In re Neagle

The decision to view Neagle as acting in his capacity as federal marshall, rather than as a candidate for indictment for murder by a state grand jury, was an affirmation of the power of both the federal government and of its executive branch, in whose name Neagle was acting.

At first glance, the story of In re Neagle reads like a crime thriller. It has everything: romance, murderous revenge, and a heroic federal marshall who risks his own life to protect a Supreme Court justice. Significantly, however, the case established the power of the federal government to supersede a state's criminal court system and to grant immunity to government officials acting in service of their country.

The first chapter of the story is set in California in 1883. William Sharon, a wealthy citizen of Nevada, sued in federal court in California to nullify his marriage to Sarah Althea Hill. According to Sharon, the marriage contract in Hill's possession was a forgery, and he wanted it back.

Sharon died before the suit was over, but a decision in his favor was handed down after his death. Meanwhile, Hill had fallen in love with David S. Terry, a distinguished lawyer who had once been chief justice of the California Supreme Court.