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Warrant, 24 June 1844–A [State of Illinois v. JS and H. Smith for Treason]

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Introduction to State of Illinois v. JS and H. Smith for Treason Warrant, 24 June 1844–A [State of Illinois v. JS and H. Smith for Treason] Warrant, 24 June 1844–B [State of Illinois v. JS and H. Smith for Treason] Mittimus, 25 June 1844 [State of Illinois v. JS and H. Smith for Treason] Order, 26 June 1844 [State of Illinois v. JS and H. Smith for Treason] List of Witnesses, 26 June 1844 [State of Illinois v. JS and H. Smith for Treason] Mittimus, 26 June 1844 [State of Illinois v. JS and H. Smith for Treason]

Warrant, 24 June 1844–A [State of Illinois v. JS and H. Smith for Treason]

Source Note

, Warrant, [], Hancock Co., IL, to “all Sheriffs Coroners and Constables” of , for JS, 24 June 1844, State of IL v. JS and H. Smith for Treason (Hancock Co., IL, Justice of the Peace Court 1844). Featured version copied [ca. 25 June 1844]; handwriting probably of ; docket probably by , [, IL, ca. 25 June 1844]; two pages; JS Collection (Supplement), CHL. Includes dockets, notation, and archival marking.
One leaf measuring 12¼ × 7½ inches (31 × 19 cm). Each side is ruled with thirty-four horizontal lines printed in blue ink. The left edge of the recto was unevenly hand cut, which suggests the leaf was removed from a book or larger sheet. The document was folded in half horizontally twice for filing. At an unknown date, “24 June 1844” was typed near the top edge of the recto.
The document was docketed in the same handwriting as the main text, probably that of . The document was possibly obtained by while he was in , Illinois, in late June 1844. It was also docketed by , who served as JS’s scribe from 1843 to 1844 and as clerk to the church historian and recorder from 1845 to 1865. The graphite notation “A.J.” was added to the document by Andrew Jenson, who began working in the Church Historian’s Office (later Church Historical Department) in 1891 and served as assistant church historian from 1897 to 1941. The Church Historical Department (now CHL) published a register of the JS Collection in 1973. However, the department’s staff continued to locate documents authored by or directed to JS in uncataloged church financial records and in name and subject files. The department also acquired additional JS documents from donors, collectors, and dealers. These newly located and acquired documents were kept together in a supplement to the JS Collection that was closed to further acquisitions in 1984 and was named the JS Collection (Supplement), 1833–1844. The document’s early dockets, its notation, and its later inclusion in the JS Collection (Supplement) suggest continuous institutional custody since the mid-nineteenth century.

Footnotes

  1. Jessee, “Writing of Joseph Smith’s History,” 456, 458; Woodruff, Journal, 22 Jan. 1865.

    Jessee, Dean C. “The Writing of Joseph Smith’s History.” BYU Studies 11 (Summer 1971): 439–473.

    Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

  2. Jenson, Autobiography, 192, 389; Cannon, Journal, 9 Feb. 1891; Jenson, Journal, 9 Feb. 1891 and 19 Oct. 1897; Bitton and Arrington, Mormons and Their Historians, 47–52.

    Jenson, Andrew. Autobiography of Andrew Jenson: Assistant Historian of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. . . . Salt Lake City: Deseret News Press, 1938.

    Cannon, George Q. Journals, 1855–1864, 1872–1901. CHL. CR 850 1.

    Jenson, Andrew. Journals, 1864–1941. Andrew Jenson, Autobiography and Journals, 1864–1941. CHL.

    Bitton, David, and Leonard J. Arrington. Mormons and Their Historians. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 1988.

  3. See the full bibliographic entry for JS Collection (Supplement), 1833–1844, in the CHL catalog. A preliminary inventory of the supplement was created in 1992 and its cataloging was finalized in 2017.

