The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1878-11-22
DASvlLLE, VA, November 20, 1877

| DASE1LLE, VA, November ~, Is IS.
| Judge Rives delivered most important
and interesting opinion this morning under
the famous civii-rigbts act. 1t appears from
the records filed in the court during this
| term that in the Circuit Court OF Patrick
county, at its April term, 1878. two negro
boys, Burwcll and Lee Reynolds by name,
were tried for the murder of white man
named Aaron C.. Shelton. Before the trial
the counsel for the defendants moved the
Court to award them special Uenne, to be
| composed OF both whites and blacks, since
the yenire in attendance was composed
wholly OF whites. and no Negroes name had
been put into the baliot-boX. Judge Tred-
way oyerruled this motion. Thereupon the
defendants offered 4 petition, praying that
the CAUSE be removed to the United States
Circuit Court to he held at Danyille, under
the laws Of the United States Revised
Statutes, I'd Ed, 1878, GALL. This petition
was refused. The defendants. who were
| Jointly indicted, elected thereupon to be
tried separately. Burwel Reynolds, having
been duly arraigned and tried, was found
guilty Of murder in the first degree, but,
upon motion in arrest OF Judgment,
the verdict was set aside and new
trial awarded him. Lee Reynolds was
then tried, and found guilty of murder in
the second degree, and the motion for a
new trial having been oyerruled, his coun-
sci appealed, and upon writ Of error from
the Supreme Court OF Appeals the court
below was reversed, and anew trial awarded
him also. The new trials took place at q
special term OF the Circuit Court OF Pat
rick held last October, resulting in hung
Jury in the case OF Burwell and in 4 ver-
dict of guilty in that OF Lee Reynolds, who
was sentenced to the penitentiary for eigh-
teen years. Yesterday, therefore, Colonel
William Martin and Captain A. NJ. Lybrock,
counsel for the defendants, offered their petit
ton to Judge Rives, asking hdbe0s cor
puS for each OF the defendants, and that
| their cases be heard anew in his court at its
next term. Judge Rives took until this
morning to consider the prayer OF the petit
ton. In pronuncing his opinion, he said
that all the proceedings in the State court
were nugatorY after the Offering Of the petit
ton OF removal, although the Judge had
refused to allow the same. The Judge
commented at length upon the humane law
OF the State which requires jurors TO be
summoned without respect to race or color,
and while he admitted that it was ques-
ton entirely for the Judge who were COM
petent jurors, yet when these defendants
demanded that they should be tried by at
| least some OF their own race the Judge yio-
lated the law OF the United States in refu-
sing them this right. He said they were
entitled to be tried by their peers, and init
mated that the judges Of the State courts
should not select their iurymen exclusively
| from the whites. After an elaborate con-
sideration of the law, Judge Rives read an
order which required the clerk to issue a
habeaS corpus cum cduSd Tor each OF the
said parties to the shel if or jailor of Pat
rick county, and to have a special yenire,
irrespective Of race or COLOR" summoned
| for the trial OF these causes at the next term
of the court. This opinion created no small
stir amongst the bar. It's substantial effect
| is to strip the State courts OF their JuriSdic-
| ton in cases where negro is tried unless 4
black Jury is empanelIed to try him, and
looks as if the honorable Judge sought
either to force the judges Of the State
courts to put negroes on their 1uries or to
take the cases from them.
Amongst number Of large and import
ant civil cases before the court at. the
current term the case OF S. &. Tardy,
bankrupt, attracts much attention. His lia-
biities amount to over S150,000, and his
assets are estimated at $4,000 and up
wards. The question before the court in
this case at this time is whether the as
! siguee, Colonel William Z. Sims, shall be
| allowed to. sell the bankrupt's real estate
| free OF liens, as he has asked to do in his
| petition. The lien-creditors are objecting,
and Messrs. Wood Bouldin, Isaac IT. Car
rington, and c. U. Williams, OF Richmond,
have appeared in their behalf, arguing that
the District Court should not take iurisdic-
| ton Of this matter since suit was institu-
ted before Tardy's bankruptcy, and is now
pending in the Chancery Court OF Rich
! mond, TO enforce these liens upon the land
in question. The Judge has taken the pa
| pers and will announce his decision to-
morrow. Your. correspondent feels quite
certain that Judge Riyes will take lurisdic-
ton, and either use the courti in Richmond
as auxiliary to his own or order all account
OF liens to be taken by commissioner, and
afterwards the assignee to sell and pay OH
these liens. s=-' VT ALPHA.