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Petition to Chauncey Robison, 26 December 1842 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault]

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Introduction to Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault Proclamation, 11 May 1842 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Lilburn W. Boggs, Affidavit, 20 July 1842 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Lilburn W. Boggs, Affidavit, 20 July 1842, Lyman Trumbull Copy [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Lilburn W. Boggs, Affidavit, 20 July 1842, William Clayton Copy [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Thomas Reynolds, Requisition, 22 July 1842 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Thomas Reynolds, Requisition, 22 July 1842, Lyman Trumbull Copy [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Thomas Reynolds, Requisition, 22 July 1842, William Clayton Copy [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Memorandum of Proclamation, 19 September 1842 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Warrant, 2 August 1842, Sylvester Emmons and William Clayton Copy [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Warrant, 2 August 1842, James Sloan Copy [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Thomas Carlin, Proclamation, 20 September 1842, as Published in Illinois Register [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Thomas Carlin, Proclamation, 20 September 1842, William Clayton First Copy [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Thomas Carlin, Proclamation, 20 September 1842, William Clayton Second Copy [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Petition to Thomas Ford, 31 December 1842 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Petition to Thomas Ford, 31 December 1842, Lyman Trumbull Copy [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Warrant, 31 December 1842 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Warrant, 31 December 1842, William Clayton Copy [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Petition to Nauvoo Municipal Court, 8 August 1842 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Habeas Corpus, 8 August 1842 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Habeas Corpus, 8 August 1842, Copy [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Docket Entry, circa 8 August 1842 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Habeas Corpus, 10 August 1842 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Habeas Corpus, 10 August 1842, Copy [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Petition to Chauncey Robison, 26 December 1842, Draft [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Petition to Chauncey Robison, 26 December 1842 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Petition to the United States Circuit Court for the District of Illinois, 31 December 1842, Willard Richards Copy [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Petition to the United States Circuit Court for the District of Illinois, 31 December 1842, William Clayton Copy [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Docket Entry, Petition and Order for Habeas Corpus, 31 December 1842 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Habeas Corpus, 31 December 1842, Willard Richards Copy [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Habeas Corpus, 31 December 1842, William Clayton Copy [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Docket Entry, Return of Habeas Corpus, Bond, and Order, 31 December 1842 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Order, 31 December 1842 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Order, 31 December 1842, Copy [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Affidavit, 2 January 1843, William Clayton Copy [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Docket Entry, Affidavit, Motion, and Continuance, 2 January 1843 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Motion, circa 3 January 1843 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Docket Entry, Motion, 4 January 1843 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Wilson Law and Others, Affidavit, 4 January 1843, Willard Richards Copy [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Jacob B. Backenstos and Stephen A. Douglas, Affidavit, 4 January 1843 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Docket Entry, Motion Overruled and Discharge, 5 January 1843 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Trial Report, 5–19 January 1843, as Published in the Sangamo Journal [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Trial Report, 5–19 January 1843, as Published in Reports [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Thomas Ford, Order, 6 January 1843 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault] Transcript of Proceedings, 6 January 1843 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault]

Petition to Chauncey Robison, 26 December 1842 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault]

Source Note

JS, Petition, [], Hancock Co., IL, to , [, Hancock Co., IL], 26 Dec. 1842, Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault (Hancock Co., IL, Circuit Court 1842); handwriting of ; signature of JS; endorsement by , 27 Dec. 1842; three pages. Includes endorsement and archival marking. The microfilm copy of the text used for transcription is in reel 25 of the Wilford C. Wood Collection of Church Historical Materials, CHL.
Two leaves of unknown dimensions. The document was folded in half twice.
The document was docketed by , who served as scribe to JS from 1842 to 1844. Wilford C. Wood purchased this petition and other materials from Charles E. Bidamon, ’s stepson, on 10 July 1937. An alphanumeric code (“4-N-b-2”) inscribed in graphite on the upper right corner of the recto of the first leaf indicates that the petition was part of the Wilford C. Wood collection when LaMar Berrett created a register for the collection during the summers of 1969 and 1970. In 1973 the manuscript was microfilmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah; the microfilm is held in the Church History Library. The location of the original document is unknown.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    JS, Journal, 29 June 1842; “Clayton, William,” in Jenson, Latter-day Saint Biographical Encyclopedia, 1:718.