Historical Introduction

On 24 June 1844, , a justice of the peace in , Illinois, issued a warrant for the arrest of JS on a charge of against the state of . The charge evidently stemmed from JS’s decision to call out the on 17 June and to declare martial law within the city’s boundaries the following day. Tensions in Hancock County had been rising for some time, and the situation became volatile after the destruction of the Nauvoo Expositor’s press on 10 June. The following day, Hancock County justice of the peace , who was located in , Illinois, issued a warrant for JS and seventeen other men for their roles in demolishing the press. Although JS and the others were willing to answer the charge, they feared that their lives would be in danger in Carthage and therefore addressed the allegations in , Illinois, courts rather than before Morrison. The ’s antagonists called for volunteers to assemble on 19 June, when Hancock County constable —the officer tasked with serving Morrison’s warrant—was expected to organize them as a to assist him in arresting and transporting the prisoners to Carthage. The antagonists also resolved that if Bettisworth was unable to detain JS and the other accused men, vigilantes would wage a “war of extermination” on Latter-day Saints in the county.
The church’s antagonists also sent couriers to governor apprising him of the situation in and asking him to muster the state militia to maintain order. Under Illinois law, the governor, as commander in chief, possessed exclusive authority to call out the militia. However, local militia leaders—anticipating, correctly, that the governor would later implicitly approve their actions—began mustering troops on 17 June to support the posse comitatus.
JS wrote to twice during the week following the demolition of the Expositor, defending the city council, requesting the governor’s protection, and offering the services of the Nauvoo Legion, the city’s independent unit within the state militia, to help keep the peace. Under the act incorporating the city of , commonly known as the Nauvoo charter, both the mayor and the governor were authorized to utilize the Nauvoo Legion to enforce city ordinances and state statutes, as well as to maintain “the public defence.” JS had previously asserted to Ford that the mayor possessed the “power to call upon any portion of the Legion to resist” an “armed mob” that threatened to “slaughter the inhabitants of the city.” Hearing nothing from Ford by 17 June 1844, JS decided to call out the legion to protect Nauvoo.
On 18 June, JS took the additional step of proclaiming martial law within the city’s boundaries. There was no provision in American law, whether federal, state, or municipal, that defined martial law or authorized its actualization. In his order proclaiming martial law, JS stated that he had “good reason to fear that a mob is organizing to come upon this and plunder and destroy said city as well as murder the citizens.” He ordered the legion and the city police to “strictly see that no persons or property pass in or out of the city without due orders.” The city was under martial law from 18 to 22 June, with city marshal directing its application. Forces under Greene’s leadership monitored travel into and out of the city, stopping individuals who were deemed suspicious and refusing at least one steamboat permission to dock on the city’s shoreline on the . At least five individuals who had drawn suspicion swore exculpatory affidavits. received reports that seven additional individuals had been “detained against their will” under martial law.
arrived in on 21 June 1844 and assessed the situation. Finding “an armed force assembled, and hourly increasing”—comprising both volunteers who gathered to join the posse comitatus and militiamen who mustered “for a similar purpose”—Ford moved “to place all the militia then assembled or which were expected to assemble, under military command of their proper officers.” The governor thereby tacitly approved the earlier mustering of militia forces, apparently with no repercussions for the officers who called out their men prior to receiving authorization from the commander in chief. In contrast, on 22 June, Ford wrote to JS ordering him and the other defendants to submit to arrest and examination on the charge in Carthage. Ford also referenced JS’s declaration of martial law, hinting ominously that the detentions made under the order “may become matters of great importance.” After receiving Ford’s letter, JS dismissed the legion and, presumably, rescinded the martial law order.
On 24 June 1844, residents and appeared in before justice of the peace and filed two complaints. Spencer’s complaint alleged that JS had committed treason against the state of on or about 19 June 1844 in Hancock County, while Norton’s complaint alleged that had committed the same crime. Both Spencer and Norton had become embroiled in several controversies with JS and other Nauvoo officials during previous months, and the two men were known associates of the proprietors of the Nauvoo Expositor. Neither complaint appears to be extant, so specific details regarding the allegations remain unknown. Robert Smith’s docket book is apparently not extant, and he left no account of his decision to issue warrants for JS and Hyrum Smith. state law defined treason as “levying war against the government and people of this state” or “giving . . . aid, advice, and comfort” to the state’s enemies. The law indicated that treason consisted of committing an “open deed”—that is, an actual act of war and not simply words—that was established by the testimonies of two or more witnesses or the defendant’s confession. The 19 June date referenced in the warrant may have referred to the date that was expected to convene the posse comitatus to arrest JS. For his part, JS understood the treason charge against him as stemming from the order to call out the legion. later noted that the “overt act of treason charged against” the Smith brothers “consisted in the alleged levying of war against the State by declaring martial law in Nauvoo, and in ordering out the legion to resist the posse comitatus” that was formed to assist Bettisworth in making the arrest.
In any case, based on the complaints from and , issued warrants for the arrest of JS and on 24 June 1844. In the interim, the Smith brothers had decided to answer the riot charge in . Accompanied by other Latter-day Saints, they arrived in Carthage late that night. The following morning, arrested the men named in the riot warrant issued on 11 June by justice of the peace . Bettisworth then served the treason warrants on JS and Hyrum Smith. During the late afternoon of 25 June, Justice Smith, rather than Morrison, presided at a preliminary examination of JS and the other men charged with . The defendants voluntarily entered into $500 recognizances binding them to appear at the next session of the Hancock County Circuit Court for trial. Although most of the defendants in the riot case left that evening for Nauvoo, JS and Hyrum Smith remained in custody on the charge. Around eight o’clock that night, Bettisworth presented them a mittimus from Justice Smith, or an order that committed the Smith brothers to jail. Although the prisoners protested to that Justice Smith could not send them to jail, because he had not held a legally required examination on the treason charge, Ford declined to interfere with judicial process and the defendants were placed in the jail for the night. In a letter JS wrote earlier that day to his wife , he informed her of the treason charge and then added that “when the truth comes out we have nothing to fear. We all feel calm & composed.”
The original arrest warrant for JS is apparently not extant. Attorney , who represented the state of as a prosecutor on the treason charge, evidently made this copy of the warrant. One of JS’s associates, perhaps his scribe , obtained the copy, and it was subsequently retained among JS’s papers. That copy of the warrant is featured here.

