{ "id": 3393572, "name": "The People of the State of Illinois, Defendant in Error, vs. Julia VanBever et al. Plaintiffs in Error", "name_abbreviation": "People v. VanBever", "decision_date": "1910-12-21", "docket_number": "", "first_page": "136", "last_page": "141", "citations": [ { "type": "official", "cite": "248 Ill. 136" } ], "court": { "name_abbreviation": "Ill.", "id": 8772, "name": "Illinois Supreme Court" }, "jurisdiction": { "id": 29, "name_long": "Illinois", "name": "Ill." }, "cites_to": [ { "cite": "153 Ill. 123", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "Ill.", "case_ids": [ 3029913 ], "weight": 2, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "208" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/ill/153/0123-01" ] }, { "cite": "229 Ill. 512", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "Ill.", "case_ids": [ 5629002 ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/ill/229/0512-01" ] }, { "cite": "70 Ill. 388", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "Ill.", "case_ids": [ 5309920 ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/ill/70/0388-01" ] }, { "cite": "221 Ill. 9", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "Ill.", "case_ids": [ 3341910 ], "weight": 2, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "71" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/ill/221/0009-01" ] } ], "analysis": { "cardinality": 538, "char_count": 11332, "ocr_confidence": 0.744, "pagerank": { "raw": 3.137249718879992e-07, "percentile": 0.8616554478658794 }, "sha256": "1a19d02d76d2017b7c62d922cb3cc5e6a69faa65fb30ef9390bf64056b1af804", "simhash": "1:9dab150b94bb5580", "word_count": 1978 }, "last_updated": "2023-07-14T20:37:38.023976+00:00", "provenance": { "date_added": "2019-08-29", "source": "Harvard", "batch": "2018" }, "casebody": { "judges": [], "parties": [ "The People of the State of Illinois, Defendant in Error, vs. Julia VanBever et al. Plaintiffs in Error." ], "opinions": [ { "text": "Mr. Justice Carter\ndelivered the opinion of the court:\nTwo informations, one against each of the plaintiffs in error, were hied in the municipal court of Chicago, but as the legal questions raised are the same, the cases have been consolidated in this court. The plaintiffs in error were each found guilty in said municipal court of violating the Pandering act, (Laws of 1909, p. 180,) and sentenced to the house of correction for one year and each fined $1000, and in default of such payment, at the expiration of the original term of imprisonment to stand committed to the house of correction until such fine, together with costs, had been worked out at the rate of $1.50 per day. From those judgments writs of error were sued out and the cases brought here for review.\nPlaintiffs in error first contend that the sentences of the court were based, in part at least, upon paragraphs 168a and 1686 of the Criminal Code, (Hurd\u2019s Stat. 1909, p. 785,) and that the act of which these paragraphs are a part was passed in violation of the constitutional provision (art. 4, sec. 13,) that \u201c\u00bf0 law shall be revived or amended by reference to its title only, but the law revived, or the section amended, shall be inserted at length in the new act.\u201d No question seems to be raised \u00b0as to that part of the sentence providing for the fine and imprisonment, but only as to that part which provides for working out the fine at the rate of $1.50 per day. Said paragraphs 168a and 1686 are a part of an act passed in 1879, entitled \u201cAn act to amend the Criminal Code to change the punishment of persons convicted of the crime of petit larceny and misdemeanors, and to repeal an act entitled \u2018An act to amend section 168 of an act entitled \u2018An act to revise the law in relation to criminal jurisprudence,\u2019 approved March 27, 1874, approved April 10, 1877, in force July 1, 1877,\u201d approved May 28, 1879, in force July r, 1879. (Laws of 1879, p. 117.) Section 1 of this act relates solely to the punishment for larceny and is not claimed to be involved in this discussion. Sections 2 and 3 of the act are said paragraphs 168a and 168& heretofore referred to, and read as follows:\n\u201cSec. 2. That hereafter any person convicted in any court of record of any misdemeanor under the Criminal Code of this State the punishment of which in whole or in part now is, or hereafter may be imprisoned in the county jail, the court in which such conviction is had, may in its discretion, instead of committing to jail, sentence'such person to labor in the workhouse of any city, town or county, where the conviction is had. * * *\n\u201cSec. 3. That any person convicted of petit larceny, or any misdemeanor punishable under the laws of this State, in whole, or in part, by fine may be required * * * to work out such fine and all costs, in the workhouse of the city * * * \"under the proper person in charge of such workhouse, * * * at the rate of one dollar and fifty one-hundredths dollars ($1.50) per day for each day\u2019s work.