Indiana Law Review
Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law (IU McKinney) is the law school of Indiana University Indianapolis, a public research university in Indianapolis, Indiana. The school has been based in Lawrence W. Inlow Hall in Indianapolis ...
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, p ...
politician
A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...
,
lawyer
A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters.
The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...
, and
judge
A judge is a person who wiktionary:preside, presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a judicial panel. In an adversarial system, the judge hears all the witnesses and any other Evidence (law), evidence presented by the barris ...
who served as a Justice on the
Indiana Supreme Court
The Indiana Supreme Court, established by Article 7 of the Indiana Constitution, is the highest judicial authority in the state of Indiana. Located in Indianapolis, the Court's chambers are in the north wing of the Indiana Statehouse.
In Dec ...
from January 16, 1858 to January 3, 1865 and then again from January 3, 1871 to December 2, 1882. Worden also served briefly as Mayor of
Fort Wayne
Fort Wayne is a city in Allen County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. Located in northeastern Indiana, the city is west of the Ohio border and south of the Michigan border. The city's population was 263,886 at the 2020 United S ...
Massachusetts
Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...
, to John and Jane Worden. John Worden died when James was eight. After his death, the Wordens moved to become farmers in rural Portage County,
Ohio
Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...
, where James Worden attended public school.
Worden began studying law in 1838, working in the office of Thomas T. Straight, a prominent lawyer in
Cincinnati
Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...
. He was admitted to the bar in
Lancaster
Lancaster may refer to:
Lands and titles
*The County Palatine of Lancaster, a synonym for Lancashire
*Duchy of Lancaster, one of only two British royal duchies
*Duke of Lancaster
*Earl of Lancaster
*House of Lancaster, a British royal dynasty
...
in 1841. He opened a law office in
Tiffin
Tiffin is a South Asian English word for a type of meal. It refers to a light breakfast or a light tea-time meal at about 3 p.m., consisting of typical tea-time foods. In certain parts of India, it can also refer to the midday luncheon or ...
Indiana
Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...
in 1844. In 1845, he moved to
Albion, Indiana
Albion is a town in Albion and Jefferson townships, Noble County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 2,349 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of Noble County.
History
Albion was laid out in 1846. The town was named ...
. In 1846, Worden moved to
Fort Wayne, Indiana
Fort Wayne is a city in Allen County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. Located in northeastern Indiana, the city is west of the Ohio border and south of the Michigan border. The city's population was 263,886 at the 2020 census ...
, after taking a liking to the city while visiting to assist in the prosecution of a local murder trial. Worden would live in Fort Wayne for the rest of his life.
Public service
In 1851, Worden became the
prosecuting attorney
A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the adversarial system, which is adopted in common law, or inquisitorial system, which is adopted in civil law. The prosecution is the legal party responsible ...
for the 10th Indiana
Circuit Court
Circuit courts are court systems in several common law jurisdictions. It may refer to:
* Courts that literally sit 'on circuit', i.e., judges move around a region or country to different towns or cities where they will hear cases;
* Courts that s ...
(which encompassed
Allen Allen, Allen's or Allens may refer to:
Buildings
* Allen Arena, an indoor arena at Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tennessee
* Allen Center, a skyscraper complex in downtown Houston, Texas
* Allen Fieldhouse, an indoor sports arena on the Univ ...
,
Adams
Adams may refer to:
* For persons, see Adams (surname)
Places United States
*Adams, California
*Adams, California, former name of Corte Madera, California
* Adams, Decatur County, Indiana
*Adams, Kentucky
*Adams, Massachusetts, a New England to ...
Huntington
Huntington may refer to:
Places
Canada
* Huntington, Nova Scotia
New Zealand
* Huntington, New Zealand a suburb in Hamilton, New Zealand
United Kingdom
* Huntington, Cheshire, England
* Huntington, East Lothian, Scotland
* Huntingto ...
Noble
A noble is a member of the nobility.
Noble may also refer to:
Places Antarctica
* Noble Glacier, King George Island
* Noble Nunatak, Marie Byrd Land
* Noble Peak, Wiencke Island
* Noble Rocks, Graham Land
Australia
* Noble Island, Gr ...
,
Steuben Steuben or Von Steuben most commonly refers to Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben (1730–1794), Prussian-American military officer, or to a number of things named for him in the United States. It may also refer to:
Places
*Steuben Township, Marshall C ...
