UNITED STATES v. HINSON et ux.

UNITED STATES v. HINSON et ux. (District Court, S. D. Florida. January 13, 1925.) No. 2176. Husband and wife c§=> 107 — Coverture not ground for plea in abatement to criminal prosecution. A plea of coverture does not state cause of abatement of a prosecution against a wife for an offense against the United States charged to have been committed jointly by husband and wife. - Criminal prosecution by the United States against Joe Hinson and Luella Hin-son. On demurrer to plea in abatement. Demurrer sustained. W. M. Gober, U. S. Atty., of Tampa, Fla., and Maynard Ramsey, Asst. U. S. Atty., of Jacksonville, Fla. A. G. Hartridge and Richard Stillman, both of Jacksonville, Fla., for defendants. [MAJORITY — CALL, District Judge.] CALL, District Judge. At common law it is probable that the plea of coverture would state a cause of abatement, on account of the unity of husband and wife; the husband being the responsible party for joint crimes committed by husband and wife. And this rule would prevail in states adopting the common law and having made no change by statute. As I understand it, there is no common law prevailing in the United States, and since the adoption of the Nineteenth Amendment to the Constitution, it seems to me that the rule of common law has no application to crimes committed against the United States. The demurrer to the said plea will therefore be sustained.