\u201d\nIt is urged that these sections, in effect, amend the other sections of the Criminal Code which have reference to the punishment of misdemeanors, and while it is conceded that they do not in any way refer to such other sections, it is claimed that these later sections are unconstitutional because such other sections so claimed to be amended are not inserted at length in this new act. The rule has long been established in this State that this clause of the constitution was not intended to forbid every enactment which in any degree, however remotely, might affect prior laws on a given subject; that to so hold would bring about a far greater evil than the one sought to be obviated. If the act questioned is complete in itself and intelligible, showing, by itself, just what it is, it will not be held to contravene the constitutional provision in question. \u201cA subsequent act may have the practical effect of amending a prior one, or it may be substituted for it without violating the constitution.\u201d (People v. Election Comrs. 221 Ill. 9; Badenoch v. City of Chicago, 222 id. 71; 1 Lewis\u2019 Sutherland on Stat. Const. sec. 239.) The following decisions are a few among the many decided by this court that uphold the above conclusions: People v. Wright, 70 Ill. 388; Timm v. Harrison, 109 id. 593; School Directors v. School Directors, 135 id. 464; People v. Loeffler, 175 id. 585 ; People v. Knopf, 183 id. 410; Erford v. City of Peoria, 229 id. 546; People v. Jones, 242 id. 138. Manifestly, said paragraphs 168a and 168b are intelligible, and show on their face just what the legislature intended. They do not repeal, even by implication, the sections of the Criminal Code that provide for the punishment of misdemeanors. At the most they only modify them do the extent that it is discretionary with the trial court, instead of committing to jail, to sentence the person to labor in the workhouse or upon the streets and alleys of the city or town. The sections in question are not unconstitutional:\n\u25a0 It is further insisted that the act is unconstitutional because of its title, in this: that it attempts to amend the \u201cCriminal Code,\u201d when, as a matter of fact, we have no Criminal Code in this State, the principal act as to criminal matters being\" entitled one \u201cto revise the law in relation to criminal jurisprudence.\u201d The rule for the guidance of courts in these matters is to ascertain the intention of the legislature, and not its mistakes, either as to law or fact. The only question is, has the legislature expressed its purpose intelligibly ? If it has, the act is valid and must be upheld. (Patton v. People, 229 Ill. 512; 1 Lewis\u2019 Sutherland on Stat. Const.\u20142d ed.\u2014sec. 233.) Chapter 38 of our Revised Statutes has long been known as the \u201cCriminal Code.\u201d The title to this amendatory act uses the phrase \u201ccriminal code\u201d as synonymous with \u201ccriminal jurisprudence.\u201d The intention of the legislature as set forth in this title is clear and intelligible, and the objection on this point is without force.\nPlaintiffs in error further insist that the proof in each of these cases failed to sustain the allegations of the information ; that the information in each case charged the defendant with procuring a female inmate for a house of prostitution, while the proof showed that the defendants did not directly induce the girl in question to go into a house of prostitution but employed others to persuade her to do so. Under sections 274 and 275 of the Criminal Code (Hurd\u2019s Stat. 1909, p. 811,) an accessory before the fact may be indicted and punished as principal. Indeed, it is the ordinary practice to indict as principal an accessory before the fact. Although under the authorities in this State the pleader may, if he chooses, state the circumstances of the offense in an indictment against an accessory before the fact, yet the indictment must contain an allegation charging' the defendant as principal. (Fixmer v. People, 153 Ill. 123; Burnett v. People, 204 id. 208; People v. Lucas, 244 id. 603.) The informations properly charged the plaintiffs in error as principals and the proof sustained the charge.