Mich. Comp. Laws » Michigan Compiled Laws / Chapter 750 / Act 328 of 1931
Michigan Compiled Laws

Mich. Comp. Laws § 750.2 (2026)

Rule of construction.

✓ current as of July 2026
Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section MI-LEGlegislature.mi.gov JustiaChapter on Justia CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar

THE MICHIGAN PENAL CODE


Act 328 of 1931


750.2 Rule of construction.

Sec. 2.

    Rule of construction—The rule that a penal statute is to be strictly construed shall not apply to this act or any of the provisions thereof. All provisions of this act shall be construed according to the fair import of their terms, to promote justice and to effect the objects of the law.

History: 1931, Act 328, Eff. Sept. 18, 1931 ;-- CL 1948, 750.2

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 53 cases (3 in the last 5 years), 1968–2022 · leading case: People v. Ream
Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment
People v. Ream, 481 Mich. 223 (Mich. 2008). · cites it 4× “All provisions of this act shall be construed according to the fair import of their terms, to promote justice and to effect the objects of the law.”
People v. Quinn, 487 N.W.2d 194 (Mich. 1992). · cites it 6× “MCL 750.2; MSA 28.192 also provides: The rule that a penal statute is to be strictly construed shall not apply to this act or any of the provisions thereof.”
People v. Ambrose, 895 N.W.2d 198 (Mich. Ct. App. 2016). · cites it 2× “MCL 750.2; People v Flick, 487 Mich 1, 11 ; 790 NW2d 295 (2010).”
People v. Moore, 679 N.W.2d 41 (Mich. 2004). · cites it 2× “§ 750.2 provides that "The rule that a penal statute is to be strictly construed shall not apply to this act or any of the provisions thereof.”
People v. Flick; People v. Lazarus, 487 Mich. 1 (Mich. 2010). · cites it 2× “” MCL 750.2. The primary question in interpreting MCL 750.”
People v. Hill, 446 N.W.2d 140 (Mich. 1989). · cites it 2× “MCL 750.2; MSA 28.192 provides: The rule that a penal statute is to be strictly construed shall not apply to this act or any of the provisions thereof.”
People v. Peals, 720 N.W.2d 196 (Mich. 2006). · cites it 2× “2, which provides that the "rule that a penal statute is to be strictly construed shall not apply" to the provisions of the Michigan Penal Code, which "shall be construed according to the fair import of their terms, to promote justice and to effect the objects of the law.”
People v. King, 824 N.W.2d 258 (Mich. Ct. App. 2012). “We conclude this construction is the more reasonable one consistent with the Legislature’s mandate for construing the Penal Code.”
People v. Selwa, 543 N.W.2d 321 (Mich. Ct. App. 1995). · cites it 4× “The statutory rule of construction provided in the Penal Code, MCL 750.2; MSA 28.192, states as follows: The rule that a penal statute is to be strictly construed shall not apply to this act or any of the provisions thereof.”
Lickfeldt v. Dep't of Corr., 636 N.W.2d 272 (Mich. Ct. App. 2001). · cites it 2× “" MCL 750.2; see also People v. Armstrong, 212 Mich.”
People v. Thomas, 475 N.W.2d 288 (Mich. 1991). · cites it 2× “We find that defendant's alleged conduct exceeds the strictures of MCL 752.11; MSA 28.746(101). We are required to construe MCL 752.”
People v. Morris, 450 Mich. 316 (Mich. 1995). · cites it 2× “Acknowledging the penal nature of the statute before us, resort to the statutory rules of construction for the Penal Code, MCL 750.2; MSA 28.192, further counsels against the strict construction of the statute advocated by the defendants: The rule that a penal statute is to be…”
Show all 53 citing cases →
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.