Commonwealth v. Donahue
Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts
20 N.E. 171 (1889)
Relevant factsFree
Donahue (defendant) offered $20 to Mitchelman on the express condition it be accepted as full payment for clothes, but Mitchelman took the money and then insisted Donahue still owed an additional $1.55; when Mitchelman refused to return the $20 after Donahue demanded it back, Donahue attacked and choked him until Mitchelman surrendered his wallet, and the trial court instructed the jury that any force used by Donahue in that recovery attempt, however reasonable, still made him guilty of assault.
IssueFree
Whether, in Massachusetts, an individual may use reasonable force, but not the use of a dangerous weapon, in recovering property that is temporarily out of the individual's possession.