United States v. Mitchell

26 F. Cas. 1277 (1795)

From our private database of 46,300+ case briefs, written and edited by humans—never with AI.

United States v. Mitchell

United States Circuit Court for the District of Pennsylvania
26 F. Cas. 1277 (1795)

JC

Facts

Mitchell (defendant) was indicted for high treason by the federal government (plaintiff). Mitchell was part of a group who met at Couche’s Fort and decided to interfere with the laying and collecting of excise taxes. The group agreed that some members would go to General Neville’s house and force the general to surrender his office and official papers. The delegation who went to Neville’s house burned the home down. In Mitchell’s case, Mitchell was observed by four witnesses to have been present at Couche’s Fort and offered to reconnoiter at Neville’s house personally. The government argued that Mitchell’s acts were high treason by virtue of levying war against the United States. British law established that raising a body of men to have a law repealed or interfere with the law’s execution, if done using violence or intimidation, was an act of levying war. Mitchell’s attorney argued that Mitchell did not commit high treason. First, Congress had proscribed willfully opposing any officer in the serving process as a mere misdemeanor. Further, Mitchell’s attorney argued that only one witness established Mitchell as present at Neville’s house, the witness was 30 or 40 yards away, and Mitchell may not have had a gun. At the time, an overt act of treason required proof by two witnesses. Meanwhile, Mitchell’s attorney argued that at the Couche’s Fort meeting, the purpose was to consider how to proceed, not to suppress Neville’s work. In essence, Mitchell argued that once at Neville’s house, a mob escalated the conflict but that Mitchell had not committed treason. The government disagreed, positing that the entire event was one insurrection and that Mitchell had committed treason by being present at Couche’s Fort, on the march to Neville’s home, and at Neville’s home, carrying traitorous intentions.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Paterson, J.)

What to do next…

  1. Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.

    You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 815,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.

  2. Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.

    Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.

Here's why 815,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

  • Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,300 briefs, keyed to 988 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
  • The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
  • Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
  • Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership
Here's why 815,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
  • Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
  • The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
  • Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
  • 46,300 briefs - keyed to 988 casebooks
  • Uniform format for every case brief
  • Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
  • Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
  • Top-notch customer support

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership