 | United States. Supreme Court - Law reports, digests, etc - 1820 - 622 pages
...intention of the legislature must govern in the construction of penal, as well as other statutes, and they are not to be construed so Strictly as to defeat the obvious intention of the legislature. In the act of April 30th, 1790, c. 36. the description of placet contained in the 8tb section, within... | |
 | Samuel Hazard - Pennsylvania - 1828 - 434 pages
...department— it is the Legislature EC not the Court whioh is to define a crime and ordain the punishment. But though penal laws are to be construed strictly —...the Legislature. The maxim is not to be so applied us to narrow the words of the statute so as to excluded cases which those words in their ordinary acceptation... | |
 | United States. Supreme Court, Richard Peters - Court rules - 1829 - 758 pages
...words of the act require it. Even penal laws, which, it is said, should be strictly construed, ought not to be construed so strictly as to defeat the obvious intention of the legislature. This was laid down as a rule by this Court, in the case of the United States vs. Wiltberger, 5 Wh&al.... | |
 | Pennsylvania - 1830 - 522 pages
...department— it is the Legislature & not the Court which is to define a crime and ordain the punishment. But though penal laws are to be construed strictly —...be so applied as to narrow the words of the statute so as to excluded cases which those words in their ordinary acceptation or in that sense in which the... | |
 | United States. Circuit Court (3rd Circuit), Henry Baldwin - Law reports, digests, etc - 1837 - 670 pages
...not the court which is to define a crime and ordain the punishment. 5 Wheat. 95, 96. But though the penal laws are to be construed strictly, they are...so applied as to narrow the words of the statute, so as to exclude cases which those words, in Iheir ordinary acceptation, or in that sense in which... | |
 | Vermont. Supreme Court - Law reports, digests, etc - 1844 - 820 pages
...comprehended both in the statute. 6. Though penal statutes should be construed strictly, yet they'should not be construed so strictly as to defeat the obvious intention of the legislature. United States v. Wiltbergen, 5 Wheaton's R. 76. The opinion of the court was delivered by BENNETT,... | |
 | Samuel Owen - Law - 1845 - 434 pages
...by the report, that while it was true that penal statutes were to be construed strictly, they were " not to be construed so strictly as to defeat the obvious intention of the legislature, when that intention can be collected from the words used in the act." This position, in its just sense,... | |
 | Arkansas. Supreme Court - Law reports, digests, etc - 1846 - 628 pages
...under the statute. Penal statutes must be construed strictly, 1 Black. Com. 88. Pennl statutes, though not to be construed so strictly as to defeat the obvious intention of the legislature, must not be so construed as to embrace any thing which was not clearly and unquestionably intended... | |
 | E. Fitch Smith - Constitutional law - 1848 - 1040 pages
...construed strictly, should also be observed, which is, that while they are to be strictly construed, yet they are not to be construed so strictly as to defeat the obvious intention of the legislature, and the words are not to be so narrowed down as to exclude cases which those words, in their ordinary... | |
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It is a modification of the ancient .maxim, and amounts to this : that though penal laws are to be construed strictly, they are not to be construed so strictly as to defeat the obvious intention of the... 
