Missouri v. Illinois
United States Supreme Court
200 U.S. 496 (1906)
Relevant factsFree
Under Illinois (defendant) statutory authority, Chicago discharged roughly 1,500 tons of sewage daily into a river eventually flowing into the Mississippi River near St. Louis, where many Missouri (plaintiff) towns drew their drinking and agricultural water. Missouri sued Illinois, alleging the sewage constituted a public nuisance causing typhoid fever, while Illinois countered that conditions had actually improved since the suit and that Missouri towns along the river discharged their own sewage as well.
IssueFree
Whether a public nuisance claim brought by one State against another State must be proved with clear evidence of a real and substantial danger.