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Introduction to State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication Indictment, circa 22 May 1844 [State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication] Docket Entry, Indictment, 23 May 1844 [State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication] Docket Entry, Discharge, 24 May 1844 [State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication] Indictment, 24 May 1844 [State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication] Docket Entry, Indictment, 24 May 1844–A [State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication] Docket Entry, Indictment, 24 May 1844–B [State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication] Subpoena, 27 May 1844–A [State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication] Subpoena, 27 May 1844–B [State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication] Docket Entry, Recognizance, 27 May 1844 [State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication] Case File Wrapper, circa May 1844 [State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication] Capias, 22 June 1844 [State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication] Docket Entry, Abatement, 21 October 1844 [State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication]

Introduction to State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication

Page

State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication
Hancock Co., Illinois, Circuit Court, 21 October 1844
 
Historical Introduction
On 23 May 1844, a grand jury for the , Illinois, circuit court indicted JS for adultery and fornication with , whom later historical sources identified as a plural wife of JS, and with “certain women to the jurors unknown.” JS was appointed the legal guardian of the children of , including Maria, in 1841. Although Maria resided with her mother and stepfather for a time after her father’s death, she began living with JS’s family around 1843 and was sealed to JS in May of that year when she was nineteen years old. The other women referred to in the indictment were likely women to whom JS was sealed whose names were unknown or unavailable when the indictment was created.
Two key witnesses for the indictment were brothers and . William Law and his wife, , became Latter-day Saints in 1836, and within a year William took up leadership of a small branch of the church in Churchville, Canada. It was during this time that he became acquainted with and Margaret Lawrence and their family, members of a local branch. William Law oversaw a group of Canadian Saints that emigrated to , and he later became a member of the in 1841. He publicly defended JS against ’s accusations of sexual impropriety in 1842. However, by 1844, JS and Law’s relationship had deteriorated because of Law’s disillusionment with what he saw as unwarranted reach in ecclesiastical matters and control of city organizations and because of disagreements over plural marriage. William, Jane, and Wilson Law were excommunicated from the church by April 1844.
In May, and provided testimony that led to the grand jury indicting JS for adultery and fornication. The indictment charged JS based on an statute that provided that “any man and woman who shall live together in an open state of adultery or fornication, or adultery and fornication” should be indicted and, if convicted, be fined up to $200 each or imprisoned up to six months. The offense needed to “be sufficiently proved by circumstances which raise the presumption of cohabitation and unlawful intimacy.” Each additional offense would increase the punishment. Based on this statute, the grand jury indicted JS on three counts. The first count claimed JS lived “in an open state of adultery” with on and before 12 October 1843; the second, encompassing the same time frame, asserted he was openly engaging in adultery and fornication with “certain women to the jurors unknown”; and the final count charged him with committing adultery with unidentified women on or before 1 January 1844. On a motion from prosecuting attorney E. A. Thompson, the court discharged JS on 24 May. It is unknown why Thompson made this motion; it may have been due to the incomplete nature of the indictment and apparent confusion about specific dates contained therein.
Later that day, and provided additional witness testimony and the grand jury issued a second indictment containing five counts. This new indictment omitted the 1 January 1844 count that was listed in the first indictment, split the charge of adultery and fornication with into two counts while revising the time frame to between 12 October 1843 and 24 May 1844, added another count of adultery with Lawrence on 12 October 1843, and expanded charges of adultery and fornication with unidentified women into two counts—one dated between 10 July 1843 and 24 May 1844, and the other dated within the eighteen months prior to 24 May. Court records do not reveal the substance of Wilson and William Law’s testimonies or the circumstances culminating in the issued indictment. However, the counts in the indictment dated 10 July 1843 were likely an attempt to connect the alleged incidents with the revelation on eternal and plural marriage, which was dictated on 12 July 1843, and JS’s intent to enact its principles.
JS publicly condemned and for their role in the adultery indictment days after it was issued, claiming the indictment was “of the devil—all corruption” and calling them “false swearers.” He traveled to , Illinois, on 27 May to answer indictments of perjury and adultery at the Circuit Court. The court issued subpoenas for Wilson and William Law, , , , and , but Snider was apparently not served. The Laws entered into a recognizance for $100 to appear at the October court term.
After the 27 May hearing, JS instructed to pursue lawsuits against the Laws and for and against , yet there is no record of Taylor doing so. On 22 June, the court issued a writ of for sheriff to hold JS for $300 bail to appear at the October 1844 court term to answer charges of adultery and fornication, but the capias apparently was not served. Because JS was killed on 27 June, the adultery and fornication suit was abated on 21 October.
 