\nWhat we have just said disposes also of the argument of counsel that the proof shows that plaintiffs in error were guilty of another offense than that charged in the information,\u2014that is, that they agreed to give money to others to procure the female in question to come into the State for the purpose of prostitution. The word \u201cprocure\u201d means to begin proceeding's; to cause a thing to be done. There can be no question, under the proof, that the plaintiffs in error. caused others to bring the female, Sarah Joseph, into this State for the purpose of prostitution. The evidence showed, practically without contradiction, that both plaintiffs in error were actively urging, advising and assisting in having the girl brought to their house of prostitution as an inmate.\nWe find no error in either record. The judgment of the municipal court in each case, therefore, will be affirmed.\nJudgment affirmed.", "type": "majority", "author": "Mr. Justice Carter" } ], "attorneys": [ "Charles E. Erbstein, and Louis Greenberg, for plaintiff in. error.", "W. H. Stead, Attorney General, John E. W. Way-man, State\u2019s Attorney, and Roy Wright, (Charles V. Barrett, of counsel,) for the People." ], "corrections": "", "head_matter": "The People of the State of Illinois, Defendant in Error, vs. Julia VanBever et al. Plaintiffs in Error.\nOpinion filed December 21, 1910\nRehearing denied Feb. 8, 1911.\n1. - Constitutional law\u2014what is not a violation of provision against amending law by reference to its title. Section 13 of \"article 4 of the constitution, providing that \u201cno law shall be revived or amended by reference to its title only,\u201d etc., was not intended to forbid every enactment which in any degree, however remotely, might affect prior laws, and if an act is complete in- itself and intelligible, showing, by itself, just what it is, it will not be held to contravene such constitutional provision.\n2. Same\u2014-paragraphs 168a and 168b of Criminal Code do not violate section 13 of article 4 of constitution. Paragraphs i68\u00ab and 168& of the Criminal Code, (Hurd\u2019s Stat. 1909, p. 785,) being sections 2 and 3 of the act of 1879, (Laws of 1879, p. 117,) relating to imprisonment in the workhouse and working out a fine, do not repeal, even by implication, those sections of the Criminal Code which provide for the punishment of misdemeanors, and are not in violation of section 13 of article 4 of the constitution, relating to the amendment of laws.\n3. Same\u2014act of 1879 not unconstitutional because, by its title, it purports to amend the Criminal Code. The act of 1879, (Laws of 1879, p. 117,) \u201cto amend the Criminal Code,\u201d etc., is not unconstitutional upon the ground that there is, in fact, no statute in Illinois designated as the \u201cCriminal Code,\u201d as the statute relating to criminal jurisprudence has been known for many years as the Criminal Code, and the intention of the legislature in using such words is clear and intelligible. - '\n4. Criminal law\u2014effect of act of 1879 relating to workhouses. Sections 2 and 3 of the act of 1879, being paragraphs i68\u00ab and 168& of the Criminal Code, (Hurd\u2019s Stat. 1909, p. 785,) do no more than modify those provisions of the Criminal Code which provide for the punishment of misdemeanors, by making it discretionary with the trial court, instead of committing the offender to jail, to sentence him to labor in the workhouse or on the streets.\n5. Same\u2014accessory before the fact may be indicted and punished as a principal. Under paragraphs 274 and 275 of the Criminal Code (Hurd\u2019s Stat. 1909, p. 811,) an accessory before the fact may be indicted and punished as a principal, and while the pleader may, if he chooses, state the circumstances of the offense in an indictment against an accessory before the fact, yet the indictment must contain an allegation charging such person as a principal.\n6. Pandering\u2014one who employs another to procure a female for the purpose of prostitution is guilty as a principal. One who employs and agrees to pay another person to procure a female to enter a house of prostitution or to come into this State for the purpose of prostitution is guilty as a principal under the Pandering act of 1909, (Laws of 1909, p.\" 180,) and may be indicted and punished as such.\nWrit or Error to the Municipal Court of Chicago; the Hon. Edwin K. Walker, Judge, presiding.\nCharles E. Erbstein, and Louis Greenberg, for plaintiff in. error.\nW. H. Stead, Attorney General, John E. W. Way-man, State\u2019s Attorney, and Roy Wright, (Charles V. Barrett, of counsel,) for the People." }, "file_name": "0136-01", "first_page_order": 136, "last_page_order": 141 }