    Jenson, Andrew. Latter-day Saint Biographical Encyclopedia: A Compilation of Biographical Sketches of Prominent Men and Women in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 4 vols. Salt Lake City: Andrew Jenson History Co., 1901–1936.

  2. [2]

    Charles E. Bidamon, Wilmette, IL, to Wilford C. Wood, Woods Cross, UT, 28 June 1937; Charles E. Bidamon, Statement of Sale, 10 July 1937; Wilford C. Wood, Statement, 10 July 1937, microfilm, reel 16, Wilford C. Wood Collection of Church Historical Materials, CHL.

    Wood, Wilford C. Collection of Church Historical Materials. Microfilm. CHL. MS 8617.

  3. [3]

    Berrett, Wilford C. Wood Collection, 97.

    Berrett, LaMar C. The Wilford C. Wood Collection: An Annotated Catalog of Documentary- Type Materials in the Wilford C. Wood Collection. Vol. 1. [Woods Cross, UT]: Wilford C. Wood Foundation, 1972.

  4. [4]

    Wilford C. Wood Collection of Church Historical Materials, CHL.

    Wood, Wilford C. Collection of Church Historical Materials. Microfilm. CHL. MS 8617.

  5. [5]

    Church History Department, Wilford Wood Museum Memorandum, 26 Jan. 2018, CHL.

    Church History Department. Wilford Wood Museum Memorandum, 26 Jan. 2018. CHL.

Historical Introduction

On 26 December 1842, JS wrote a petition to , the , Illinois, master in , for a writ of . The petition was part of JS’s ongoing efforts to block attempts by the state of to extradite him for allegedly acting as an accessory before the fact to the attempted assassination of in May 1842. Immediately following the arrests of JS and in August on orders from governor , the municipal court in , Illinois, issued a writ of habeas corpus. Although he was uncertain of the legality of the Municipal Court’s writ, , Illinois, undersheriff released JS and Rockwell into the custody of Nauvoo city marshal and returned to , Illinois, to await further instructions. In response to Illinois officials’ persistent attempts to arrest him again, JS spent most of the next several months in hiding.
JS’s efforts to legally block extradition were aided in December when the newly elected governor of , , assured a delegation of Latter-day Saints that he believed ’s arrest warrant was illegal. Ford promised to consult with members of the Illinois Supreme Court on the matter and then to abide by “whatever they concluded.” Following several days of deliberation, Ford wrote to JS on 17 December to inform him that the supreme court justices with whom he had consulted had unanimously concurred that ’s requisition was illegal but that, because of “much excitement on the subject,” they disagreed about the propriety of Ford’s dismissing an arrest warrant issued by his predecessor. Instead, Ford and the judges proposed a solution they hoped would satisfy all of the parties involved. Reporting on the discussions between Ford and the judges, JS’s attorney informed the Latter-day Saint delegation that they had determined that “it were better that Pres. Joseph should appear on a write of Habeas Corpus” in , Illinois. Butterfield continued that he was certain JS would “be discharged by the Supreme Court and no one would be liable to censure.”
Accordingly, on 26 December 1842, major general arrested JS, and then JS and his advisors evidently drafted a petition to the master in chancery for a writ of habeas corpus. Law’s authorization to make the arrest came from a proclamation issued on 20 September 1842, the text of which JS inserted in the December petition featured here. It is not entirely clear why JS petitioned for a writ of habeas corpus in Hancock County. Evidence seems to indicate, however, that JS and his associates originally intended to have the Supreme Court adjudicate the matter, which a writ from Hancock County would have facilitated. Furthermore, Illinois state law prohibited “any officer, sheriff, jailer, keeper, or other person” from removing a prisoner holding a writ of habeas corpus from the custody of the arresting officer prior to a legal hearing on the writ. JS and his advisors likely assumed that state law would protect JS from extradition if he traveled to holding a writ of habeas corpus while under arrest. and took JS’s petition to , Illinois, and obtained the order for the writ from . On 27 December 1842, Robison instructed the Hancock County Circuit Court to issue the writ, inscribing the instructions at the bottom of the petition. Despite their efforts, Sherwood and Clayton were unable to secure the writ because the court’s clerk, , was not present to issue it, having left for Springfield in connection with his recent election to the state senate. JS and his party were therefore compelled to continue to Springfield without a writ.
drafted the petition. He then made a fair copy, which JS signed, that he and submitted to . As the officially submitted petition, the version Robison endorsed is featured here.
See also Introduction to Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    Illinois state law stipulated that each county have a master in chancery whose routine responsibilities included taking depositions, administering oaths, and, in the absence of the presiding circuit court judge, authorizing writs of habeas corpus. In 1842 the Hancock County Circuit Court met in May and October, meaning that the court was not in session during December 1842, when JS requested this writ. (An Act to Provide for Issuing Writs of Ne Exeat and Habeas Corpus, and for Other Purposes [11 Feb. 1835], Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois, p. 145, sec. 2; An Act to Establish Circuit Courts [23 Feb. 1841], Laws of the State of Illinois [1840–1841], p. 108, sec. 18.)

