Shirk v. People

Citations

• 121 Ill. 61
• 11 N.E. 888
• 1887 Ill. LEXIS 897

Syllabus

<p>1. Criminal law—making or passing fictitious bill, note, etc.—what character of instruments embraced therein—the statute construed. Section 107 of the Criminal Code, making it an offence to make, pass, utter or publish, with intent to defraud, any fictitious bill, note or check, purporting to be the bill, note, check, or other instrument, in writing for the payment of money or property, of some individual, when no such individual is in existence, knowing the same to be fictitious, embraces only such instruments in writing as contain an absolute or unconditional promise to pay money or property to the person therein named. It does not include contracts for the payment of money upon a sale of property upon its delivery at a certain time, or agreements to pay money upon a contingency that may never happen.</p> <p>2. Construction of statutes—of general words following an enumeration of particular cases. It is a well recognized rule in the construction of statutes, that if general words follow an enumeration of particular cases, such general words are held to apply only to cases of the same kind as those which are expressly mentioned.</p> <p>3. Same.—the rule as applied to section 107 of the Criminal Code. So, under a statute making it criminal to make or pass a fictitious bill, note or check, or other instrument in writing, for the payment of money, etc., the words, “other instrument in writing, ” will only include such instruments as are of the same class or kind as those enumerated, such as money, bonds, due bills, and other instruments in writing containing an absolute, unconditional promise or obligation to pay a sum of money or personal property.</p>