| United States v. Harris | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Decided January 22, 1883 | |
| Full case name | United States v. R. G. Harris, et al. |
| Citations | 106 U.S. 629 (more) 1 S. Ct. 601; 27 L. Ed. 290; 1882 U.S. LEXIS 1595 |
| Holding | |
| Local governments, not the federal government, have the power to penalize crimes such as assault and murder. | |
| Court membership | |
| |
| Case opinions | |
| Majority | Woods, joined by Waite, Miller, Field, Bradley, Mathews, Gray, Blatchford |
| Dissent | Harlan (on the question of jurisdiction; no opinion on the merits) |
| Laws applied | |
| U.S. Const. Amend. XIV Section 2 of the Third Enforcement Act | |
United States v. Harris, 106 U.S. 629 (1883), or the Ku Klux Case, was a case in which the US Supreme Court held that it was unconstitutional for the federal government to penalize crimes such as assault and murder in most circumstances.[1] The Court declared that only state governments have the power to penalize those crimes.
In the specific case, four men were removed from a Crockett County, Tennessee, jail by a group led by Sheriff R. G. Harris and 19 others. The four men were beaten, and one was killed. A deputy sheriff tried to prevent the act but failed.
Section 2 of the Force Act of 1871 was declared unconstitutional on the theory that an Act to enforce the Equal Protection Clause applied only to state actions, not individuals' actions.