Calendar of Documents
This calendar lists all known documents created by or for the court, whether extant or not. It does not include versions of documents created for other purposes, though those versions may be listed in footnotes. In certain cases, especially in cases concerning unpaid debts, the originating document (promissory note, invoice, etc.) is listed here. Note that documents in the calendar are grouped with their originating court. Where a version of a document was subsequently filed with another court, that version is listed under both courts.
 

1844 (11)

May (9)

Ca. 22 May 1844

Indictment, Carthage, Hancock Co., IL

  • Ca. 22 May 1844; CHL; handwriting of E. A. Thompson; docket and notation in handwriting of E. A. Thompson; notations in unidentified handwriting; notation in handwriting of David E. Head.
23 May 1844

Docket Entry, Indictment, Carthage, Hancock Co., IL

  • 23 May 1844; Hancock County Circuit Court Record, vol. D, p. 114, Hancock County Courthouse, Carthage, IL; microfilm at FHL; handwriting of David E. Head.
24 May 1844

Docket Entry, Discharge, Carthage, Hancock Co., IL

  • 24 May 1844; Hancock County Circuit Court Record, vol. D, p. 128, Hancock County Courthouse, Carthage, IL; microfilm at FHL; handwriting of David E. Head.
24 May 1844

Indictment, Carthage, Hancock Co., IL

  • 24 May 1844; CHL; handwriting of E. A. Thompson; docket and notations in handwriting of E. A. Thompson; notation in handwriting of Jacob B. Backenstos.
24 May 1844

Docket Entry, Indictment, Carthage, Hancock Co., IL, 24 May 1844–A

  • 24 May 1844; Hancock County Circuit Court Record, vol. D, p. 128, Hancock County Courthouse, Carthage, IL; microfilm at FHL; handwriting of David E. Head.
24 May 1844

Docket Entry, Indictment, Carthage, Hancock Co., IL, 24 May 1844–B

  • 24 May 1844; Hancock County Circuit Court Record, vol. D, p. [129], Hancock County Courthouse, Carthage, IL; microfilm at FHL; handwriting of David E. Head.
27 May 1844

Jacob B. Backenstos, Subpoena, to Hancock Co. Sheriff, for Wilson Law and William Law, Carthage, Hancock Co., IL, 27 May 1844–A

  • 27 May 1844; microfilm in Circuit Court Case Files, 1830–1900, CHL; printed form with manuscript additions in handwriting of Jacob B. Backenstos; docket printed with manuscript additions probably in handwriting of Jacob B. Backenstos; notations printed with manuscript additions in handwriting of James M. Charles.
27 May 1844

Jacob B. Backenstos, Subpoena, to Hancock Co. Sheriff, for Alexander Sympson and Others, Carthage, Hancock Co., IL, 27 May 1844–B

  • 27 May 1844; Hancock County Courthouse, Carthage, IL; printed form with manuscript additions in handwriting of Jacob B. Backenstos; docket printed with manuscript additions in handwriting of Jacob B. Backenstos; notations printed with manuscript additions in handwriting of William Backenstos.
27 May 1844

Docket Entry, Recognizance, Carthage, Hancock Co., IL

  • 27 May 1844; Hancock County Circuit Court Record, vol. D, pp. [145]–146, Hancock County Courthouse, Carthage, IL; microfilm at FHL; handwriting of David E. Head.

June (1)

22 June 1844

Jacob B. Backenstos, Capias, to Hancock Co. Sheriff, for JS, Carthage, Hancock Co., IL

  • 22 June 1844; printed form with manuscript additions in handwriting of Jacob B. Backenstos; docket and notation printed with manuscript additions in handwriting of Jacob B. Backenstos; notations printed with manuscript additions in handwriting of Miner R. Deming; notation in handwriting of Jacob B. Backenstos.

October (1)

21 October 1844

Docket Entry, Abatement, Carthage, Hancock Co., IL

  • 21 Oct. 1844; Hancock County Circuit Court Record, vol. D, p. 166, Hancock County Courthouse, Carthage, IL; microfilm at FHL; handwriting of David E. Head.
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Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Introduction to State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication
ID #
19489
Total Pages
1
Print Volume Location
Handwriting on This Page

    Footnotes

    1. [1]

      Indictment, ca. 22 May 1844 [State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication]; Lovina Smith Walker, Certificate, Salt Lake Co., Utah Territory, 16 June 1869, in Joseph F. Smith, Affidavits about Celestial Marriage, 1:30; Emily Dow Partridge Young, “Autobiography,” Woman’s Exponent, 1 Aug. 1885, 14:38.

