Moses Barnett Lairy (August 13, 1859 – April 9, 1927) was an

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lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

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, and

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who served as a justice of the

Indiana Supreme Court The Indiana Supreme Court, established by Article 7 of the Indiana Constitution, is the highest judicial authority in the state of Indiana. Located in Indianapolis, Indiana, Indianapolis, the Court's chambers are in the north wing of the Indiana ...

from January 4, 1915 to January 3, 1921.Minde C. Browning, Richard Humphrey, and Bruce Kleinschmidt,
Biographical Sketches of Indiana Supreme Court Justices
, ''

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'', Vol. 30, No. 1 (1997), section reproduced i
Indiana Courts Justice Biographies page

Biography

Lairy was born in Harrison Township, Cass County,

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to Thomas Lairy and Eliza Barnett Lairy. His family was of

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descent and originally lived in Butler County,

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before moving to

Lafayette, Indiana Lafayette ( , ) is a city in and the county seat of Tippecanoe County, Indiana, United States, located northwest of Indianapolis and southeast of Chicago. West Lafayette, on the other side of the Wabash River, is home to Purdue University, whi ...

and then again to Cass County. His brother, John S. Lairy, also became a judge. Lairy was raised on the family farm in rural Cass County. He attended local schools until age seventeen, when his father died and he took on the responsibilities of head of the household. Lairy later resumed his education at

Valparaiso University Valparaiso University (Valpo) is a private university in Valparaiso, Indiana. It is a Lutheran university with about 3,000 students from over 50 countries on a campus of . Originally named Valparaiso Male and Female College, Valparaiso Universit ...

(then known as the Northern Indiana Normal School). He taught at a schoolhouse in

Fulton County Fulton County is the name of eight counties in the United States of America. Most are named for Robert Fulton, inventor of the first practical steamboat: *Fulton County, Arkansas, named after Governor William Savin Fulton *Fulton County, Georgia *F ...

to help fund his education. Lairy began studying law under judge Dudley H. Case. In 1888, he began attending the

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of the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

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. After graduating in 1889, he moved back to Indiana, setting up a private law practice in Logansport, working in partnership with DeWitt C. Justice and M.F. Mahoney. Lairy, a

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, was active in local politics. He was a candidate for the judgeship of the Cass County Circuit Court, but was defeated. In 1895, he was appointed to the Cass County circuit court by

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Claude Matthews Claude Matthews (December 14, 1845 – August 28, 1898) was an American politician who served as the 23rd governor of the U.S. state of Indiana from 1893 to 1897. A farmer, he was nominated to prevent the loss of voters to the Populist Party ...

to fill the vacant seat on the court left by D.B. McConnell's resignation. In 1910, he ran to become judge of 5th Judicial District, but was narrowly defeated by

Quincy Alden Myers Quincy Alden Myers (September 1, 1853 – December 27, 1921) was a justice of the Indiana Supreme Court from January 4, 1909, to January 4, 1915. Early life and education Born in Clinton Township, Cass County, Indiana,"Quincy Myers, Ex-Judge Sta ...

, another future

justice and friend of Lairy's. In 1910, he was elected as a judge of the

Indiana Court of Appeals The Indiana Court of Appeals is the intermediate-level appellate court for the state of Indiana. It is the successor to the Indiana Appellate Court. History The Indiana Appellate Court was created by the Indiana General Assembly by statute in 18 ...

. Lairy was elected to the Indiana Supreme Court in 1914, defeating the incumbent Justice Quincy Myers, the same man who had defeated Lairy in the 1908 5th Judicial District race. During his time on the court, Lairy wrote a concurring opinion on a case involving Senate Bill No. 77, which would have given women the right to vote in municipal elections in Indiana. Lairy said the bill was unconstitutional and that the General Assembly lacked the power of enfranchisement. Lairy left the bench in 1921, succeeded by Justice Julius Travis. After leaving the court, Lairy continued to practice law, joining the

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

firm of Myers, Gates & Ralston. Samuel M. Ralston, former Democratic Governor of Indiana, was a partner at the firm, as was future

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

from Indiana,

Frederick Van Nuys Frederick Van Nuys (April 16, 1874 – January 25, 1944) was a United States senator from Indiana. Born in Falmouth, he attended the public schools and graduated from Earlham College ( Richmond, Indiana) in 1898 and from Indiana Law School ...

