Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1871-08-17
ELECTION OF COUNTY JUDGE.

Why the Clerk Convened the Court,
and the Grounds for Their Action
i'm the Election of O Successor TO
Judge Turner.
In view CT the discussion which has
lately occurred respecting the manner in
which the election or appointment Of o
presiding officer for the Davidson County
Court should be made, and the variety of
opinions existing as to the constitutional
mode for making that selection, Capt. w.
q. Ewin, Clerk of that court, thus gives
the reasons which prompted him to issue
the call for the meeting of yesterday. and
the grounds for its action in eleciing an
otteer to serve until the next regular cleo
ton by the people:
To the Editors of the Union and American:
Art. Z of the Constitution of Tennessee
provides for biennial elections of county
officers, to be held on the first Thursdays
In August, for the election of Register on
the first Thursdays in August to hold for
four years, and the election of Judicial and
other civil officers on the the first Thurs
days in August, to hold for eight years.
The same Article provides that no special
election shall be held to fill a vacancy in
the Office Of Judge or District Attorney, but
at the time fixed for the biennial election
of civil officers viz: first Thursday IN
August. And that such vacancy shall be
filled at the mex. biennial election occur
ring more than thirty days after the vacan-
cy occurs.
By the letter, then, CT the Constitution,
the present vacancy in the Office of County
Judge, is to be FL ed by the people at the
the next biennial election, to take place
on the first Thursday in August,
1872. This consequence of the letter
of the constitution can only be escaped
by assuming that the County Judge is not
a Judge in the meaning of Article Of the
Constitution, referred to above. That posi-
ton is, in my opinion, wholly untenable.
It rests on nothing but the decisions of the
Supreme Court to the effect that County
Judge is not part Of the State Judiciary;
but it overlooks the fact that the same
decisions expressly hold that he is none
the less a Judge. In fact, in one of those
very cases Moore VS.. State, Sneed, it
was decided that the Court of the County
Judge was constitutionally court and
therefore was legally and constitutionally
clothed with criminal jurisdiction. 1t is
difficult to see how they could have gone
farther.
Now, in the light of those decisions, the
present Constitution of Tennessee provides
generally for the elections of, and for fill
ing vacancies in the offices Of all judges;
ard the Office of County Judga not being
excepted, is presumed In law to have been
included.
To put this beyond doubt, as it seems
to me, the adoption of the new Constitu-
ton in vacating the offices of all the judges
vacated that of County Judge along wit
the rest; and the said vacated Office Of county
Judge was filled, along with the rest, al
the general election of the Judiciary in
August last.
The following extract from the Journal
of the Constitutional Convention (page
249) shows the original words of the clause
as voted on and adopted:
''Mr. Dibbrell offered the following
amendment to the schedule: The first
election for judges of the Supreme Court,
| Chancellors, Circuit and ether Judges, and
District Attorneys, after the ratification
of this Constitution, shall be held or
the last Thursday in July" Adopted by &c
to II. That was the language in which
the provision was adopted; the present
slight change in the phraseology, is the
work of the committees on revision and or
the Judiciary, changing the day to first
Thursdays in August, etc. See Journal,
pages 265, 266 and PSI.
AS to the filling of the vacancy tempo
rarity, that is TO say until the next biennial
elections in August, the constitution ex
| pressly provides that it can only bs done
by the County Court. Art. H., SEC. H.
As it can only be constituticnaliy fiji ed by
the people or the County Court, and as il
cannot bs filed by the people until the
| August elections, it follows that it must IL
the interim be filed by the County Court
1 think it would be more regular to fl
the vacancy at the regular me- citing of tht
| quarterly court; but l think it would bC
valid to fill the vacancy at called meet
ing. The court is one of daily need, ar(
the Magistrates, in my opinion, may per
form their duty of filing the vacancy now
of the expsdiency of which they are e
| Judge. do not think the case is governed
by anything in the code. W. G. EwN.
Aug. 1G, 1871.