Footnotes

  1. Willard Richards, Journal Excerpt, 23–27 June 1844; Letter to Emma Smith, 25 June 1844; see also Military Order to Jonathan Dunham, 17 June 1844; and Proclamation, 18 June 1844.

  2. See “Joseph Smith Documents from 16 May through 28 June 1844.”

  3. Historical Introduction to Petition to Nauvoo Municipal Court, 12 June 1844; Historical Introduction to Docket Entry, ca. 13 June 1844; Historical Introduction to Statement, 17 June 1844.

  4. An 1845 Illinois justice of the peace manual indicated that a constable could “take of the county any number that he shall think proper, to pursue, arrest, and imprison” accused offenders. Such a force was called a posse comitatus. (Cotton, Treatise on the Powers and Duties of Justices of the Peace, 37; see also “Posse Comitatus,” in Bouvier, Law Dictionary, 2:337.)

    Cotton, Henry G. A Treatise on the Powers and Duties of Justices of the Peace in the State of Illinois, with Practical Forms. Ottawa, IL: By the author, 1845.

    Bouvier, John. A Law Dictionary, Adapted to the Constitution and Laws of the United States of America, and of the Several States of the American Union; With References to the Civil and Other Systems of Foreign Law. 2 vols. Philadelphia: Deacon and Peterson, 1854.

  5. Warsaw (IL) Signal, Extra, 14 June 1844, [1]; S. Otho Williams, Carthage, IL, to John A. Prickett, [Alton, IL], 10 July 1844, 1–2, Collection of Manuscripts about Mormons, 1832–1954, Chicago History Museum.

    Warsaw Signal. Warsaw, IL. 1841–1853.

    Chicago Historical Society, Collection of Manuscripts about Mormons, 1832–1954. Microfilm. CHL. MS 8136.

  6. Warsaw (IL) Signal, Extra, 14 June 1844, [1].

    Warsaw Signal. Warsaw, IL. 1841–1853.