. Quincy Myers was one of the partners at the firm, but he died in 1921, with Lairy succeeding him as a partner of the firm just as Lairy had succeeded him to the court. Lairy was invited by the Indiana Supreme Court as an ''

amicus curiae An ''amicus curiae'' (; ) is an individual or organization who is not a party to a legal case, but who is permitted to assist a court by offering information, expertise, or insight that has a bearing on the issues in the case. The decision on ...

'' in ''State v. Shumaker'', a case involving Edward Shumaker, head of the Indiana

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, who made

libel Defamation is the act of communicating to a third party false statements about a person, place or thing that results in damage to its reputation. It can be spoken (slander) or written (libel). It constitutes a tort or a crime. The legal defini ...

ous claims about the Indiana Supreme Court's handling of cases involving violations of new Prohibition laws. The court found Shumaker

in contempt ''In Contempt'' is a television show on BET created by Terri Kopp and starring Erica Ash. BET ordered 10 episodes straight-to-series. The series explores injustice in the American legal system. The series premiered on April 10, 2018. In September ...

for his claims. Governor

Edward L. Jackson Edward L. Jackson (December 27, 1873 – November 18, 1954) was an American attorney, judge and politician, elected the 32nd governor of the U.S. state of Indiana from January 12, 1925, to January 14, 1929. He had also been elected as Secretar ...

tried to

pardon A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the ju ...

Shumaker, but the court ruled the Governor did not have the power to pardon those found in contempt by the Supreme Court. In a widely-publicized case, Lairy defended Delaware County Circuit Judge Clarence W. Dearth in his

impeachment Impeachment is the process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In ...

trial heard before the

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. Residents of

Muncie Muncie ( ) is an incorporated city and the seat of Delaware County, Indiana. Previously known as Buckongahelas Town, named after the legendary Delaware Chief.http://www.delawarecountyhistory.org/history/docs/lenape-villages.pdf It is located in ...

petitioned for Dearth's impeachment after he was accused of

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and being affiliated with the

Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to the KKK or the Klan, is an American white supremacist, right-wing terrorist, and hate group whose primary targets are African Americans, Jews, Latinos, Asian Americans, Native Americans, and ...

by a local journalist. Lairy achieved a narrow victory, with the motion to remove Dearth from office failing by two votes. Lairy married Mazetta Rogers, a public school teacher, in 1892 in Logansport. In 1915, they

divorce Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...

d, with Mazetta accusing her husband of having an

extramarital affair An affair is a sexual relationship, romantic friendship, or passionate attachment in which at least one of its participants has a formal or informal commitment to a third person who may neither agree to such relationship nor even be aware of i ...

. Mazetta later moved to

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. Lairy remarried to Nina Justice, daughter of his former law partner, DeWitt Justice. Lairy was a

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, a

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, and a member of the

Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks (BPOE; also often known as the Elks Lodge or simply The Elks) is an American fraternal order founded in 1868, originally as a social club in New York City. History The Elks began in 1868 as a soci ...

. Lairy was a friend and mentor of future Indiana Supreme Court Justice

Michael Fansler Michael Louis Fansler (July 4, 1883 – July 26, 1963) was an United States of America, American lawyer, American football, football player, politician, and judge who served as a justice of the Indiana Supreme Court from January 4, 1933, to Janua ...

. Barely a week after the Dearth impeachment trial, Lairy died in 1927 in Logansport.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lairy, Moses 1859 births 1927 deaths People from Cass County, Indiana Valparaiso University alumni University of Michigan Law School alumni Justices of the Indiana Supreme Court American judges Indiana Democrats American people of Irish descent