United States v. Wheeler

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United States v. Wheeler
by Edward Douglass White
Syllabus

United States v. Wheeler, 254 U.S. 281 (1920), is an 8-to-1 ruling by the Supreme Court of the United States which held that the Constitution alone did not grant the federal government the power to prosecute kidnappers, and that only the states had the authority to punish a private citizen's unlawful violation of another's freedom of movement. The case was a landmark interpretation of the Privileges and Immunities Clause of the Constitution, and contained a classic legal statement of the right to travel which continues to undergird American jurisprudence.

864026United States v. Wheeler — SyllabusEdward Douglass White

United States Supreme Court

254 U.S. 281

United States  v.  Wheeler

 Argued: April 28, 1920. --- Decided: Dec 13, 1920

The Attorney General and W. C. Herron of Washington, D. C., for the United States.

[Argument of Counsel from pages 282-289 intentionally omitted]

Messrs. Charles E. Hughes, of New York City, E. E. Ellinwood and John Mason Ross, both of Bisbee, Ariz., and Clifton Mathews, of Globe, Ariz., for defendants in error.

[Argument of Counsel from pages 289-292 intentionally omitted]

Mr. Chief Justice WHITE delivered the opinion of the Court.

Notes

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This work is in the public domain in the United States because it is a work of the United States federal government (see 17 U.S.C. 105).

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