St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1889-09-07
81. gaudtr 9eiuoftat
OPELOUSAS !:
Grand Jury Report.

week to the Hon. j. g. Baker, Judge
Criminal District Court, New Orleans,
and commend it to the careful consider
alton of our readers.
The attention of our lawmakers is re-
spectfnlly called to the following sub
jects with the hope that soine' effort will
be- made to rid us of the suparannuated
old laws under which we are now stag
sering, and which are wholly behind The
spirit of the age. The world has on its
leagues aud not by PAGES, and it be-
hooves us to keep step with the grand
striding OF modern progress or get out
of the procession.
First in order Of enumeration, as be-
ing OF paramount importance and re-
curing early consideration is the
GRAND JURY SYSTEM
Mt present in vogue in this state, and
which in our humble opinion is wholly
at variance with the great American
idea of fair play.
To be able to aFraigu man for his
life or honor on OK parte evidence il
fearful and prodigioas authority to
place In the hands of any aet OF men
who could possibly misuse it. The sys-
tenn ought to be thoroughly overhauled
and put on a common sense business
basis or summarily abolished.
BUREAU or JURY COMMISSION Rs.
This department was the subject Of
cur first official investigation, and after
fruitless attempt to get an intelligent
insight into its workings We came to the
unanimous conclusion that the present
mode OF procuring jurors is nuisance
md ought to be abolished. The law
defining the duties of the commission
10 uo nd he,
tellIgent bearing on the subject. The
present glass jury wheel is a subter-
fuge and fraud, and should be in
continently smashed. The wheel, il
one is used, should be opaque and
Capacious enough to hold tho names of
all the available jurors in the parish,
which should be placed in it at one and
the same time. They should be incased
in tubes as is now done in the Louisi-
ana State Lottery drawings, and which
is probably 80 safe and fair system as
human ingenuity has yet devised. The
drawing of the names should be under
the supervision and direction Of the
grand jury. The deputies, to serve
notices, should DO under the control of
the jury commissioners. Our inVesti-
cations developed the fact that the
whole jury duty of the city is being per-
formed by fifteen or eighteen hundred
jurors. where il all who should serve
were made to do SO, the turn Of each |
one would not come oftener than once |
in twelve or fifteen years.
,arrs and thara aLnpIS IL = ao s,aaun
rsnsaI nf ali ayon,r,t;nn 1a, smaoeplnk
nsaia of o. vaare ~ zoe nf snn a 1 ICY
and nhvs;cai ssrenetb ana,,mI. - a.1 !.
fi,a cn,,rth"nas ond VIC oan w Sos ~
write. shonld he n,ada to narforn, " ;r rru
duty. -
PETIT JURIEs.
There is entirely too much trial by
jury and the dignity and Intelligence Of
the criminal district court should not be
insulted, and its time wasted with the
petty cases now brought before it.
None but capital cases should he
brought before this court, and none but
these cases should be tried by iury. and
three fourths of the jury should be COM
petent to render q verdict.
What can be more absurd in this 7ay
of progress than to see twelve intelli-
gent men taken from their avocations
to try q vagrant for stealing pairof
o lL, noUu M hol altSMp lius 10 XIII an,
oInef. Inc Iecof0eTs courts should
Mavo tuil lfsa over ~, cases MI
caplIai. me JUDGES OF those courts
AnOuII " IeaIhs9 70 the law, and they
sl, " Msl ~ ln nsI hlkuss6 oFder OF
le a a. a..aInia ~, ne contlhual trla.
~ -. .us saM Ils. oiM ~ " vagaDonds ana
=. nan, -pne oaS nonsa a;aer mnnln is g
vcly IYol nnu sApensiV9 poHcy, ana
s sA.ea " PIT seep 70. ne Inird con,
vlc.lun u parLy loS Guy oHense snould
cOi i Ia nlsa - podpeIual aprisonment
y ~ - ~ IL Ci.sinis " huinan
IUnssuol aelun 1hu % Wpathy.