William Cranch
Encyclopedia
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
judge
Judge
A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as part of a panel of judges. The powers, functions, method of appointment, discipline, and training of judges vary widely across different jurisdictions. The judge is supposed to conduct the trial impartially and in an open...
and the second reporter of decisions
Supreme Court of the United States Reporter of Decisions
The Reporter of Decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States is the official charged with editing and publishing the Court's opinions both when announced and when they are published in permanent bound volumes of the United States Reports. The Reporter of Decisions is responsible for only...
of the Supreme Court of the United States
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
.
Early life
Born in Weymouth, MassachusettsWeymouth, Massachusetts
The Town of Weymouth is a city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2010 census, Weymouth had a total population of 53,743. Despite its city status, it is formally known as the Town of Weymouth...
, he was a nephew of Abigail Adams
Abigail Adams
Abigail Adams was the wife of John Adams, who was the second President of the United States, and the mother of John Quincy Adams, the sixth...
. His father was Richard Cranch, an English-born clockmaker
Clockmaker
A clockmaker is an artisan who makes and repairs clocks. Since almost all clocks are now factory-made, most modern clockmakers only repair clocks. Modern clockmakers may be employed by jewellers, antique shops, and places devoted strictly to repairing clocks and watches...
and Massachusetts legislator and his mother was Mary Smith, the elder sister of Abigail Smith Adams, wife of John Adams
John Adams
John Adams was an American lawyer, statesman, diplomat and political theorist. A leading champion of independence in 1776, he was the second President of the United States...
, the second President of the United States. William Cranch graduated from Harvard College
Harvard College
Harvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of two schools within Harvard University granting undergraduate degrees...
with honors in 1787 and was admitted to the Massachusetts bar in 1790. From 1791 to 1800, Cranch worked as a legal agent for a real estate firm in Washington.
Circuit Judge and Supreme Court Reporter
When land speculation bankrupted him, his uncle John AdamsJohn Adams
John Adams was an American lawyer, statesman, diplomat and political theorist. A leading champion of independence in 1776, he was the second President of the United States...
rescued him by appointing him to be Inspector of Public Buildings in 1800 and then in 1801 to be judge of the District of Columbia circuit court
United States circuit court
The United States circuit courts were the original intermediate level courts of the United States federal court system. They were established by the Judiciary Act of 1789. They had trial court jurisdiction over civil suits of diversity jurisdiction and major federal crimes. They also had appellate...
, where he served until his death. Cranch, like William Marbury
William Marbury
William Marbury was one of the famous "Midnight Judges". Due to President John Adams's work in the night before he was to leave office, Marbury was to be appointed a Justice of the Peace in the District of Columbia. He was appointed there to give the Federalists a stronghold in the judicial...
, was one of the "Midnight Judges
Midnight Judges
The Midnight Judges Act represented an effort to solve an issue in the U.S. Supreme Court during the early 19th century. There was concern, beginning in 1789, about the system that required the justices of the Supreme Court to “ride circuit” and reiterate decisions made in the appellate level...
" appointed under the Judiciary Act of 1801 that led to the Supreme Court case Marbury v. Madison
Marbury v. Madison
Marbury v. Madison, is a landmark case in United States law and in the history of law worldwide. It formed the basis for the exercise of judicial review in the United States under Article III of the Constitution. It was also the first time in Western history a court invalidated a law by declaring...
. The nomination was put forth on February 28, 1801, and Cranch was confirmed by the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
on March 3, 1801, receiving his commission the same day.
On February 21, 1806, President Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
elevated Cranch to Chief Judge, that seat having been vacated by William Kilty
William Kilty
William Kilty was a United States federal judge.Born in London, England, Kilty read law at the College of St. Omer to enter the bar. He also studied medicine under Edward Johnson, of Annapolis. In the American Revolutionary War, Kilty served in the 4th Maryland Regiment as a Surgeon's Mate from...
. Cranch's elevation was confirmed by the United States Senate on February 24, 1806. In this role he swore in two Presidents of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
, John Tyler
John Tyler
John Tyler was the tenth President of the United States . A native of Virginia, Tyler served as a state legislator, governor, U.S. representative, and U.S. senator before being elected Vice President . He was the first to succeed to the office of President following the death of a predecessor...
and Millard Fillmore
Millard Fillmore
Millard Fillmore was the 13th President of the United States and the last member of the Whig Party to hold the office of president...