  7. Illinois Constitution of 1818, art. 3, sec. 10; An Act for the Organization and Government of the Militia of this State [2 Mar. 1833], Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois (1839), p. 483, sec. 43; see also “Illinois and Missouri,” Times and Seasons, 15 Aug. 1843, 4:292–294; and Letter from Thomas Ford, 12 Dec. 1843.

    Illinois Office of Secretary of State. First Constitution of Illinois, 1818. Illinois State Archives, Springfield.

    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.

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

  8. S. Otho Williams, Carthage, IL, to John A. Prickett, [Alton, IL], 10 July 1844, 2; Lima Guards Roll, [1844]; Farmers’ Guards Company Return, 21 Nov. 1844; Camp Creek Company Return, 21 Nov. 1844; Illinois Militia, 5th Division, 4th Brigade, 59th Regiment Muster Roll, 4 Dec. 1844, Collection of Manuscripts about Mormons, 1832–1954, Chicago History Museum; Message of the Governor, 3.

    Chicago Historical Society, Collection of Manuscripts about Mormons, 1832–1954. Microfilm. CHL. MS 8136.

    Message of the Governor of the State of Illinois, in Relation to the Disturbances in Hancock County, December, 21, 1844. Springfield, IL: Walters and Weber, 1844.

  9. Letter to Thomas Ford, 14 June 1844; Letter to Thomas Ford, 16 June 1844.

  10. Act to Incorporate the City of Nauvoo, 16 Dec. 1840.

  11. Letter to Thomas Ford, 1 Jan. 1844.

  12. Stephen Markham, Affidavit, Nauvoo, IL, 17 June 1844, JS Office Papers, CHL; JS, Journal, 17 June 1844; Mayor’s Order to John P. Greene, 17 June 1844; Military Order to Jonathan Dunham, 17 June 1844.

  13. Proclamation, 18 June 1844.

  14. Sir William Blackstone, whose commentaries on English law were highly influential in the United States, explained that martial law had no place in “the permanent and perpetual laws” of England and that it was “built upon no settled principles” but was “entirely arbitrary in its decisions.” It was “in truth and reality no law, but something indulged rather than allowed as a law.” Blackstone contended that it could not be called in peacetime when the courts of law operated freely. Although JS cited Blackstone and other legal commentaries when performing his responsibilities as mayor and a justice of the peace, it is unknown whether he did so when preparing his declaration of martial law. (Friedman, History of American Law, xx, 71, 83; Blackstone, Commentaries, vol. 1, bk. 1, p. 323; Trial Report, 4–22 Mar. 1843; Letter to Thomas Ford, 22–23 June 1844.)

    Friedman, Lawrence M. A History of American Law. 3rd ed. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2007.

    Blackstone, William. Commentaries on the Laws of England: In Four Books; with an Analysis of the Work. By Sir William Blackstone, Knt. One of the Justices of the Court of Common Pleas. In Two Volumes, from the Eighteenth London Edition. . . . 2 vols. New York: W. E. Dean, 1840.

  15. Proclamation, 18 June 1844.

  16. Letter to Thomas Ford, 22–23 June 1844.

  17. “Latest News,” and “Postscript,” Warsaw (IL) Signal, 19 June 1844, [2].

    Warsaw Signal. Warsaw, IL. 1841–1853.

  18. James Camron, Affidavit, Hancock Co., IL, 19 June 1844; William Loomis, Affidavit, Nauvoo, IL, 20 June 1844; Samuel Hicks, Affidavit, Nauvoo, IL, 21 June 1844; H. Rosenkrantz, Affidavit, Nauvoo, IL, 22 June 1844; Luther Taylor, Affidavit, Nauvoo, IL, 22 June 1844, JS Office Papers, CHL.

  19. Ford named John A. Hicks, Henry Norton, Andrew J. Higbee, John Eagle, P. T. Rolfe, Peter Lemon, and T. J. Rolph as the detainees. JS acknowledged to the governor that at least one person had been detained for disturbing the peace but stated that the individual had been discharged. (Letter from Thomas Ford, 22 June 1844; Letter to Thomas Ford, 22–23 June 1844.)

  20. Message of the Governor, 3.

    Message of the Governor of the State of Illinois, in Relation to the Disturbances in Hancock County, December, 21, 1844. Springfield, IL: Walters and Weber, 1844.

