Frieman's defense states that the wording of the restrictive highway signage refers specifically to "persons"; therefore, case law is applicable, going back to U.S. legal decisions from the 19th century, including Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad and to the more widely known 2010 "corporate personhood" case titled Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission.
Using the Jurisdiction and Removal Act of 1875, a law created so black litigants could bypass hostile southern state courts if they were denied justice, Southern Pacific was able to appeal all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.
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A unanimous decision, written by Justice Harlan, ruled on the matter of fences, holding that the state of California illegally included the fences running beside the tracks in its assessment of the total value of the railroad's property.
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