Cases
Habeas petitions described a broad range of carceral, institutional, and interpersonal confinement over the long nineteenth century, including those used to demand due process, resist enslavement, challenge child removal and reservation confinement, avoid deportation, present child custody claims and protest child marriage, and to challenge institutionalization and detention in private and state institutions. As a legal mechanism borrowed from British common law and guaranteed as a civil right in US federal and state constitutions, habeas provides a lens on a diverse community of legal actors.
Our encoding practice allows us to identify petitions in these three categories and to indicate where those categories overlap. In addition to these three general categories, our team has identified the specific carceral charge being challenged as well as the particular forms of institutional and interpersonal confinements being questioned.
You may also browse or search petitions by location and/or jurisdiction to learn more about the myriad complaints petitioners brought before judges in Arizona, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oregon, and Washington between 1812 and 1924. Each case entry includes a full citation, a summary, links to people with a role in the case, a list of other people named, and any sites of significance. Visitors wanting access to full case files can contact the cited repository for information about obtaining copies. Those without institutional affiliations may request image scans from Dr. Jagodinsky directly. The Glossary defines the attributes used to structure data from the habeas petitions. The Code Book explains the relational structure of the data and functionality of the database website.
Featured story: The Habeas Corpus and Divorce Proceedings of Katie Mayes
Basic Search
Simply enter the word you wish to find and the search engine will search for every instance of the word in the journals. For example: Fight. All instances of the use of the word fight will show up on the results page.
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Points of Law Cited
- U.S.-U.K. Treaty of August 9, 1842 4
- U.S.-U.K. Treaty of December 13, 1900 4
- U.S.-U.K. Treaty of July 12, 1889 4
People
- Boehler, Edwin C. 4
- Clark, Michael L. 4
- Hoyt, R. C. (clerk) 4
- Jamieson, William Nicholas (Jameson) 4
- Madden, Ray J. (attorney) 4
- More, Mr. Clair E. (attorney) 4
- Nicholson, John (deputy clerk) 4
- Nickerson, James B. 4
- Nugent, Horace D. (Canadian Consul General, complainant) 4
- O’Sullivan, Eugene D. (E. D.) 4
- Southard, Charles J. 4
- Woodrough, Joseph William 4
- Henshaw, Art (alleged co-conspirator) 3
- Mahony, Charles A. (complainant, police commissioner) 3
- Mason, Lewis T. (U.S. commissioner) 3
- Quinley, E. J. (deputy U.S. marshal) 3
- Shelton, J. B. (alleged co-conspirator) 3
- Slusky, John (alleged victim) 3
- Smith, Louis (alleged victim) 1
- Barron, (alleged victim) 1
- Boucher, John J. (unspecified) 1
- Compton, Harry A. (aliases LeRoy Compton and Wyley Compton) 1
- Howard, John R. (aliases Jack R. Howard and J. B. Shelton) 1
- Mason, Lewis F. (U.S. commissioner) 1
- Pearsall, Charles (stenographer) 1
- Pierson, Axel F. (Pirson) 1
- Smith, Louis (alleged victim) 1
- Wyss, Arthur (aliases Arthur Williams, Bart Williams, Hart Henshaw, and J. N. Roberts) 1
4 results
Download JSON Download CSVThe United States of America upon the relation of John R. Howard v. James B. Nickerson, Acting United States Marshal for the District of Nebraska, and Edwin C. Boehler, United States Commissioner for the Omaha Division, District of Nebraska and Michael L. Clark, Sheriff of Douglas County, Nebraska
- Earliest record date: May 7, 1921
- Petition type(s): Carceral: fugitive from justice | Carceral: uttering and passing forged paper | Carceral: robbery and battery | Carceral: obtaining money under false pretenses
- Petition outcome: Writ denied
- Fate of bound party: Remained in custody
The United States of America upon the relation of Harry Compton v. James B. Nickerson, Acting United States Marshal for the District of Nebraska, and Edwin C. Boehler, United States Commissioner for the Omaha Division, District of Nebraska and Michael L. Clark, Sheriff of Douglas County, Nebraska
- Earliest record date: May 7, 1921
- Petition type(s): Carceral: fugitive from justice | Carceral: uttering and passing forged paper | Carceral: robbery and battery | Carceral: obtaining money under false pretenses
- Petition outcome: Writ denied
- Fate of bound party: Remained in custody
The United States of America upon the relation of Arthur Wyse v. James B. Nickerson, Acting United States Marshal for the District of Nebraska, and Edwin C. Boehler, United States Commissioner for the Omaha Division, District of Nebraska and Michael L. Clark, Sheriff of Douglas County, Nebraska
- Earliest record date: May 7, 1921
- Petition type(s): Carceral: fugitive from justice | Carceral: uttering and passing forged paper | Carceral: robbery and battery | Carceral: obtaining money under false pretenses
- Petition outcome: Writ denied
- Fate of bound party: Remained in custody
The United States of America upon the relation of Axel Pierson v. James B. Nickerson, Acting United States Marshal for the District of Nebraska, and Edwin C. Boehler, United States Commissioner for the Omaha Division, District of Nebraska and Michael L. Clark, Sheriff of Douglas County, Nebraska
- Earliest record date: May 7, 1921
- Petition type(s): Carceral: fugitive from justice | Carceral: uttering and passing forged paper | Carceral: robbery and battery | Carceral: obtaining money under false pretenses
- Petition outcome: Writ denied
- Fate of bound party: Remained in custody
