There is nothing so likely to produce peace as to be well prepared to meet an enemy.
---George Washington, letter to John Adams, October 12, 1781"I am reprinting this article concerning judicial notice because I was having problems
with the just how to apply the principle procedurally in court and when the material I
wanted to notice was even appropriate for the purpose. I found this article profoundly
informative and simply written in a way that I could understand. This knowledge can
help me to use this powerful defense (or offense) to possibly turn a disadvantage into a
crucial advantage. I want to thank Mr. Dorfman and Mr. Zogby for publishing this very
important piece." Danny Hammond
Volume 84, No. 2
Most people have never heard about the 1858 murder trial of William “Duff” Armstrong.
But everyone knows Armstrong’s defense attorney: Abraham Lincoln. Before his election
as the Sixteenth President of the United States, Lincoln had struggled to make a name for
himself. As he told the jury, Mrs. Armstrong, the widowed mother of his client – had shown
him kindness, providing shelter and clothes when he had none. Seeking to reciprocate the
generosity when her boy found himself in some trouble, Lincoln volunteered for her son’s
defense without a fee.
Armstrong was charged with murder in the first degree. Prosecutors alleged that on the
night of August 29, 1857, Armstrong beat James Metzger so severely that he died the next
day. A fellow by the name of Allen, witness for the prosecution, testified that he witnessed
the blow. How? By the light of the full-moon. It was 10 o’clock p.m., he testified, and the
moon shined brightly. The court adjourned for the day.
That night, Lincoln went to a corner drug store in Beardstown, Illinois, and purchased an
almanac. The next day, he was prepared. The moon on that night, the almanac showed,
did not shine until several hours after 10 p.m. The court took judicial notice. Shortly
