Pliny T. Merrick
| Pliny Merrick | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Associate Justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court | |
|
In office 1853–1864 |
|
| Appointed by | John H. Clifford |
| Preceded by | Margaret H. Marshall |
| Succeeded by | Theron Metcalf |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
August 2, 1794 Brookfield, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Died | January 31, 1867 (aged 72) Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Political party |
Anti-Masonic Party Whig Party |
| Spouse(s) | Rebecca Thomas Merrick |
| Parents | Pliny Merrick Ruth (Cutler) Merrick |
| Alma mater | Harvard Law School |
| Profession |
Attorney Politician |
Pliny T. Merrick (August 2, 1794 – January 31, 1867) was an American attorney and politician from Massachusetts. He served as an Associate Justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court.
Merrick was born in Brookfield, Massachusetts, the son of Honorable Pliny Merrick and Ruth (Cutler) Merrick. He graduated from Harvard Law School in 1814, and was admitted to the Worcester bar in 1817. He began the practice of law in Worcester, before moving to Charlton, Swansea and Taunton to practice law. In June, 1824, he returned to Worcester and served as Worcester County's district attorney from 1824-1843. In 1826, Merrick was elected a member of the American Antiquarian Society.
In 1844 he was Judge of the Municipal Court, and in 1843 he was named a judge of the Massachusetts Courts of Common Pleas. He resigned this appointment in 1848, and was reappointed in 1851.
From 1849-1850, he was senior defense counsel (co-counsel with Edward Dexter Sohier) in the trial of Harvard University Professor John White Webster, accused of murdering Harvard patron Dr. George Parkman. The prosecutors for the trial were John H. Clifford, then Massachusetts Attorney-General and the prosecutor of all capital murder cases, and George Bemis, Esq, and independent attorney. In 1853, Merrick was promoted to the bench of the Supreme Judicial Court by the same John H. Clifford, now Governor of Massachusetts. Merrick received the degree of LL.D. from Harvard in 1853. He served on the bench of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court until 1864.
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