AUSTIN 11. TEXAS 

November 22, 1961 

Honorable Ed H. McLaran 

County Attorney 

Madison County 

Madisonville, Texas 

Opinion No. WW-1197 

Re: Construction of 

Article 2109 V.C.S. 

relative to appointment of jury commissionDear Mr. McLaran; ers 

You have requested the opinion of the Attorney 

General construing Article 2109, Vernon's Civil 

Statutes which reads as follows, excluding the oath 

provision: 

"The county court shall, at its first term 

after the last day of December and the last 

day of June of each year, appoint three jury 

commissioners for said court, having the 

same qualifications as jury commissioners for 

the district court. The same proceedings 

shall be had in the county court by its 

officers and said commissioners to procure 

jurors as are required by this title for 

similar proceedings in the district court, 

except as modified by the provisions of 

this article. 

11 . . . . 

"2. To select jurors.--Said commissioners 

shall select jurors for all the terms of the 

county court to be held within six months 

after the adjournment of the first week of 

said court after the dates first named. The 

county judge shall designate the number of 

jurors to be so selected for each term and 

week." 

Your problem is to determine for which terms a 

given set of jury commissioners is to choose jury 

panels, and you suggest that in a county which has 

four terms in a year, namely January, April, July and 

October terms, that the commissioners chosen in 

January are to select jury panels for April and July 

terms and the July commissioners are to select panels 

for October and January terms. 

It is clear that a given set of commissioners 
Honorable Ed H. McLaran, page 2 (W-1197 

must choose jurors for a six-month period 

two sets of commissioners are provided. 

since only 

The Statute provides for the selection of jury 

panels "for all the terms of county court to be held 

within six months after the adjournment of the first 

week" of the County Court. 

interpretations. 

This is subject to two 

The first view is as you suggest, namely that 

panels be drawn for the terms beginning within six 

months after the adjournment of the first week of 

the County Court. 

The second view is .that the words are to be. 

taken as literally as possible and that the panels are 

to be chosen beginning with the second week of the 

term current with the instant jury commissioners. 

If the latter were the law, it would be impossible to have a jury trial during the first week of 

the County Court term . Such a situation would 

be of doubtful constitutionality because~of the right 

to speedy trial and the right to trial by jury. The 

early weeks of the County Court term would be attended by difficulties in securing jurors because of the' 

short time between selection and summoning of jurors. 

In addition, the Statute does not require that the 

jury commissioners be appointed the first week of 

the term, thus there could be a considerable lag in 

the business of the Court pending the selection of 

the jury. 

It follows that the first view must be the law 

since the second view must be rejected. 

We do not think a jury panel is subject to 

quashing because of minute variations in the terms 

for which such panel was chosen in the absence of a 

showing that there was willful disregard of the 

requirement that jurorsbe chosen by commissioners, 

Butlerv. State 108 Tex. Grim. 177, 299 SW 420 

(1927). 

SUMMARY 

Where the County Court.has four terms 

a year, January, April, July and October; 

Article 2lOg V.C.S. requires the appointment of jury commissioners during the 
. 

Honorable Ed H, McLaran, page 3 

January and Julytermsto 

jury panels for the April 

terms and the October and 

terns respectively, 

Yours 

NW-11971 

choose 

and July 

Januam 

very truly., 

WILL WILSON 

Attorney General of Texas 

-Cohn E. Leonars " 

Assistant Attorney 

General 

JEL:bjh 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE: 

W. V. Geppert, Chairman 

Pat Bailey 

William Colburn 

Howard Mays 

Dudley MC Calla 

REVIEWED FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 

BY: 

Houghton Brownlee, Jr.