The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1885-05-16
THE JURY HUMBUG.

The HERALD's oft-repeated PROPOSE
ton that the Jury system, once the ter
ror of the guilty and the protector of
the innocent, has degenerated until it is
humbug and fraud, is being almost
daily demonstrated in the Utah courts
There may have been and doubtless was
a time when the jury was a grand insti-
tuition, but that time long since
passed, and to-day jury trial is little
better than farce, in the sense that
justice is to be reached at the hands
of the twelve men. There have been
trials and trials by jury lately, and in
most of the instances, the onlooker who
knew nothing of the merits of the ease,
could tell before line of testimony had
been taken just what the verdict would
be, provided he was acquainted with the
position that the Jurymen assumed
on the local religious question,
and was told to which party the defend
ant belonged. Had any, of the trials
for unlawful cohabitation taken place
in another State where there was no
Mormon question, the defendants were
not Mormons and the jurymen were not
"Gentiles" as the term is understood
here, we doubt if a conviction could
have been had, because the testimony
has not warranted the finding of the
accused guilty. Here the Jurors wer
"Gentiles, " and it is considered an act
of loyalty for Gentiles to convict
Mormons, and .disloyalty ito acquIt.
When a Gentle juryman hangs out
against conviction, he runs the risk Of
being denounced by the anti-Mormon
press as traitor or as being corrupt
There are men here now smarting
from recent abuse of that character.
The trial of Policeman Thomas
which closed on Thursday, fur
nished striking illustration OF
what jury trial means.
Thomas is Mormon police officer, and
was charged with having beaten the
negro who murdered City Marshal
Burt. Whether or not he had beaten the
black brute, in no other
country would an Indictment
have been found, the circum-
stances being everywhere else held as
abundant justification for the exhibition
of passion that the striking of the
negro implied. 1t may be here stated.
that the officer denied that he struck
the murderer, except to slap him with
the open hand, and his story was not
disproven by any competent or trust
worthy testimony. But the officer was
a Mormon, and the Grand
Jury being non Mormons, he
was indicted and placed on trial. The
trial developed that Thomas did all that
a cautious officer could have done for
the protection of his prisoner. not the
least cause for censure. much less guilt
being shown, yet the jury was hours in
agreeing upon a verdict. 1t was mixed
jury, and it is understood that two or
three non-Mormons held out for a YER
dict OF guilty. The anti-Mormon news:
papers are pursuing the old and familiar
course, of charging that it was Nor
mon jury. and therefore conviction was
out of the question, the inference being
that had the twelve men been Gentiles.
the verdict would have been guilty, as
charged in the indictment
1t isa deplorable condition of affairs
that such things can be and are talked |
about openly as matters of |
fact which everybody under |
stands. The prosecuting officer, always
a Gentle, when Mormon is to be tried |
labors diligently to exclude Mormons
from the panel, and the Mormon on
trial exerts himself to obtain a Jury of
his fellow religionist Less attention is
given to the facts that will be brought
out on the trial than to the composition |
Of the jury, straight jury of either /
class meaning conviction or acquittal. |
and mixed jury implying disagree
ment, let the evidence be what it may. |
twill be long step in advance when
America abolishesits jury system which
is fair and just only in theory and the !
suggestion of what it should be. With !
courts removed from the field OF par |
tisanship, the judges term of office
being dependent upon his learning and !
integrity, and not upon his party poll.
tics or the favoritism of a politician.
justice would oftener be done if there !
were no juries.