EX PARTE MILLIGAN

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Case Basics
Petitioner 
Ex parte Milligan
Decided By 
Chase Court (1865-1867)
Opinion 
71 U.S. 2 (1866)
Argued 
Monday, March 5, 1866
Decided 
Tuesday, April 3, 1866
Term:
Location: Military Commission at United States Court House in Indianapolis
Facts of the Case 

Lambden P. Milligan was sentenced to death by a military commission in Indiana during the Civil War; he had engaged in acts of disloyalty. Milligan sought release through habeas corpus from a federal court.

Question 

Does a civil court have jurisdiction over a military tribunal?

Conclusion 
Decision: 9 votes for Milligan, 0 vote(s) against
Legal provision: US Const. Amend 5

Davis, speaking for the Court, held that trials of civilians by presidentially created military commissions are unconstitutional. Martial law cannot exist where the civil courts are operating.

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EX PARTE MILLIGAN. The Oyez Project at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law. 22 January 2012. <http://www.oyez.org/cases/1851-1900/1865/1865_0/>.
EX PARTE MILLIGAN, The Oyez Project at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law, http://www.oyez.org/cases/1851-1900/1865/1865_0/ (last visited January 22, 2012).
"EX PARTE MILLIGAN," The Oyez Project at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law, accessed January 22, 2012, http://www.oyez.org/cases/1851-1900/1865/1865_0/.