The Ouachita telegraph. [volume] (Monroe, La.) 1865-1889, 1881-03-04
QUALIFICATIONS OF JURORS.

those described by the Judge In the
CLOSING sentence of HIS letter:
THIBoDAUx, February 10, 1881.
Editor NeW Orleams Democrat:
In an editorial paragraph In to-day's
Democrat you say: "The difficulty
In getting q jury for the trial Of the De
Rance brothers affords fresh iilustra-
tton Of the stupidity OF our laws on the
subject, )" etc.
You seem to have Inadvertently
overlooked the fact that we have In
this State no laws in reference tojurors
who hold opinions which may pre-
vent them from rendering just, fair
and impartial verdict. eisf..
! 1t Is true that section No. 976 Of our
Revised Statutes provides "that the
method OF trial shall be according 10
the Common Law" but this statute
does not expressly prescribe or special
ly define the qualifications of jurors as
relates to bias. ..{,
The only laws in this State to which
reference can be had to ascertain the
qualifications Of jurors in criminal
cases, are article No. las of the Con-
stitution, and Act No. 81 Of the acts
| of 1850, aud both are silent as TO dis.
qualification duo to preadjudication
of case. uf d. a-ifsfGrE
1t Is, however, our settled jurispru-
dence that n mere impression is not
sufficient to disqualify. State vs.
George, 8 r., 535 State VS.. Brown, 4
An, COS /; State W.. Bretts, 6 An,
653 State vs.. Bangor, Ia An, 461
State VS.. Ward, II An, O73 State We.
Snapper, % An, 43 /; State vs.. Caul-
field, % An, 14s State vs.. An, COL
State vs.. Guldry, % An, $50.
It Is only when the juror has formed
l>~> 1~rnt
himself, or the court believes, 1t would
influence his opinion, that he should
be rejected. State VS.. Brette, 6 An,
653 State vs.. Ward, IA An, 973
and compare the cases cited s'supra."
| Hence, every juror In the DE Rance
case who states on his ssvoir dire" that
he has heard the matter talked over,
that he has read newspaper accounts of
1t, from which he has formed an opln-
ion, but that Notwithstanding such
opinion he can hear the evidence and
try the case fairly and impartially,
and render verdict unlntluenced by
such opinion, Is "a competent juror.
/ AS was observed by Judge Cooley
In Holt vs. the People (l3 Mich, 224),
ssto require that jurors shall come to
the investigation of criminal charges
with minds entirely unimpressed by
what they may have heard in regard
to them, would be in many cases to
! exclude every man from the panel
who Is fit to sit there"
All the facts concerning tho crime
! with the commission Of which the DE
Rance brothers are charged, other
justly or unjustly, must be more or less
familiar to every man in New Or
leans who reads the city papers. III
the rule were otherwise than I have
kspo okn ke,S1 tn k,n hat fvNrp
In New Orleans is competent to serve
as juror on the trial of that case?
A different rule would exclude from
the jnry box not only intelligent but
illiterate men. For, as was said by
Chief Justice Kingman, in State vs.
Puedlicott, 8 Kas. 257, "There are
some crimes so great and striking that
even the most Ignorant will have in
formation and impressions in regard
to them and (the rule |
that such impressions should disqualify |
them as jurors) would render the I'M
paneling of jury for their trial i'm
ty a complete protection from punish
ment. 1t is admitted
by everyone that an impartial jury is
imperative; but impressions, slight
and fugitive in their character, such as
everyone forms from reading the daily
press on nearly every crime that is
committed, cannot be held rs render
ing such persons unfit for jurors {;
otherwise only the most ignorant
would be admitted to the jury box,
result not desirable, and most danger
Gus to those who are charged with |
crime and who are really not guilty."
The juror who on his examination |
on his ssvoir dire Is willing to swear |
that, by reason of the rumors which
he has read or heard, he has formed,
in advance of the law and the evil |
dence, so decided an opinion that he
could not render n verdict in accor- |
dance with the law and the facts, has
II will not say invariably, bat in the
majority of cases) Il mind which wan
tlers OH the border land between idiocy
and lunacy, or conscience on which
an iron clad oath would make no i'm
preston.
ARTHUR +. kSoRIOCH
Sunday school teacher (reprovingly)
-"Boys, do you know what day this