bill of attainder
act of legislature that convicts a citizen of a crime without a trial (illegal according to the U.S. Constitution)
Bill of attainder
A bill of attainder (also known as an act or writ of attainder) is an act of
legislature declaring a person or group of persons guilty of some crime, and punishing them, without benefit of a trial. The
United States Constitution forbids both the federal and state governments to enact bills of attainder, in Article 1, Sections 9 and 10, respectively. It was considered an excess or abuse of the British monarchy and Parliament. They were abolished in the
United Kingdom in
1870.
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bill of attainder
Noun
1. a legislative act finding a person guilty of treason or felony without a trial; "bills of attainder are prohibited by the Constitution of the United States"
(hypernym) bill, measure
(classification) law, jurisprudence
Bill of Attainder
Bill Of Attainder
An act of the legislature by which one or more persons are declared to be attainted, and their property confiscated.
The Constitution of the United States declares that no state shall pass any bill of attainder.
During the revolutionary war bills of attainder and ex post facto acts of confiscation were passed to a wide extent. The evils resulting from them, in times of more cool reflection, were discovered to have far outweighed any imagined good.
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