    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.

    Laws of the State of Illinois, Passed by the Ninth General Assembly, at Their First Session, Commencing December 1, 1834, and Ending February 13, 1835. Vandalia, IL: J. Y. Sawyer, 1835.

  2. [2]

    See “Joseph Smith Documents from September 1842 through February 1843.”

  3. [3]

    Thomas King, the undersheriff of Adams County, Illinois, retained the original warrants for JS and Rockwell. The Nauvoo Municipal Court’s copies date the originals to 2 August 1842. (Thomas Carlin, Warrant, 2 Aug. 1842, Ex Parte JS for Accessory to Boggs Assault [C.C.D. Ill. 1843], copy, Nauvoo, IL, Records, CHL; Petition to Nauvoo Municipal Court, 8 Aug. 1842; Orrin Porter Rockwell, Petition to Nauvoo Municipal Court, 8 Aug. 1842, copy, Nauvoo, IL, Records, CHL.)

  4. [4]

    JS, Journal, 8 Aug. 1842. On 5 July 1842, anticipating that Missouri would try to extradite JS, the Nauvoo City Council passed a broad habeas corpus law that allowed the Nauvoo Municipal Court to review all arrests made within the city. (Nauvoo City Council Minute Book, 5 July 1842, 86–87.)

  5. [5]

    JS, Journal, 9–20 Dec. 1842; Clayton, Journal, 14 Dec. 1842. Ford served as a justice on the state supreme court from 1841 to 1842 and was therefore seeking the opinion of his recent colleagues. (Garraty and Carnes, American National Biography, 8:249.)

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

    Garraty, John A., and Mark C. Carnes. American National Biography. New York: American Council of Learned Societies, 1999.

  6. [6]

    Letter from Thomas Ford, 17 Dec. 1842; Clayton, Journal, 15–17 Dec. 1842.

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

  7. [7]

    Clayton, Journal, 15 Dec. 1842.

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

  8. [8]

    Thomas Carlin, Proclamation, 20 Sept. 1842; JS, Journal, 26 Dec. 1842; Clayton, Journal, 26–27 Dec. 1842.

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

  9. [9]

    An Act Regulating the Proceeding on Writs of Habeas Corpus [22 Jan. 1827], Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois, p. 326, sec. 11.

    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.

  10. [10]

    JS, Journal, 26 Dec. 1842; Clayton, Journal, 26–27 Dec. 1842.

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

  11. [11]

    JS, Journal, 26–27 Dec. 1842; Clayton, Journal, 27 Dec. 1842. Although the master in chancery was responsible for ordering the writ, only the clerk could issue it. (An Act to Provide for Issuing Writs of Ne Exeat and Habeas Corpus, and for Other Purposes [11 Feb. 1835], Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois, p. 145, sec. 2; “Master in Chancery,” in Bouvier, Law Dictionary, 2:105.)

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

    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.

    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.

  12. [12]

    “Petition of Joseph Smith for a Writ of Habeas Corpus,” 26 Dec. 1842, draft, JS Collection, CHL; Clayton, Journal, 26 Dec. 1842.

