United States Supreme Court Cases & Opinions

U.S. Supreme Court

Nugent v. Arizona Improvement Co., 173 U.S. 338 (1899)

Nugent v. Arizona Improvement Company

No. 119

Argued and submitted January 10-11, 1899

Decided February 20, 1899

173 U.S. 338

Syllabus

Under the Act of March 8, 1895, of the Legislature of the Territory of Arizona, relating to convict labor and the leasing of the same, the board of control thereby created and given charge of all charitable, penal and reformatory institutions then existing, or which might thereafter be created in the territory, could not dispense with the bond required by the statute to be given by the person or persons leasing the labor of the convicts for the faithful performance of their contract, and no contract made by the board leasing the labor of the convicts could become binding upon the territory until a bond, such as the statute required, was executed by the lessee and approved by the board.

In this case, as it appears that no such bond was executed, the plaintiff was not in a position to ask relief by mandamus.

The case is stated in the opinion.