Miles v. Weston

Citations

• 60 Ill. 361

Syllabus

<p>1. New TRIAL — remittitur—conditional order. Where the court enters an order that unless plaintiff will remit a certain portion of his verdict within a specified time, a new trial will be granted, but the sum is not remitted until after the time has expired, when the court thereupon overruled the motion for a new trial and rendered judgment for the amount remaining after entering the remittitur: Held, that it was not error to overrule the motion after the time named had expired; that the order, as entered, was a conditional one granting a .new trial, and was under the control of the court during the term; that the mere overruling of the motion was not error, and the refusal to grant a new trial could not be questioned unless there were other grounds requiring it to have been allowed.</p> <p>2. Evidence — when inadmissible for want of proper averments. In an action for trespass and false imprisonment, where the court permitted evidence of the kind of food that was furnished to plaintiff, and the character of the prison in which he was confined, and the kind of treatment he received : Held,, it was error, as there were no facts specially averred authorizing them to be received, and as there was no such averment in the declaration, the admission of such evidence was calculated to surprise the defense, and it should have been rejected.</p> <p>3. Same — justification—mitigation. Where persons were seen in the night time for a considerable time, in the street near to a person’s house, apparently examining it, and would separate when persons passed, and then come together again, and the occupant of the premises found and brought to the place two policemen, who found a person there who, when accosted by them, stated he had been there two hours, and was thereupon arrested by the policemen: Held, that such facts should mitigate the damages, if not justify an imprisonment, although the person arrested had but come to the place at the time he was arrested.</p> <p>4. AnREST.