohabit abit auit with inore than one woman in m the marriage relation nor does docs any relation exist eblet between beaw een me and ind an illy woman which has been entered into or von ron i on tinned in violation of the baid bald laws lans of the united states prohibiting bigamy or polygamy and ifa ita if a w oman woman that I 1 am nin not tiie tile wife of a polygamist polygamist nor hare bae hae I 1 entered into any re relation atiqi I 1 I 1 w ith any man mail in violation of the laws of tho the united tan jan L states state concerning polygamy or bigamy bigam i scribed ascribed and sworn to before me this day of 1881 ssi registration officer precinct pi ecret and gand said registration e officer r or his hafl bail deputies ai hai hal add to said lists t the names of all qualified voters in such precinct whose names are not on the list upon their taking ta king and subscribing to the aforesaid oath and the said registration registration Is officer shall strike from said lists the names of if said persons who fail or refuse to take said oath bath or have died or removed irom the precinct or are disqualified as voters under the act of congress approved march 22 A D 1882 entitled an act to amend section 2 of the revised ile lle statutes of the united states in reference to bigamy and for other purposes 1 provided that the action of any registration officer may be revised and reversed by this commission upon a proper showing and provided further that if the registration officer be unable to procure the registration list from the office of the clerk of the county or if the same have been lost or dest destroyed roved the said officer ani an his dep deputies shall make a new registry list in full of all legal voters of each precinct ot of the county under the provisions of these rules that said board of commissioners also by rules provided for the appointment in ent ert of and appointed three judges ol 01 election for each elec election precinct in said territory and on information and belief the Vain plaintiff tiff alleges that the defendant h D ilog pe was appointed registration officer for the county of salt lake ake in said territory of utah and aud the defendant arthur pratt was appointed deputy registration officer lor for the fourth election precinct of the city of salt lake in said county and that each accepted the appointment duly qualified and respectively acted throughout the tile said registration as suca such registration and deputy registration OE officer cr and thel the plaintiff alleges that on the second monday of september 1882 the defendant arthur pratt as deputy registration officer for said sald fourth precinct lu in the city and aud county of salt lake afo resaldi acting under the director dir ecton of the other menaced register registering ing lug the voters 0 of sald said a d precinct and making a registration list of such voters and aud continued daily therein until the evening of saturday of the same week when the registration was closed and the plaintiff alleges that he is a native citizen of the united states of america and prior to the day of march IS 1832 1833 was in more ore than twenty om olit years of age that he has resided continuously in the territory of utah for more than eleven years and resided continuously in the fourth precinct of salt lake lak e city in said territory for more than two years past that he has for more than ten year years prior to the Xo november vember election in 1882 |