Relating to the body; bodily. Should be distinguished from corporeal, (g. v.) Corporal Imbecility. Physical inability to perform completely the act of sexual intercourse; not necessarily congenital, and not invariably a permanent and incurable impotence. Griffeth v. Griffeth. 162 111. 368, 44 N. E. 820; Ferris v. Ferris, 8 Conn. 168. Corporal oath. An oath, the external solemnity of which consists in laying one’s hand upon the Gospels while the oath is administered to him. More generally, a solemn oath. The terms “corporal oath” and “solemn oath” are. in Indiana, at least, used synonymously; and an oath taken with the uplifted hand may be properly described by either term. Jackson v. State, 1 Ind. 185; State v. Norris, 9 N. H. 102; Com. v. Jarboe. 89 Ky. 143, 12 S. W. 138. Corporal punishment. Physical punishment as distinguished from pecuniary punishment or a fine; any kind of punishment of or inflicted on the body, such as whipping or the pillory; the term may or may not include imprisonment according to the context. Ritchey v. People, 22 Colo. 251, 43 Pac. 1026; People v. Winchell, 7 Cow. (N. Y.) 525, note. Corporal touch.. Bodily touch; actual physical contact; manual apprehension.
Law Dictionary – Alternative Legal Definition
(A) An epithet for anything belonging to the body, as, corporal punishment, for punishment inflicted on the person of the criminal; corporal oath, which is an oath by the party who takes it being obliged to lay his hand on the Bible. (B) in the army. A non-commissioned officer in a battalion of infantry.