Posse comitatus

Posse comitatus
Posse comitatus Pos"se com`i*ta"tus [L. posse to be able, to have power + LL. comitatus a county, from comes, comitis, a count. See {County}, and {Power}.] [1913 Webster] 1. (Law) The power of the county, or the citizens who may be summoned by the sheriff to assist the authorities in suppressing a riot, or executing any legal precept which is forcibly opposed. --Blackstone. [1913 Webster]

2. A collection of people; a throng; a rabble. [Colloq.] [1913 Webster]

Note: The word comitatus is often omitted, and posse alone used. ``A whole posse of enthusiasts.'' --Carlyle. [1913 Webster]

As if the passion that rules were the sheriff of the place, and came off with all the posse. --Locke. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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  • Posse Comitatus — Act Le Posse Comitatus Act est un principe politique selon lequel l Armée n a pas le droit d intervenir dans les affaires du gouvernement civil, dans celles de la Justice ou dans une procédure judiciaire. Sommaire 1 Histoire 2 Texte 3 Étymologie …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Posse comitatus — Act Le Posse Comitatus Act est un principe politique selon lequel l Armée n a pas le droit d intervenir dans les affaires du gouvernement civil, dans celles de la Justice ou dans une procédure judiciaire. Sommaire 1 Histoire 2 Texte 3 Étymologie …   Wikipédia en Français

  • posse comitatus — the power of the county . The sheriff was able to call together able bodied men to keep the peace. The institution transplanted to the USA, thence into ordinary parlance: round up a posse . Collins dictionary of law. W. J. Stewart. 2001. posse… …   Law dictionary

  • Posse comitatus — may refer to: Posse comitatus (common law), the authority of a law officer to conscript any able bodied males to assist him Posse Comitatus (organization), a loosely organized far right social movement that opposes the United States federal… …   Wikipedia

  • posse comitatus — /pos ee kom i tah teuhs, tay / 1. the body of persons that a peace officer of a county is empowered to call upon for assistance in preserving the peace, making arrests, and serving writs. 2. a body of persons so called into service. [1620 30; …   Universalium

  • posse comitatus — noun a) The able bodied men over 15 in a given county who can be summoned by the sheriff to help keep the peace, or arrest a felon; also a group of men so gathered. With him retired his ‘posse comitatus,’ / The attorney last …   Wiktionary

  • Posse comitatus (common law) — Posse comitatus refers to the common law authority wielded by the county sheriff to conscript any able bodied male eighteen or older to assist him in keeping the peace or to pursue and arrest a felon; compare hue and cry . It is the law… …   Wikipedia

  • Posse Comitatus (El ala oeste) — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Posse Comitatus Episodio de El Ala Oeste Título Posse Comitatus Episodio nº Temporada 3 Episodio 22 (66) Escrito por Aaron Sorkin …   Wikipedia Español

  • Posse Comitatus (organization) — For other uses, see Posse comitatus (disambiguation). The Posse Comitatus (from the Latin phrase meaning force of the county ) is a loosely organized far right social movement that opposes the United States federal government and believes in… …   Wikipedia

  • Posse Comitatus Act — The Posse Comitatus Act is a United States federal law (usc|18|1385) passed on June 16, 1878 after the end of Reconstruction. The Act prohibits most members of the federal uniformed services (the Army, Air Force, and State National Guard forces… …   Wikipedia

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