,
LaGrange
Joseph-Louis Lagrange (born Giuseppe Luigi LagrangiaWabash, Elkhart, and Kosciusko counties). He later appointed a judge of the 10th Circuit Court in 1855 by
Governor
A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...
Joseph A. Wright. He was later elected to six-year term as a 10th Circuit Court judge, but ended up serving only until 1858, leaving the position when he was appointed to the Indiana Supreme Court.
Worden was appointed to the Supreme Court by Democratic governor Ashbel P. Willard to replace the retiring Justice William Z. Stuart. Worden's appointment followed considerable controversy over Stuart's departure. Following Stuart's announcement that he planned to resign from the court, an election was held to fill his position in 1857. Republican candidate Horace P. Biddle won the election, but Governor Willard claimed that, since Stuart's seat on the court was not vacant at the time the election took place (Stuart announced his resignation in 1857, but did not actually leave the court until January 1858), Biddle's election was illegitimate. Blocked from what he saw as his rightful seat on the bench, Biddle sued the Governor. The Supreme Court (which, at that time, had a majority of Democratic Justices who were political allies of Willard) sided with the governor in the case of ''Biddle v. Willard''. Worden, a Democrat, was thereafter assigned to the position on the Supreme Court that Biddle had been denied by the ruling.
Serving on the court during the
Civil War
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
, Worden and his fellow justices dealt with many cases relating to imposition of
martial law
Martial law is the replacement of civilian government by military rule and the suspension of civilian legal processes for military powers. Martial law can continue for a specified amount of time, or indefinitely, and standard civil liberties ...
and the suspension of the writ of habeas corpus. Worden was part of a majority coalition on the court, led by Justice Samuel E. Perkins that opposed and challenged these measures. In ''Skeen v. Monkeimer'', the court ruled that a man who had been accused of stealing a horse that belonged to the U.S. government had been arrested and jailed wrongly, as there was no evidence of his having committed this crime. In ''Griffin v. Wilcox'', a case involving a saloon keeper who had been arrested and jailed after violating an order from the military banning the sale of alcohol to enlistees, the court sided with the saloon keeper and ruled that he had broken no civil law. Worden and his fellow Justices' challenges to these measure of martial law that encroached on
civil liberties
Civil liberties are guarantees and freedoms that governments commit not to abridge, either by constitution, legislation, or judicial interpretation, without due process. Though the scope of the term differs between countries, civil liberties of ...
were eventually vindicated by the landmark
U.S. Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...
ruling in ''
Ex parte Milligan
''Ex parte Milligan'', 71 U.S. (4 Wall.) 2 (1866), is a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court that ruled that the use of military tribunals to try civilians when civil courts are operating is unconstitutional. In this particular case, the ...
''.
Worden served on the court for seven years, leaving in 1865. He ran for re-election in 1864, but lost during the Republican landslide that forced his Democratic colleagues on the court out of office as well. Worden was succeeded to the bench by Justice James S. Frazer. After leaving the court, Worden was elected mayor of Fort Wayne in 1865, but resigned from the position after only a year to focus on the demands of his growing law practice.
Worden returned to the Supreme Court in 1871, elected to succeed Justice Frazer. Worden was re-elected in 1876. Worden's return to the Indiana Supreme Court in the 1870s corresponded with a long period of Democratic control over the court. During this time, the court became embroiled in controversy following its ruling in the case of ''State v. Swift'', when the Court invalidated the results of votes on seven new amendments to the state constitution. Critics attacked the court for the ruling, claiming that the decisions of Worden and his fellow Democratic Justices had been influenced by party politics. Worden left the court on December 10, 1882, resigning after being elected judge of the Allen County Superior Court. He was succeeded by Justice William H. Coombs.
Personal life and death
In 1845, while living in Columbia City, Worden met and married Anna Grable, daughter of the Whitley County
treasurer
A treasurer is a person responsible for the financial operations of a government, business, or other organization.
Government
The treasury of a country is the department responsible for the country's economy, finance and revenue. The treasure ...
. They had three sons. Their second son, Charles H. Worden, became President of the Hamilton National Bank of Fort Wayne, founded by
Allen Hamilton
Allen Hamilton (1798–1864) was a founding father of Fort Wayne in Allen County, Indiana.
Biography
Hamilton, an Irish emigrant, lived in Lawrenceburg in Dearborn County, Indiana, in 1820, when he married Emerine J. Holman, the daughter o ...