Albert J. Rockwell and Another, Executors of David M. Hard, Deceased, Appellants v. William B. Nearing, Respondent

Summary

The New York Court of Appeals held that Chapter 459 of the Laws of 1862 is unconstitutional insofar as it permits the seizure and sale of private property for a private trespass without judicial process or notice, reversed the lower courts' decisions and affirmed the judgment in favor of the plaintiff. Justice Kagan, in a concurring opinion, argued that the statute may be valid under the police power but that the defendant's seizure was improper because the cow was not on the highway.