Commonwealth v. McHale
Pennsylvania Supreme Court
97 Pa. 407 (1881)
- Written by Alex Hall, JD
Facts
Anthony McHale (defendant) was indicted by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in a conspiracy to falsify election results by reporting fraudulent votes for a district attorney. The indictment did not classify the conspirators as election officers. Violations under the state election code applicable to election officers were subject to a one-year statute of limitations, which had passed at the time of indictment. The commonwealth argued that the one-year limitation of the election code was repealed by the Criminal Procedure Act of 1860, which established a two-year limitations period for all offenses that are not governed by specific statute.. The trial court quashed the indictment by applying the election code’s one-year statute of limitations. The commonwealth filed writ of error seeking review of the trial court’s decision.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Paxson, J.)
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