The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1884-08-06

TIE annoyance TO which business men
in Honolulu are subjected by being com
PEELED to serve as Jurors at the quarterly
terms Of the Supreme Court, has become
50 great, that If they were aS a class called
upon to vote upon the abolition Of the en-
tire Jury system. there Is little doubt how
they would vote They would with rare
exceptions say that the sooner the whole
thing were done away with the better. It
Is not the annoyance alone which causes
the jury system 10 Be heldin such disfavur:
It Is the common belief that II would be
safer IN nine cases out Of ten. 70 leave II
to the judges TO decide upon the facts Is
vel as the law
The argument N favor Of retaining the
palladium Of liberty" as the night to
trial BY jury Is often called. Is certainly
stronger IN respect Of criminal than Of
evil cases A mans liberty. nay his life.
IN capital case, may depend on the result
OF the trial In such matters. TO leave It
70 single Judge, OF even to three Judges.
70 declde, year IN and year out. not only
the rules Of law, and n many Instances
the extent Of the sentence, but also 10 pass
upon the eredbilty Of the evidence. and
70 draw differences Of guilt or innocence.
would De 10 place more power than anv
EnSiish-speaklng community would care
to place N any men however upright or
acute.
No one, when his own or his friends
life or liberty IS at stake. would willingly
surrender the old=fzshioned right to have
his case laid before twelve unbiased men
Of the vicinzge.
But the same cannot be SAID Of large
proportion Of civil cases. Many such cases
are practically decided by the Judge who
presldes at the jury trial In Honolulu.
the comparatively small number ef men
who are called for Jury duty. are however.
oyer-worked- L IS not uncommon to see
the same men called IN from their business
avocations, term after term. while others
are never called at all
The few THAI do jury work IN tins CITY
are moreover obliged not only 10 hear
cases which belong TO the neizhborhood.
cases from all over the group are tried
here, 50 that practically the Honolulu iurv-
man does Jury work for the residents Of
other islands than Oahu Considering the
oneruus nature Of this duty, we think that
no pains should be spared To tighten II
There Is no sense, for instance. IN the old
practice OF shutting up a jury. or keeping
them away from their homes at night. or
at ordinary meal hours. They are allowed
TO separate before the case l. submitted TO
them, and can as easily be Influenced i'm
properly at such times as afterwards. IF
some Of the old rules of special pleading
could be introduced. the result often would
be 70 show that there are no issues Of fact
for the Jury. There l. not a term of court
winch does not show many instances Of
the kind The court might. We should
say, call upon counsel Of each side to pre-
sent statement Of facts and points Of law.
on which they rely; by doing this before a
Jury IS called, it would appear whether
there Is any fact IN controversy. If there
Is none, no jury l. needed If 1t appear
that there are facts in controversy, then
Jury can be called to hear and decide upon
them, and give special veriicts accordingly.
We trust that the judges may give thought
TO tins new There Is nothing impractic
able II II, and the first few DAYS of each
term might be devoted to aseertaining in
some such way as this. what cases do not
require or admit the functions of Jury