Grimme v. Commonwealth
Grimme v. Commonwealth
Opinion of the Court
delivered the opinion of the Court.
The only question in this case is, whether a presentment for selling spirituous liquors by retail, with no other designation of place but the county, is good. We think it is not, For first, in the description of the offence contained in the various statutes, place is always introduced as a part of the definition; as in the 4th section of the act of 1793, (Stat.Lauj, 1499,) if any person shall sell, &c. in any house, booth, arbor, &c.; and in the 5th section of the act of 1820, page 1502, any person who shall sell, &e. in any booth, arbor, &e. So that if the place did not affect the grade of the offence, it might still be material to its proper specification. But second, there is a difference in the penalty inflicted for selling by retail in different places. The first of the sections above referred to, subjects the offence of selling in the places therein referred to, to a penalty of £3 or $10. The second imposes a penalty of twenty dollars. Upon comparing them it is seen that the last does not enumerate
Wherefore, the judgment is reversed and the cause remanded.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.