  21. Letter from Thomas Ford, 22 June 1844.

  22. JS, Journal, 22 June 1844. In a letter written to Ford during the night of 22–23 June 1844, JS defended his decision to call out the legion as a necessary measure to protect life in the city and argued that any detentions were made for breaches of the peace. He also assured the governor that the detained individuals had been released. (Letter to Thomas Ford, 22–23 June 1844.)

  23. Justice Smith referenced the complaints in the warrant he issued for JS, featured here, and the warrant for Hyrum Smith. JS prosecuted Spencer in the Nauvoo mayor’s court on 26 April 1844 for attacking his brother Orson Spencer and for making derogatory comments about the church. When Augustine Spencer was detained, he was defended by Chauncey L. Higbee, Robert D. Foster, and Charles A. Foster, who later became proprietors of the Nauvoo Expositor. Spencer’s subsequent activities in Nauvoo are unknown. Robert D. Foster referred to Norton as one of his “boys.” In mid-June 1844 Hancock County justice of the peace Aaron Johnson tried and acquitted Norton for allegedly trying to burn down the Expositor office at the behest of Foster. On 18 June, Norton reportedly threatened JS’s life. However, after an examination before an unidentified justice of the peace, he was discharged. Finally, Norton was detained under JS’s martial law order. Norton’s interactions with Hyrum Smith during this time are unknown. (Robert Smith, Warrant for Hyrum Smith, Carthage, IL, 24 June 1844, State of Illinois v. JS and H. Smith for Treason [J.P. Ct. 1844], JS Office Papers, CHL; Historical Introduction to Pleas, ca. 27 May 1844; Prospectus of the Nauvoo Expositor [Nauvoo, IL: 10 May 1844], copy at CHL; Robert D. Foster, Carthage, IL, to John Proctor Sr., Nauvoo, IL, 20 June 1844, [3], JS Office Papers, CHL; Docket Entry, [Nauvoo, IL, ca. 14 June 1844], State of Illinois v. Norton [J.P. Ct. 1844], Robinson and Johnson, Docket Book, 256; JS, Journal, 14 and 18 June 1844; Clayton, Journal, 27 June 1844; Letter from Thomas Ford, 22 June 1844; see also “For the Neighbor,” Nauvoo Neighbor, 16 [26] June 1844, [2]; see also Historical Introduction to State of Illinois v. JS and H. Smith for Treason.)

    Nauvoo Expositor Prospectus. Nauvoo, IL: ca. 10 May 1844. Copy at CHL.

    Robinson, Ebenezer, and Aaron Johnson. Docket Book, ca. 1842–1845. In Chicago Historical Society, Collection of Mormon Materials, 1836–1886. Microfilm. CHL.

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

    Nauvoo Neighbor. Nauvoo, IL. 1843–1845.

  24. An Act Relative to Criminal Jurisprudence [26 Feb. 1833], Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois (1839), p. 202, sec. 20.

    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.

  25. Letter to Emma Smith, 25 June 1844.

  26. Ford, who had previously served as a justice of the Illinois Supreme Court, viewed the question of JS’s guilt or innocence as hinging on the motives of the volunteers who assembled to join the posse comitatus. If they truly intended only to assist the civil authorities in bringing JS into custody, then JS’s actions might have proven treasonous. If the volunteers were instead vigilantes, intent on murdering JS—as, Ford conceded, actually happened—then JS’s actions would have probably not been deemed treasonable. (Ford, History of Illinois, 337; see also Willard Richards, Journal Excerpt, 23–27 June 1844.)

    Ford, Thomas. A History of Illinois, from Its Commencement as a State in 1818 to 1847. Containing a Full Account of the Black Hawk War, the Rise, Progress, and Fall of Mormonism, the Alton and Lovejoy Riots, and Other Important and Interesting Events. Chicago: S. C. Griggs; New York: Ivison and Phinney, 1854.

