The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1871-05-11
PROTEST OF ATTORNEY GEN
ERAL MORRIS.
ATTORNEY GENERALS OFFIcE,l
jackson, May 3, 1871.

/ ATTORNEY tJENEkAL5 OfI1SEyf
Jackson, May 3, ISL
Hox. JOHN WATTS, Senator from Jasper CO..
Sfr-In behalf Of the Constitution of this
| State. which members Of the Legislature
and all other officers of the State are sworn
| to support; in behalf of public and private
| Justice: and in behalf of the dignity aQd
character of the State itself, venture, with
| great respect, 10 offer this my earnest pro-
test against the Senate proceeding, as Is pro-
posed, by a resolution introduced by you
! and carried to make a preliminary investI-
I cation of charges or suspicious OF criminal
misconduct on the part Of Hon. III. r. Pease,
4 state Superintendent of Education. SUCH
| an investigation will, if attempted, be a
most mischievOus repetition of the folly
which was attempted on the occasions OF
the Yerger escape, the Meridian riots, etc.
The Constitution, Article III, divides the
! powers Of the government OF this State
into three distinct Departments, eonti4es
/ each to a separate magistracy. and forblds
that any person or collection OF persons,
being Of one of these Departments, shall ex-
| ercise any power properly belonging 10
/ either OF the others.
The senate, belonging to the Legislative
Department, is requested by the person ae-
| cused or suspected Of crime, TO undertake
the purely judicial power and functions OF
! examining witnesses and other testimony,
! applying the law, and determining the ques-
| ton of his guilt or innocence. To do this.
even if it were possible for the Senate to
! bring before it, or before its committee, any
! of the witnesses or documentary proofs,
would be a clear and iagrant violation OF
the Constitutional provisions to which |
! have referred.
! 1t may he said that Congress sometimes
| authorizes its committees to send for, and
| compel the attendance OF, persons, and the
production OF papers. reply that u Is not
| within nv knowledge that such action was
ever had by Congress except upon the joint
resolution of both Houses, approved by the
President, or passed over his veto. And be-
sides, there is not in the Constitution OF the
| United States any such provision for the
| division, separations, and limitation of the
| powers of the coordinate departments OF
| the Federal government, "a that above
| quoted from our State Constitution.
| Besides, it will not be in the power of the
| Senate or of any committee it can appoint,
| to obtain the attendance of single witness,
or the production of one word OF testimony.
| Witnesses summoned by such authority will
| not only be free to stay away, but it will be
their bounden duty, under the Constitution,
! to do so; because, We're they to attend, they
would be at least in some degree partici-
pants i'll this legislative usurpation of judi
| cial power And if, for holding in contempt
| "A jurisdiction thus usurped, it should be at
tempted to imprison witness, there is prob
| ably not a Judge in the State who would
not instantly discharge such witness on
habeas corpus
But these constitutional considerations,
! grave and of commanding consequence as
they are, sink into comparative insignif-
| canoe in the presence of another conSidera-
| ton which / will now mention.
BY the Constitution, Article Nv, section
y, s'the House of Representatives shall have
| the sole power of impeachment that is, OF
presenting and prosecuting articles of inn
northumberland sail impeac hments shall
be tried by the Senate" Can it be desired
that the Senate, which may have this duty to
perform, shall first commit itself, by form
ing and expressing an opinion i'm advance
| OF the trial? We all know that it has been
- -. >
world for Senates and similar bodies when
| sitting as courts for trial of impeachments,
to be Influenced by eXtrinSic and improper
considerations.
VIII you add to those corrupting influ-
| ences in the possible case of impeachment
now before you, by cutting of, in the very
outset, all possibility of a fair andim par
| tial trial? If so, then repeal your laws
which have withstoOd the revolutions of five
hundred years in England and America,
and which forbid that a grand juror, who
/ has participated in finding Indictment,
! shall afterwards sit on the petit jury that is
| to try that indictment; or, that petit
| Juror, who has sat in the mistrial of any
| case, civil or criminal, shall sit on any sub
| sequent trial of the same case. But until
| Won shall have defacel and obliterated every
land mark of the ancient laws and liberties
of the American people, | shall protest
against the melancholy farce ofthe Senate,
| or any part of that honorable body, being
| converted into magistrates court for the
!
inal charges or criminal suspicious.
Allow me to suggest that if the HonOra-
bic Superintendent, i'm his present spirit of
bravado and defiance, or in n spirit of lib
eral and innocent curiosity to see how
much Is really known of his mercantile
transactions in the Superintendent's office,
desires illegal and valid Investigation and not
merely to have his conduct puttied up and
painted over by ridiculous and uneonstitu-
tional sham trial, he might, possibly,
have obtained it by invoking the
House of Representatives to appoint
Il committee TO consider and re-
port upon the prOpriety of putting him on
trial upon articles of impeachment. But
even while making this suggestion | would
| respectfully submit that the time and mode
| for commencing this prosecution, if pros
ecution it shall be, is not under our COnsti-
tuition or laws, to be dictated or advised by
the defendant much less by committee of
the Senate, appointed at his instance.
II this view of the subject be correct, the
effect of any preliminary examination and
| decision upon Mr.. PeaSes real or alleged
malfeasance in office will be to render it
| legally impossible for this Senate, or any
member of it who shall have committed
himself, either way, upon the question of
his guilt or innocence to ever sit in a Court
| of impeachment upon the final trial of any
articles which the House of Representa-
| tiVes may have occasion to present at the
Bar of the Senate for the same causes. And
! thus this officer will be virtually exempt
from mpeachment fer any of the causes
now to be considered until a new Senate
shall be elected; and in the meantime his
own term of office win have expired.
Without in the slightest degree impugn-
ing either the integrity or wisdom of the
Senate, or any of its members, but believ-
ing the action taken was rather the result of
a sudden and instructive desire that the
much needed investigation should be had.and
without rejecting upon the constitutional
and legal aspects of the case. have felt
at liberty, as the chief law officer of the
State, to submit these objections to the pro-
eeedings contemplated by the Senate upon
the present attitude of this important sub
ljeet.
Respectfully,
Your obedient servant,
j. 5. MORRIS,
Attorney General and