      Smith, Joseph F. Affidavits about Celestial Marriage, 1869–1915. CHL. MS 3423.

      Woman’s Exponent. Salt Lake City. 1872–1914.

    2. [2]

      Historical Introduction to Receipt to Executors of Edward Lawrence Estate, 4 June 1841.

    3. [3]

      “Record of the Names of the Members . . . in the Spring of the Year 1842,” [35]; Emily Dow Partridge Young, “Autobiography,” Woman’s Exponent, 1 Aug. 1885, 14:38.

      “A Record of the Names of the Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints, as Taken by the Lesser Priesthood, in the Spring of the Year 1842, and Continued, to Be Added as the Members Arrive at the City of Nauvoo, Hancock County; Illinois. Also the Deaths of Members, and Their Children, and Names of Children under 8 Years of Age,” after 1844–after 1846. In Far West and Nauvoo Elders’ Certificates, 1837–1838, 1840–1846, 1862. CHL. CR 100 402.

      Woman’s Exponent. Salt Lake City. 1872–1914.

    4. [4]

      “Joseph Smith Documents from May through August 1842,” in JSP, D10:xxvi–xxxi.

      JSP, D10 / Kuehn, Elizabeth A., Jordan T. Watkins, Matthew C. Godfrey, and Mason K. Allred, eds. Documents, Volume 10: May–August 1842. Vol. 10 of the Documents series of The Joseph Smith Papers, edited by Matthew C. Godfrey, R. Eric Smith, Matthew J. Grow, and Ronald K. Esplin. Salt Lake City: Church Historian’s Press, 2020.

    5. [5]

      Cook, William Law, 2; William Law, Churchville, Canada, to Isaac Russell, Cumberland, England, 10 Nov. 1837, copy, Isaac Russell Correspondence, CHL.

      Cook, Lyndon W. William Law: Biographical Essay, Nauvoo Diary, Correspondence, Interview. Orem, UT: Grandin Book, 1994.

      Russell, Isaac. Correspondence, 1837–1840. CHL. MS 6066.

    6. [6]

      Cook, William Law, 3; JS History, Draft Notes, 4 Nov. 1839, 67.

      Cook, Lyndon W. William Law: Biographical Essay, Nauvoo Diary, Correspondence, Interview. Orem, UT: Grandin Book, 1994.

    7. [7]

      “Affidavit of Wm. Law,” Times and Seasons, 1 Aug. 1842, 3:872–873; Affidavits and Certificates [Nauvoo, IL: 1842], copy at CHL.

      Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.

      Affidavits and Certificates, Disproving the Statements and Affidavits Contained in John C. Bennett’s Letters. Nauvoo Aug. 31, 1842. [Nauvoo, IL: 1842]. Copy at CHL.

    8. [8]

      Law, Record of Doings, 2–5 and 8 Jan. 1844, in Cook, William Law, 38–46; Nauvoo City Council Rough Minute Book, 3 and 5 Jan. 1844, 32–39. According to William Clayton, William Law and his brother Wilson “were especially active in fanning the flame of prejudice and excitement, because Prest. Joseph would not seal Wm. Law to his wife for eternity in consequence of his being an adulterer.” (Clayton, Journal, 12 June 1844; Council of Fifty, “Record,” [290]; see also Neibaur, Journal, 24 May 1844.)

      Cook, Lyndon W. William Law: Biographical Essay, Nauvoo Diary, Correspondence, Interview. Orem, UT: Grandin Book, 1994.

      Clayton, William. Journals, 1842–1845. CHL.

      Neibaur, Alexander. Journal, 1841–1862. CHL. MS 1674.

    9. [9]

      JS, Journal, 18 Apr. 1844.

    10. [10]

      Offences against the Public Morality, Health, and Police [26 Feb. 1833], Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois, p. 221, sec. 123.

      The Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois: Containing All the Laws . . . Passed by the Ninth General Assembly, at Their First Session, Commencing December 1, 1834, and Ending February 13, 1835; and at Their Second Session, Commencing December 7, 1835, and Ending January 18, 1836; and Those Passed by the Tenth General Assembly, at Their Session Commencing December 5, 1836, and Ending March 6, 1837; and at Their Special Session, Commencing July 10, and Ending July 22, 1837. . . . Compiled by Jonathan Young Scammon. Chicago: Stephen F. Gale, 1839.

