Knoxville weekly chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1875, 1872-02-07
OUR CRIMINAL LAWS,


In selecting the jurors for criminal cases in.
most of the States, one of the qualifica-
tons prescribed by statute is, that they shall.
not have formed an opinion as to the guilt
or innocence of the accused. The theory
of the law is, that jurors ought to be thor
oughly impartial, and it therefore provides
that persons who have heard or read o.
statement of the case upon which they
have formed All opinion, shall not be
considered competent jurors. These quail
ifications date back to our earliest criminal
legislation. and for time were wise and
prudent. In many States a spirited con-
troversy is now being prosecuted through
the press in favor of the repeal of SUCH
laws. The action of a criminal Judge i'll
Memphis in recent case, has directed the
attention of the public in our State to the
point, and it has already provoked consid-
cradle comment. In murder trial in the
city mentioned, the Judge excluded the.
reporters of one of the city papers from
the Court room and refused to allow the
evidence to be published. When called on
for an explanation, he very frankly said
that as the case was one of great inn
portance and general interest, and as tn e
present law prescribing the qualifications
for jurors practically excluded reading in
telligen men from the jury box, in such
cases, he preferred that the testimony
should not go to the public. In case second
trial became necessary he would be unable
to secure an intelligent jury within his
jurisdiction. In New York and Ohio, bills
are now under consideration in their Leg
islatures modifying existing statistics in
this respect. Instances are given in some
cities of those States where ii was utterly
impossible to secure a jury of men who.
were readers of newspapers. To exclude
all of this class in this day would be simply
to pack criminal juries with utterly in
competent men. We suppose, for exam
ple that there are very few intelligent,
sensible men in New York City to-day
who have not read all the evidence con-
nected with the murder of Fisk. They
have no donbt formed or expressed an
opinion as to the guilt of Stokes. 1t will
therefore be next to impossible TO secure.
competent jurors in his case under existing
laws.
The remedy proposed, is to exclude only
those from the jury box, who say they
could not sit in the case and do full justice
under the principles of the law controll-
ing it, as they shall be announced by the
Court, and the evidence as it shall be ad-
duced before them. Some such legiS-
lation as this is proposed for the coming
special session of our Legislature by some
of our contemporaries.
Intelligent men may always be relied on
tomake the mostimpartial jurors, no matter
though they may have some opinion as to
the case before being empanneled. They
may better be relied on to discriminate and
make just application of legal principles
to the case on trial, even with their pre-
existing opinions, than jurors too dull to
comprehend either the law or the bearing
of the facts-the class most likely to be Sc
lected in important cases as the law now
exists.
Tho o,raot naa1 of our +i,,,a IL ,,oora unaod,-
and vigorous enforcement of the laws
against crime. Our criminal dockets are
crowded with cases, but as our courts arc
now constituted, trivial prosecutions
abound and grave offences are too tardily
punished. The moral effect of prompt
punishment cannot be overestimated. But
long delays, and liberal practice in the
granting of bail has most demoralizing
effect. The accused should always be pro-
tected against undue excitement and pub
lie prejudice, but such protection should
never be extended to defeat the
ends of justice. A criminal code that
postpones trials for one and two and often
three and four years from the commission
of the offence, is most certainly too liberal
for the public good. Such delays are very
common in Tennessee. In fact, defend
ants indicted for murder, with even Or
binary counsel, can postpone trial in most
cases for one or two years In the original
year in the Court of Appeals. Such de-
lays are demoralizing. II our courts were
less occupied with cases that are hardly
worthy of public time and attention and
more Vigor and rigor were put into prose-
cutions for grave offenses, we would soon
have better results. This is a subject quite.
as well worthy of attention and quite as
Important as providing against intelli-
gence operating as disqualification for
jurors.