  27. Willard Richards, Journal Excerpt, 23–27 June 1844.

  28. Petition to Nauvoo Municipal Court, 12 June 1844; Willard Richards, Journal Excerpt, 23–27 June 1844; Hugh T. Reid, “Statement of Facts!,” Nauvoo Neighbor, Extra, 30 June 1844, [1]; Hugh T. Reid, “Statement of Facts!,” Times and Seasons, 1 July 1844, 5:561–562; James W. Woods, Statement, Nauvoo Neighbor, Extra, 30 June 1844, [1]; James W. Woods, Statement, Times and Seasons, 1 July 1844, 5:563.

    Nauvoo Neighbor. Nauvoo, IL. 1843–1845.

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

  29. Historical Introduction to Recognizance, 25 June 1844.

  30. Willard Richards, Journal Excerpt, 23–27 June 1844.

  31. Willard Richards, Journal Excerpt, 23–27 June 1844; “Mittimus, Crim. Law, Practice,” in Bouvier, Law Dictionary, 2:168; Hugh T. Reid, “Statement of Facts!,” Nauvoo Neighbor, Extra, 30 June 1844, [1]; Hugh T. Reid, “Statement of Facts!,” Times and Seasons, 1 July 1844, 5:562. While Illinois law mandated that arrested individuals be brought before a justice of the peace before they were committed to jail, legal precedent also allowed for prisoners to remain in custody in cases where “it may be unseasonable to take the information and examinations presently, or possibly it may take longer time.” This was to be determined by “the circumstances of each case.” In cases where there was “sufficient legal cause for the commitment of the prisoner,” even if the legal process had not been strictly followed, the court could remedy the legal errors by making “a new commitment, in proper form, and directed to the proper officer.” (An Act to Regulate the Apprehension of Offenders, and for Other Purposes [6 Jan. 1827], Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois [1839], p. 238, sec. 3; Chitty, Practical Treatise on the Criminal Law, vol. 1, p. 50, sec. 74; An Act Regulating the Proceeding on Writs of Habeas Corpus [22 Jan. 1827], Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois [1839], p. 324, sec. 3; An Act to Regulate the Apprehension of Offenders, and for Other Purposes [6 Jan. 1827], Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois [1839], p. 240, sec. 10.)

    Bouvier, John. A Law Dictionary, Adapted to the Constitution and Laws of the United States of America, and of the Several States of the American Union; With References to the Civil and Other Systems of Foreign Law. 2 vols. Philadelphia: Deacon and Peterson, 1854.

    Nauvoo Neighbor. Nauvoo, IL. 1843–1845.

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

    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.

    Chitty, Joseph. A Practical Treatise on the Criminal Law; Comprising the Practice, Pleadings, and Evidence, Which Occur in the Course of Criminal Prosecutions. . . . 4 vols. Philadelphia: Edward Earle, 1819.

  32. Letter to Emma Smith, 25 June 1844.

  33. Willard Richards, Journal Excerpt, 23–27 June 1844.

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State of Illinois)
ss.)
The People of the State of To all Sheriffs Coroners and Constables of said Greeting
Whereas complaint has been made before me one of the justices of the peace in and for said aforesaid upon the Oath of that Joseph Smith late of the aforesaid did on or about the nineteenth day of June A. D. 1844, at the and aforesaid Commit. the Crime of against the Government and people of the State of aforesaid:
These are therefore to Command you to take the said Joseph Smith if he be found in your County, or if he shall have fled that you pursue after the said Joseph Smith into any other County within this and take and safely keep the said Joseph Smith so that you have his body forthwith before me to answer the said and be furthe[r] dealt with according to law
Given under my hand and seal this 24th day of June A. D. 1844
J. P. [p. [1]]
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Warrant, 24 June 1844–A [State of Illinois v. JS and H. Smith for Treason]
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2003
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Footnotes

  1. An abbreviation for the Latin scilicet, meaning “namely” or “to wit.” (“Scilicet,” in Bouvier, Law Dictionary, 2:483.)

    Bouvier, John. A Law Dictionary, Adapted to the Constitution and Laws of the United States of America, and of the Several States of the American Union; With References to the Civil and Other Systems of Foreign Law. 2 vols. Philadelphia: Deacon and Peterson, 1854.

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