Jabez Gridley Sutherland (October 6, 1825 – November 20, 1902) was a politician and judge from the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

. Sutherland was born in

Van Buren, New York Van Buren is a town located in Onondaga County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 14,367. The town is named after then-Senator Martin Van Buren, who would later become the eighth president of the United States. ...

. He completed preparatory studies, studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1848. He commenced practice in

Saginaw, Michigan Saginaw () is a city in Saginaw County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. It had a population of 44,202 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located along the Saginaw River, Saginaw is adjacent to Saginaw Charter Township, ...

and served as prosecuting attorney of

Saginaw County Saginaw County () is a county located in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 190,124. The county seat is Saginaw. The county was created by September 10, 1822, and was fully organized on February 9, 1835. The ...

in 1848 and 1849. Sutherland was delegate to the State constitutional conventions in 1850 and 1867 and was a member of the

Michigan House of Representatives The Michigan House of Representatives is the lower house of the Michigan Legislature. There are 110 members, each of whom is elected from constituencies having approximately 77,000 to 91,000 residents, based on population figures from the 2020 ...

in 1853. He served as judge of the tenth circuit court of Michigan from 1863 to 1871, when he resigned to enter

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

. Sutherland was elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

from

Michigan's 6th congressional district Michigan's 6th congressional district is a United States congressional district in southeast Michigan. In 2022, the district was redrawn to be centered around Ann Arbor, Michigan, Ann Arbor and Washtenaw County, Michigan, Washtenaw County, as we ...

to the

42nd United States Congress The 42nd United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1871, ...

, serving from March 4, 1871, to March 3, 1873. He was not a candidate for re-nomination in 1872. Sutherland moved to

Salt Lake City, Utah Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Utah, most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, Utah, Salt ...

in 1873 and resumed the practice of law. He was also a member of the faculty of what is now the

University of Utah The University of Utah (the U, U of U, or simply Utah) is a public university, public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. It was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret (Book of Mormon), Deseret by the General A ...

in 1889 and president of the Territorial Bar Association in 1894 and 1895. In 1891 he published the influential legal treatise "Statutes and Statutory Construction," which remains an influential guide for how statutes should be interpreted. He moved to California in 1897. Sutherland died in

Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Anglo-Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland, Cali ...

and is interred in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Salt Lake City.

References

The Political Graveyard
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sutherland, Jabez Gridley 1825 births 1902 deaths People from Utah Territory Delegates to the 1850 Michigan Constitutional Convention Utah lawyers Michigan lawyers Democratic Party members of the Michigan House of Representatives Michigan state court judges University of Utah faculty Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Michigan People from Van Buren, New York 19th-century Michigan state court judges 19th-century members of the Michigan Legislature 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives