United States v. Harris

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{{about|the 1883 U.S. Supreme Court case about the Equal Protection clause|the 1991 7th Circuit case|United States v. Harris (1991){{!}}United States v. Harris (1991)}}

{{distinguish|text=1954 case about lobbying regulation, United States v. Harriss}}

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{{Infobox SCOTUS case

| Litigants = United States v. Harris

| ArgueDate =

| ArgueYear =

| DecideDate = January 22

| DecideYear = 1883

| FullName = United States v. R. G. Harris, et al.

| USVol = 106

| USPage = 629

| ParallelCitations = 1 S. Ct. 601; 27 L. Ed. 290; 1882 U.S. LEXIS 1595

| Prior =

| Subsequent =

| Holding = Local governments, not the federal government, have the power to penalize crimes such as assault and murder.

| Majority = Woods

| JoinMajority = Waite, Miller, Field, Bradley, Mathews, Gray, Blatchford

| Concurrence =

| JoinConcurrence =

| Concurrence2 =

| JoinConcurrence2 =

| Concurrence/Dissent =

| JoinConcurrence/Dissent =

| Dissent = Harlan (on jurisdiction alone)

| JoinDissent =

| Dissent2 =

| JoinDissent2 =

| LawsApplied = U.S. Const. Amend. XIV
Section 2 of the Third Enforcement Act

}}

{{wikisource|United States v. Harris (106 U.S. 629)|United States v. Harris}}

United States v. Harris, 106 U.S. 629 (1883), or the Ku Klux Case, was a case in which the US Supreme Court held that it was unconstitutional for the federal government to penalize crimes such as assault and murder in most circumstances.{{ussc|name=United States v. Harris|106|629|1883}}. The Court declared that only state governments have the power to penalize those crimes.

In the specific case, four men were removed from a Crockett County, Tennessee, jail by a group led by Sheriff R. G. Harris and 19 others. The four men were beaten, and one was killed. A deputy sheriff tried to prevent the act but failed.

Section 2 of the Force Act of 1871 was declared unconstitutional on the theory that an Act to enforce the Equal Protection Clause applied only to state actions, not individuals' actions.