The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1873-11-03
The Law In Felony Cases Tho Ex.
aminiBg Csurt Defended.
EjItors Of ReRister: -- .. $50 -.

| tsAoiSA14 VI OSs0Oei -Aui SutitLou IN
lscsssary Expense in the Adninistra.
tion Of Justice-A Suggestion to the
Legislature" over the signatur Of "B,
1 have not been able fully to appreci-
ate this article. The first objection
urged by the correspondent to the plan
adopted by the Legislature for the ex-
amiastion of persons accused OF felony
is that is ia not cheap. This is the first
time I have heard that q legislative
body should take into consideration
the question of economy, where the
rights OF q citizen and o. the people are
, concerned. a person charged with g
felony who is innocent should have the
opportunity, cost what i. nav TO the
State, to have that innocence shown, at
the earliest possible moment, aud, on
the other hand, the people have .
right and society snI good government
DEPEND npon it, that when g. felony has
been committed the offender should be
prosecuted with igor and certainty.
To accemplisa these two objects; frat
thst OF protecting ap innocent person
accnsed ota ieloay, ard second that Of
prosecuting With more certainty toe
elilty accused was the object Of the
legislature in adopting the plan for the
exaalioxtion OF persons accused OF !ei>
sny contained 10 chapter 90 OF the
1c's OF 1873. This act is substantially
TIE name law that wa. enacted in tee
COcr at 1893 and tcs hacn r"-eTacted
in every Code o. VI. ... j. ,oe re
visicn OF 1868 il svss .. r,..,a.,. ..rejt-
ed III consequeac. o: rhr pr.'v SO OF
the Constitur'n1 ot W. - TEaa Con-"
sttuton har,aE abolishrd 'he 1a:y
Court. there was DO interrDclia," '''!a,.
rsl between Justice OF the PsAc .5...
The Circuit Court in which such - ri
ration could be had.
The esteem in winch the ExstniUin
Court has been held by the bench al,
bar o. Virginia appears in almost ever.
voInmc Of the reports Of Virginia frorh
the earliest period to the present time,
and i.no more highly appreciated and
spoken Of with more favor than in the
opinion OF the Court delivered in the case
OF Ford w The Commonwealth, Is,
Grat 347.
Allan, President. in deliyr-i"s the
| op.i 80 - ire COAt H. 'nat care s:ys:
ILs cUasu;ulion aud functions OF
tho examining Court are regulated sud
prescribed by the Code OF 1860, ch. 2O5.
1t is in effect nothing more than more
ferma! examination and inquiry into tho
facts than could be made by = single
justico sitting generally alone, without
timr 10 examine CAREFUL Y, or cid OF
couuasl, to assis: hin deliberations.
Under such circumstances he may err
(suprosipg tho facts to be undisputed)
tpon the question whether in la" they
| make ous felony; or he may be mis-
taken az to Ia. facts As an additional
asegu.rd for the liberty and protectioa
e. the accused, the examining Court ia
;at.rsosed. 1t must be satisfied that
there is corpus de!icta, that felony
has hees committed, proposition in
regard to which they can have the ben
eft OF consultation and argument II
.atsfed on that point, and tina, there
i. probable cause 10 charge tho ac-
cu.ei herewith, he ia remandcd Tor
trial. # entitled to bail they bail him,
Bul if it Sppear to the Court that there
10 rot prob.b be csuse for charging the
accuse! with tie offence, he shall be
discharged
Tnerc can be 10 doubt that this
Court rnoIs effectively secures the rights
OF the people in prosecuting felon,
when We t2ko into consideration that
many Of the justices in fhe State are
ignorant snd unable to discriminate
bet7eeo g felony and msdemsauor
that many OF them are i.literate aad
uaablc to prepare proper commit
ncat, 60 that il occurred frequently un.
der tho act OF 1863 that persons were
remandsd for offences they never COM
nitled. That mibdesCIlpticn OF the
offence or properly, improper owner
ship OF properly slleged, material facts
omitted. aud thousand other in
sccugscIas occssoned by the isner-
suce o: justices in preparing the
commitment. Many felons, there
fore escaped unpunisded and YER
dicu OF mot guilty" were returned
upon indictments, for variance be-
tween the indictment and proofs
This has frequently occurred in the
Circuit Court OF our county, especially
in cases Of larceny and burglary, nor
could this be avoided by the attorneys
Of the Stste. In many OF the sparsely
populated counties OF the State there is
no prosecuting attorney residing in the
county aud it not unfrequeutly happen,
shat 5 gentleman NAV be prosecuting
attorney for hru or four counties and
in some instances for larger number
II would be impossible for the attorney
OF the State to attend to tie examins-
ton OF persons accused before the Jus-
tic. OF the peace 10 the country and
therefore, mua; necessarily prepare bis
iodjctmeuts from the Commitments
and certificate, without con,ulta-
ton with the magistrate vtol
rena nded the prisoner. This has caua-
ed ID q great degree the inaccuracies
and mis-d.scriptions above alluded to.
With the examining court you al.
most insure conviction, when the case
i. brought on for trial. The evidence
by III. examining court being reduced
to writing there can be no mistake 10
the Indictment. The attorney for the
State beirg present fully understands
the csu.e and can have the certificates
perfect; the exact crime described; the
defense is heard and preparation can be
made to meet it il frivolous. Il the de-
rence is good and substantial! one the
prisoner is forever discharged. There
is % greater terror to the offender than
! the certainty Of conviction.
Under the imperfect syst,m OF the
Act OF 1868 it was almost an accident
10 convict The loos.ness with which
examinations were held and certified