''United States v. Lawrence'', 3 U.S. (3 Dall.) 42 (1795), was a United States Supreme Court case determining that the Supreme Court cannot normally compel a

federal Federal or foederal (archaic) may refer to: Politics General *Federal monarchy, a federation of monarchies *Federation, or ''Federal state'' (federal system), a type of government characterized by both a central (federal) government and states or ...

trial

judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

to proceed in a case which he feels is lacking sufficient

evidence Evidence for a proposition is what supports this proposition. It is usually understood as an indication that the supported proposition is true. What role evidence plays and how it is conceived varies from field to field. In epistemology, evidenc ...

to proceed. In the case, the court held:

Where a judge of the district court, acting in his judicial capacity, determined that evidence was not sufficient to authorize him to proceed in a case before him, this Court has no power to compel him to decide according to the dictates of any judgment but his own, whatever might be the difference of sentiment entertained by the court. A motion was made by the
Attorney General of the United States The United States attorney general (AG) is the head of the United States Department of Justice, and is the chief law enforcement officer of the federal government of the United States. The attorney general serves as the principal advisor to the p ...
(Bradford) for a rule to show cause why a
mandamus (; ) is a judicial remedy in the form of an order from a court to any government, subordinate court, corporation, or public authority, to do (or forbear from doing) some specific act which that body is obliged under law to do (or refrain from ...
should not be directed to John Lawrence, Judge of the District of New York, in order to compel him to issue a warrant, for apprehending
Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
Barre,
commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...
of the
frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and ...
Le Perdrix, belonging to the
French Republic France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
..

References

External links

* {{caselaw source , case = ''United States v. Lawrence'', {{Ussc, 3, 42, 1795, Dall., 3, el=no , courtlistener =https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/2216108/united-states-v-lawrence/ , googlescholar = https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=4584789775620707188 , justia =https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/3/42/ , loc =http://cdn.loc.gov/service/ll/usrep/usrep003/usrep003042/usrep003042.pdf United States Supreme Court cases United States Supreme Court cases of the Jay Court United States evidence case law 1795 in United States case law

See also

References

External links