    11. [11]

      The members of the grand jury were Samuel Steele, Daniel H. Wells, William Marks, Edward Hunter, Jonathan Lamme, Jacob Mendenhall, Edward A. Denning, Willard Griffith, John M. Ferris, Isaac Clark, Benjamin Talbott, Henry Hunter, Horace Mead, Joab Green, Eldredge Renshaw, James Rawlins, Andrew Moore, T. N. Reynolds, Samuel Marsetter, James Beavers, and Benjamin Avise, who was foreman. (Hancock Co., IL, Circuit Court Records, 1829–1897, vol. D, p. 64, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL.)

      U.S. and Canada Record Collection. FHL.

    12. [12]

      The 12 October 1843 date was written over “15 December 1843”. (Indictment, ca. 22 May 1844 [State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication].)

    13. [13]

      Indictment, ca. 22 May 1844 [State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication]; Bradshaw, “Defining Adultery,” in Madsen et al., Sustaining the Law, 415.

      Bradshaw, M. Scott. “Defining Adultery Under Illinois and Nauvoo Law.” In Sustaining the Law: Joseph Smith’s Legal Encounters, edited by Gordon A. Madsen, Jeffrey N. Walker, and John W. Welch, 401–426. Provo, UT: BYU Studies, 2014.

    14. [14]

      Docket Entry, Discharge, 24 May 1844 [State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication].

    15. [15]

      In addition to JS’s indictment for fornication and adultery on 24 May, he was indicted for perjury. (JS History, vol. F-1, 54; see also Introduction to State of Illinois v. Sympson, Sympson v. JS, and State of Illinois v. JS for Perjury.)

    16. [16]

      Indictment, 24 May 1844 [State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication].

    17. [17]

      Revelation, 12 July 1843 [D&C 132].

    18. [18]

      Discourse, 26 May 1844.

    19. [19]

      JS, Journal, 27 May 1844; Introduction to State of Illinois v. Sympson, Sympson v. JS, and State of Illinois v. JS for Perjury.

    20. [20]

      While some of the subpoenaed witnesses were former members of the church, all of them except for Snider were opposed to JS, and tensions between JS and his opponents had been building for months. (Subpoena, 27 May 1844–A [State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication]; Subpoena, 27 May 1844–B [State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication]; “Joseph Smith Documents from 1 January through 15 May 1844,” in JSP, D14:xix–xxix; Discourse, 26 May 1844; Historical Introduction to Minutes, 8 June 1844, in JSP, D15:154–158; Introduction to State of Illinois v. Sympson, Sympson v. JS, and State of Illinois v. JS for Perjury.)

      JSP, D14 / Smith, Alex D., Adam H. Petty, Jessica M. Nelson, and Spencer W. McBride, eds. Documents, Volume 14: 1 January–15 May 1843. Vol. 14 of the Documents series of The Joseph Smith Papers, edited by Matthew C. Godfrey, R. Eric Smith, Matthew J. Grow, and Ronald K. Esplin. Salt Lake City: Church Historian’s Press, 2022.

      JSP, D15 / Dowdle, Brett D., Matthew C. Godfrey, Adam H. Petty, J. Chase Kirkham, David W. Grua, and Elizabeth A. Kuehn, eds. Documents, Volume 15: 16 May–27 June 1844. Vol. 15 of the Documents series of The Joseph Smith Papers, edited by Matthew C. Godfrey, R. Eric Smith, Matthew J. Grow, and Ronald K. Esplin. Salt Lake City: Church Historian’s Press, 2023.

    21. [21]

      Docket Entry, Recognizance, 27 May 1844 [State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication].

    22. [22]

      According to state statute, any persons who falsely spoke or published words amounting to charges of adultery and fornication were guilty of slander. (An Act Declaring Certain Words Actionable [27 Dec. 1822], Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois, p. 660, sec. 1; JS, Journal, 4 June 1844.)

      The Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois: Containing All the Laws . . . Passed by the Ninth General Assembly, at Their First Session, Commencing December 1, 1834, and Ending February 13, 1835; and at Their Second Session, Commencing December 7, 1835, and Ending January 18, 1836; and Those Passed by the Tenth General Assembly, at Their Session Commencing December 5, 1836, and Ending March 6, 1837; and at Their Special Session, Commencing July 10, and Ending July 22, 1837. . . . Compiled by Jonathan Young Scammon. Chicago: Stephen F. Gale, 1839.

    23. [23]

      Capias, 22 June 1844 [State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication]; Docket Entry, Abatement, 21 Oct. 1844 [State of Illinois v. JS for Adultery and Fornication].

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