Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1884-02-12
PROFESSIONAL GRAND JURORS.

In the State Senate yesterday Mr.. Mere
dith caused to be taken up and passed bill
striking at professional grand jurors. as fol-
lows:
A BILL to amend and re-enact section 2,
chapter Is, and section 3, chapter II, of
the criminal code of 1873.
l. Be it enacted By the General assembly Of
Virginia, That section 2 of chapter ID OF the
Criminal Code, approved March IA, 1878, be
amended and re-enacted SO as to read as
follows:
%. The county, corporation and husllnss
Judges of each county, city and town shall,
in the month of August OF each year, select
from the qualified voters of said counties,
cities and towns forty. eight persons of hon
esty, intelligence and good demeanor, and
suitable in all respects 10 serve as grand jul
rors, who shall he the grand jurors for
twelve months next thereafter. Such jurors
shall be selected from the several rnagiste
rial districts Of the counties and wards Of
the cities and towns in proportion to the
| population thereof, and a list of such jurors
! shall at once he furnished TO the clerk OF
| The court whose Judge makes the selection,
aud the clerk shall Immediately record
| the names contained in said list upon
| the minutes Of said court; and the names
of persons placed OH the list shall not
| again be selected as grand jurors for the
period of one year after the expiration OF
the time for which they were selected 10
serve Whenever grand jury is ordered
| by such court the clerk snail, as soon as may
| be, bnt not more than twenty days before
| the Jury is wanted, issue Il venire taclas to
| the sheriff of The county or sergeant OF the
| city or town, commanding him to summons
of such persons SO selected, who are to be
named in the writ, the maximum number
prescribed for the grand jury orders TO appear
at the time directed by the judge or
court TO serve as grand jurors. No such
person shall be required TO serve more
than once until all the others have been
summoned once, nor more than twice until
the others have been twice summoned,
and so on The clerk, in issuing the veuire
facias, shall apportion the grand jurors, as
nearly rs may lie, ratably among the magis-
terial districts or wards. All special grand
iuries ordered By such court shall be taken
| from said list in the same manner as regular
grand juries.
| .. BE il further enacfed, That section OF
chapter II OF the said Criminal Code be
amended and re-enacted so as TO read as
| follows:
| IS. The WIFI oil Venire iaclaS IN case OIL
felony other than where the punishment
may be death shall command the officer to
whom it is directed to summon sixteen per-
sons of his county or corporation, to be
taken from list to be furnished him by the
Judge of his county or corporation, such list
to be selected by said judge from the regu-
lar list of jurors from that year, residing re-
mote from the place where the offence is
charged to have been committed, and quail
lied in other respects to serve as jurors, to
attend the court wherein the accused is
to he tried, on the first day of the next
term thereof, or at such other time az the
court or judge may direct. If more than
two cases arc to be tried at one term of the
court, only two juries shall be summoned
unless the court may direct otherwise, and
the juries so summoned may be used for the
trial of all the cases.
3. This act shall he in force from its pas
sage.
Mr.. Meredith explained that evils exist
ing in the county of Alexandria-as he was
Informed suggested these changes.