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

Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation. Thomas Carlin, Proclamation, 20 September 1842, as Published in Illinois Register [ Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault ] Thomas Carlin, Proclamation, 20 September 1842, William Clayton First Copy [ Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault ] Thomas Carlin, Proclamation, 20 September 1842, William Clayton Second Copy [ Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault ] Petition to Chauncey Robison, 26 December 1842, Draft [ Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault ] Petition to Chauncey Robison, 26 December 1842 [ Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault ]
as the Executive of this , by the of the State of , for the apprehension and surrender of who is charged with the crime of shooting with intent to kill in the county of and State of on the night of the sixth day of May A. D. 1842. And whereas, a demand has also been made by the of upon me for the apprehension and surrender of Joseph Smith (commonly called the Mormon Prophet) who is charged with the crime of being accessory to the shooting of said at the time and place aforesaid, with intent to kill.
And whereas in obedience to the Constitution and laws of the , and of this , executive warrants have been issued, and the said and Smith arrested as fugitives from justice from the State of .
And whereas the said and Smith resisted the laws by refusing to go with the officers who had them in custody as fugitives from justice, and escaped from the custody of said officers.
Now, therefore, I. , Governor of the State of , in conformity to an act entitled “an act concerning fugitives from justice” approved January 6. 1827, do offer a reward of two hundred dollars to any person or persons, for the apprehension and delivery of each, or either of the above named fugitives from justice Viz:— and Joseph Smith, to the custody of and , or to the Sherif of at the City of
In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand, and caused the great seal [p. [2]]
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Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Petition to Chauncey Robison, 26 December 1842 [Extradition of JS for Accessory to Assault]
ID #
9555
Total Pages
4
Print Volume Location
JSP, D11:301–307
Handwriting on This Page
  • William Clayton

Footnotes

  1. [4]

    Thomas Reynolds, Requisition, 22 July 1842.

  2. [5]

    Article 4, section 2, clause 2, of the United States Constitution stipulates that states must extradite any person charged with “Treason, Felony, or other Crime” to the state where the alleged offense occurred. In 1793 “An Act respecting fugitives from justice, and persons escaping from the service of their masters” codified the constitutional stipulation into law. While sections 3 and 4 of the act pertained to runaway slaves (giving the law its commonly used name, the “Fugitive Slave Act”), the first two sections related to extradition generally. (An Act respecting Fugitives from Justice, and Persons Escaping from the Service of Their Masters [12 Feb. 1793], Public Statutes at Large, 2nd Cong., 2nd Sess., chap. 7, pp. 302–305.)

    The Public Statutes at Large of the United States of America, from the Organization of the Government in 1789, to March 3, 1845. . . . Edited by Richard Peters. 8 vols. Boston: Charles C. Little and James Brown, 1846–1867.

  3. [6]

    An Act concerning Fugitives from Justice [6 Jan. 1827], Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois, p. 318, sec. 1.

    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.

  4. [7]

    Adams County undersheriff Thomas King acted as the principal arresting officer and probably received assistance from James Pitman, constable of Adams County, and Edward Ford, the agent of the state of Missouri charged with bringing JS back to the state for trial. (Petition to Nauvoo Municipal Court, 8 Aug. 1842; JS, Journal, 3 Sept. 1842; Thomas Reynolds, Requisition, 22 July 1842.)

  5. [8]

    On 8 August 1842, the arresting officers initially hesitated to release the prisoners, questioning the validity of the municipal court’s writ of habeas corpus, but ultimately left JS and Rockwell in the custody of the city marshal, Henry G. Sherwood, while they went to Springfield to consult with Illinois governor Thomas Carlin. Although they left JS and Rockwell in Sherwood’s custody, the officers carried the original writ for their arrest to Springfield. Reasoning that he could not continue to hold JS and Rockwell as prisoners without a copy of the writ, Sherwood released them. JS went into hiding, while Rockwell fled to the eastern United States. (Historical Introduction to Petition to Nauvoo Municipal Court, 8 Aug. 1842; JS, Journal, 8 Aug. 1842; “The Arrest,” Wasp, 13 Aug. 1842, [2]; Letter from Sybella McMinn Armstrong and Orrin Porter Rockwell, 1 Dec. 1842.)

    The Wasp. Nauvoo, IL. Apr. 1842–Apr. 1843.

  6. [9]

    An Act concerning Fugitives from Justice [6 Jan. 1827], Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois, p. 318, sec. 1.

    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.

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