· BOBISON 1:. HARDY. i 49 I
Romson ·v.»HAnr>Y et al.
(Circuit Uourt, M D. Illinois. March 18, 1889.)
Rnuovar. on CAUSES—LOCAL Pamaonrcu-Arrrnavrr.
An amdavit for the removal of an action for false imprisonment from the
circuit court of Cook county, Ill., to the United States circuit court, alleged
that there had been four long jury trials involving these matters before
the circuit court of Cook county, a hearing before a justice of the peace,
the grand jury, the appellate court, and the directors of the board of trade ;
that the case involved the manner of doing business on the board of trade ;
that it had caused a great deal of talk around the court-house, and had be-
» come widely known ; that many warehousemen, elevator men, brokers, com·
mission men, and many thousands of people in and around Cook county had
discussed it. and that through the influence of plaintiff and his friends. de-
fendants believed a prejudice had grown up against them, who were non-res- ~
idents. Held that. as the Illinois statute provides that a cause may be re—
moved for local prejudice to some other court of competent jurisdiction in
some other convenient county, to which there is no valid objection, the ex-
’ istence ofprejudice was not sufficiently shown to justify removal to the fed-
eral court; the affidavit shows that the prejudice is confined mainly, if not
entirely, to Cook county. ,
if Application for Removal. .
M. S. Robinson, in pro. per.
Bibbee, Ahrem do Decker, for defendants. .
BLODGETT, J. This is an application to this court for an order for the
removal of this case from the circuit court of Cook county, in the state
of- Illinois, where the same was commenced, to this court, on the ground
of prejudice or local influence against the defendants,———the defendants
being citizens of the state of Indiana, and the plaintiff a citizen of the
state of Illinois. In Malone v. Railroad Co., 35 Fed. Rep. 625, it was
held by Mr. Justice HARLAN that the “circuit courts of the United States
cannot take cognizance of a case pending in a state court upon the ground
of prejudice or local influence against the defendant, a citizen of another
state, unless the circuit court in some proper way finds as a fact that such
prejudice or local influence exists ;" and the question is whether the de-
fendants have made such proof as brings the application for removalwithin
the principle laid down by the learned justice. The suit is an action
on the case for false imprisonment, the declaration charging, in sub-
stance, that the defendants wrongfully, maliciously, and without prob-
able cause, caused the arrest of the plaintiff under certain proceedings
instituted pursuant to the criminal laws of the state of Illinois. The
second section of the act of congress approved March 3, 1887, in regard
to the removal of cases from the state to the federal courts, as the same
is corrected and explained by the act of August 13, 1888, provides for
the removal of causes from the state courts to the circuit courts of the
United States, where the citizenship will allow the same, when it shall
be made to appear to said circuit court that from prejudice or local influ-
ence the defendant will not be able to obtain justice in such state court,
for in any other state court to which said defendant may, under the laws
v.38r*.no.2-4 _ "