United States Supreme Court Cases & Opinions

U.S. Supreme Court

Harding v. Illinois, 196 U.S. 78 (1904)

Harding v. Illinois

No. 61

Submitted November 10, 1904

Decided December 19, 1904

196 U.S. 78

Syllabus

This Court has no general power to review or correct the decisions of the highest state court, and in cases of this kind, exercises a statutory jurisdiction to protect alleged violations, in state decisions, of certain rights arising under federal authority, and if the question is not properly reserved in the state court, the deficiency cannot be supplied in either the petition for rehearing after judgment or the assignment of errors in this Court, or by the certification of the briefs which are not a part of the record by the clerk of the state supreme court.

This Court will not reverse the judgment of a state court holding an alleged federal constitutional objection waived where the record discloses that no authority was cited or argument advanced in its support and it is clear that the decision was based upon other than federal grounds and the constitutional question was not decided.

The facts are stated in the opinion.

Page 196 U. S. 82