Daily Los Angeles herald., 1879-05-02

Attorney system than 1t would be
under the old grand jury system
Now let us view 1t In another light
THE EVILS OF ONE PROSECUTING
OFFICER.
This thing of having one prose
cutting OfIicer-one individual, one
person-who for a given number OF
years (say two years or four years.
whatever the tenure OF office might
be-say you pick out one individ.
ual, one lawyer, and say that he,
this immaculate gentleman, who,
during these two, three or four
years, will commit no crime him.
self-is incapable of committing
any crime-pick out this good Dis
trict Attorney and tell him, him.
"Accuse the people of this county
OF crime during your term of Of.
fice." He Is a good man. There is
no one who can exercise any infiu.
ence or control over him-any man
that could get to be District Attor-
ney of this county. He would have
no influential, or rich, or poor
friends who could influence b i'm to
prosecute any particular indivIdu-
al. On no. For this new Constitu-
tion is adopted, and the ointment
has come down from heaven upon
all the bad men, and upon all the
bad qualities that are In the good
men. All District Attorneys will b.
honest men. Everybody will be
honest. We will not need any
Grand Jury. We will not need pro
lection for the citizens, because nc
man will be prosecuted at all undeI
this new system. We believe Ia
such a Constitution. Don't you
believe in it2 I tell you II this
thing is adopted, and the Districl
Attorney of this county-I don't
care IL he Is the best man in the
couniy-has the power for two
years In this county of accusing
people of crime, you will need o
Grand Jury more than once u yea,
to indict him for malfeasance in Of.
flee. More than once year you
will need a Grand Jury. Why
even AS it is, tho District Attorney
having to place himself in an an
tagonistic position to parties ac'
cused OF crime, it makes life. long
enemies to the District Attorney.
II you give him the sovereign
power of accusing of crime, give
him the name Of the People of the
State of California, to place against
me, or to place it against any citi
Zen of the State, tell you, you will
raise up storm against him that
he cannot stand, and no other indi.
vidual can stand.
THE GRAND JURY BOUGHT WITH A
PRICE.
The speaker then entered ut some
length upon the struggle under
which the Grand Jury system haC
been obtained. Our ancestors
fought for it, shed their blood for it.
and now 1t Is proposed to lightly
part with an institution because Il
costs a little money. American
| liberty cost something one hun
dred years ago, but would the pres
ent generation barter that away
for mess OF pottage? Who do yol
think will suffer from the abolition
of the Grand Jury system? Not thu
rich, but the poor. The rich mar
eau protect himself with hi
money, but the poor man withou
any has no protection from ma
licious prosecutions but the Grant
Jury, which 1t Is proposed to abol
ish. Any ranch owner that Cal
catch a poor man cutting a stick o
wood on his ranch, can come be
fore the District Attorney and hav
him put into Jail i'm mmediately ant
put him on trial.
ANOTHER STRIKE AT THE Pool
MAN.
Delegate Waters proceeded to no
tice another change in the bill o
rights, which he said was a lick a
the poor man. He read: "No per
son shall ever be imprisoned fo
debtin any civil action, on mesnt
or final process; unless in cases o
fraud, nor in civil actions for torts
except In cases Of willful injury t
person or property; and no persor
shall be imprisoned for q miIitit
fine in time of peace" Do yot
know what that means? Tha
just means nothing more nor lesl
thaa this; that II a man who own.
a ranch catches poor man cutting
a stick of timber on 1t, lie can jus
come right straight to town and SUI
him before Justice of the Peace
and have that man put In jail-no
for crime, mind you. 1t Is M
crime. 1t Is just a little mere tres
pass upon land. That Is, 1t isa will
full injury to person or property
and you can have that man put IL
Jail. Now l want to know from
any owner OF u large tract of lane
In this town-and there are some o
them here, l see, aud, blythe by
TWO or three of them favor the new
Constitutional would like to know
whether, If trespasser should
come on their land and take of
enough poles to make him littl.
sheep corral, if, under that section
they could not take up that maj
and put him in Jail until he pay
these damages? Yes, 1t Is q poo
mans Constitution; but 1t Is all II
the way you emphasize those words
Now that was not the old Constitu
ton at all. These people had N,
right to put man In prison mere
| ~ for trespassing or iu an actiol
for damages to personal propert,
or to real property. In a civil ,c
tion for damages under the OIL
Constitution, the right to impris 1
did not exist. Under the new i
does.
There were many other feature
of Mr.. Waters's speech which W
should like to reproduce but w
save only 3pN.G i5, rafsfz zee Il
/ uls Views on thR precious faiiroa
comm saipu cleusg
THAI -srGR MENTAL ha4rEg 81
CJdDlIs i4N.