, each of whom assumed the presidency upon the death of his predecessor.
While serving as a Circuit judge, Cranch also served as the second reporter of the Supreme Court from 1801 to 1815. At the time, the reporter was an unofficial post and he used his own funds to produce the reports. Cranch took on the responsibility because of his respect for precedent. He was slow in producing his reports of cases and their accuracy was questioned.
During his tenure on the court, Cranch published a biography about Adams.
Societies
During the 1820s, Cranch was a member of the prestigious society, Columbian Institute for the Promotion of Arts and SciencesColumbian Institute for the Promotion of Arts and Sciences
The Columbian Institute for the Promotion of Arts and Sciences was a literary and science institution in Washington, D.C., founded by Dr. Edward Cutbush , a naval surgeon...
, who counted among their members former presidents Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson was the seventh President of the United States . Based in frontier Tennessee, Jackson was a politician and army general who defeated the Creek Indians at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend , and the British at the Battle of New Orleans...
and John Quincy Adams
John Quincy Adams
John Quincy Adams was the sixth President of the United States . He served as an American diplomat, Senator, and Congressional representative. He was a member of the Federalist, Democratic-Republican, National Republican, and later Anti-Masonic and Whig parties. Adams was the son of former...
and many prominent men of the day, including well-known representatives of the military, government service, medical and other professions.
Notable decisions
Cranch is also known for several decisions that set a precedent for jury nullificationJury nullification
Jury nullification occurs in a trial when a jury reaches a verdict contrary to the judge's instructions as to the law.A jury verdict contrary to the letter of the law pertains only to the particular case before it; however, if a pattern of acquittals develops in response to repeated attempts to...
(allowing a jury to nullify an "unjust" law and refuse to convict), including:
- United States v. FenwickUnited States v. FenwickUnited States v. Fenwick, 13,387 , was a decision of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia that was handed down April 7, 1836...
, 25 F. Cas. 1062; 4 Cranch C.C. 675Case citationCase citation is the system used in many countries to identify the decisions in past court cases, either in special series of books called reporters or law reports, or in a 'neutral' form which will identify a decision wherever it was reported...
(1836): Right to make legal argument to jury. - Stettinius v. United StatesStettinius v. United StatesStettinius v. United States, 13,387 , was a decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit that was handed down November, 1839...
, 22 F. Cas. 1322; 5 Cranch C.C. 573Case citationCase citation is the system used in many countries to identify the decisions in past court cases, either in special series of books called reporters or law reports, or in a 'neutral' form which will identify a decision wherever it was reported...
(1839): Right to make legal argument to jury.
Cranch also handed down important precedent in a variety of topics, for example in a criminal law case regarding the mens rea
Mens rea
Mens rea is Latin for "guilty mind". In criminal law, it is viewed as one of the necessary elements of a crime. The standard common law test of criminal liability is usually expressed in the Latin phrase, actus non facit reum nisi mens sit rea, which means "the act does not make a person guilty...
of intoxication, Cranch wrote:
Cranch died in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, aged 86.
Family
William Cranch's daughter Abigail Adams Cranch married William Greenleaf EliotWilliam Greenleaf Eliot
William Greenleaf Eliot was an American educator, Unitarian minister, and civic leader in Missouri. He is most notable for founding Washington University in St. Louis, but also contributed to the founding of numerous other civic institutions, such as the St...
. William Eliot and Abigail Cranch were the parents of Henry Ware Eliot
Henry Ware Eliot
Henry Ware Eliot was an American industrialist and philanthropist who lived in St. Louis, Missouri.-Early life and education:...
and the grandparents of T. S. Eliot
T. S. Eliot
Thomas Stearns "T. S." Eliot OM was a playwright, literary critic, and arguably the most important English-language poet of the 20th century. Although he was born an American he moved to the United Kingdom in 1914 and was naturalised as a British subject in 1927 at age 39.The poem that made his...
.