City of Nauvoo/City charter/habeas corpus
From FAIRMormon
< City of Nauvoo | City charter(Redirected from Nauvoo city charter/habeas corpus)
|
Habeas corpus:
This writ is a judicial order “to a prison official ordering that an inmate be brought to the court so it can be determined whether or not that person is imprisoned lawfully and whether or not he should be released from custody.”[1]
Thus, one obtains such a writ so that a local judge can rule on whether or not an arrest warrant is legal or appropriate. The purpose of habeas corpus is to prevent prisoners from being transported long distances on insufficient charges, or held for long periods without trial.
Summary conclusion
Concluded one author at a FAIR conference:
- Joseph Smith was persecuted in courts of law as much as anyone I know. But he was never found guilty of any crime, and his name cannot be tarnished in that way.[2]
Joseph Smith legal issues
- D&C 98 teaches Saints to disobey secular law?—
According to historian D. Michael Quinn, Joseph received a revelation which "established the primacy of religious law over secular law...and not only authorized but commanded Mormons to disobey secular law and civil leaders not conforming to the commandments of God." This interpretation, however, is Quinn's own. The revelation is not telling the Saints to "disobey secular law and civil leaders"—it is telling them to "befriend" the law of the land, and seek to support "honest men and wise men" as leaders. (Link) - Joseph Smith and legal trials (Link)
- 1826 trial for "glasslooking"—Joseph Smith was brought to trial in 1826 for "glasslooking." Didn't Hugh Nibley claim that if this trial record existed that it would be "the most damning evidence in existence against Joseph Smith?" (Link)
- Was Joseph found guilty of being a "con man"?—Critics claim that Joseph was a "con man," and that he was found guilty of being such in a court of law. This refers to the 1826 trial. (Link)
- 1826 trial for "glasslooking"—Joseph Smith was brought to trial in 1826 for "glasslooking." Didn't Hugh Nibley claim that if this trial record existed that it would be "the most damning evidence in existence against Joseph Smith?" (Link)
- Kirtland Safety Society—
Critics attack Joseph Smith over the Kirtland Safety Society (KSS) on multiple grounds: 1) they claim the KSS was a "wildcat bank," 2) they claim that the bank was illegal, and that the Church broke the law by founding it, 3) they claim it was a money-making scheme for Joseph, and 4) they claim its failure proves Joseph was not a prophet (Link)- False charges against Warren Parrish?—Critics claim that Joseph Smith lied about Warren Parrish, falsely charging him with financial misconduct, and trying to shift the blame. An examination of surviving Kirtland Safety Society notes provides concrete evidence for Joseph's charge. (Link)
- Money boxes filled with sand?—Critics claim that Joseph Smith misled investors in the Kirtland Safety Society by collecting boxes full of sand with money placed on top, in order to make it appear that the bank had more hard money than it did. (Link)
- Notes from KSS to be "as good as gold"?—Critics make light of Joseph Smith's claim that Kirtland Safety Society notes would be "as good as gold." (Link)
- Nauvoo city charter—
What was unique about the city of Nauvoo's charter? Why did it anger some non-Mormons? (Link)- Habeas corpus—This writ is a judicial order “to a prison official ordering that an inmate be brought to the court so it can be determined whether or not that person is imprisoned lawfully and whether or not he should be released from custody.” Thus, one obtains such a writ so that a local judge can rule on whether or not an arrest warrant is legal or appropriate. The purpose of habeas corpus is to prevent prisoners from being transported long distances on insufficient charges, or held for long periods without trial. (Link)
- Usurpation of power?—Critics charge that the Mormon's use of the Nauvoo city charter to invalidate writs from other jurisdictions was improper. Carlin, the governor of Illinois at the time, characterized it as an "extraordinary assumption of power….most absurd and ridiculous…[a] gross usurpation of power that cannot be tolerated." (Link)
- Nauvoo Expositor—
Did Joseph violate the law by ordering the Nauvoo Expositor destroyed? Critics claim that Joseph "could not allow the Expositor to publish the secret international negotiations masterminded by Mormonism’s earthly king." (Link)- Nauvoo Expositor Full Text—The Nauvoo Expositor had a single issue published. The events surrounding its publication lead to the martyrdom. The full text is provided for study. (Link)
