Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1891-07-24
THE NEW JURY Law.

Our esteemed but highly partisan
contemporaries, the Wheeling Intelli-
gencer and the Parkersburg Journal,
having been, lately, at a loss for some
thing bad to say about the Democrats
anent the general political situation,
have taken to denouncing the new
jury law, passed by the last Legis-
lature, of which they are evidently in
dense ignorance, and hope the people
are in the same condition. The IsltelH-
gencer some time ago said:
The new Jury law, elsewhere referred to
in detail, is a buugling piece OF legislation
which bids fair to cause no end OF trouble.
1.-THE situation is as bad as it seems TO be
it may be necessary to convene the Legis-
lature to repair the law. The alternative
would be TO deny to civil suitors that
prompt Justice which the law promises
them and to open wide the doors for crimi-
nails to escape. A session of the Legisla-
ture would be expensive, but the whole
machinery Of justice cannot stop because
the Legislature tied it up
The Parkersburg Journal follows in
this fashion:
1t Is becoming more and more evident
that the members of the last West Virginia
Legislature didn't know anything about
making laws so that they would "hold
water" The new jury law is causing
trouble in every Court In West Virginia and
il is getting farther every day from being
settled as TO how it should be interpreted
The shrewd lawyers, of course, take ad-
vantage of every possible and impossible
technicality, and the effect OF 1t all is that
justice is baked, Court expenses increased
and litigation left In a muddle-all because
the lawmakers didn't know their business.
Now, the only change made from the
old in the new law is, in brief, the pro-
vision for Jury Commissioners, to take
the matter of the selection of juries out
Of the hands of the courts and place 1t
in the hands of two commissioners ap-
pointed by the Circuit Court, who shall
be residents of the county, citizens OF
good standing, we'll known and OF oppo-
site politics. The new law is wise and
Just one and will do away with the
laxity and abuses Of the jury system,
such as jury-fxing," which were too
prevalent under the old law.
or course, lawyers, who are not salts
fed with jury, will raise every tech
nical objection to it they can think Of,
but we have failed to see any, thus far,
that can be called valid. In fact the
only objection we have heard OF Is that
the Constitution does not provide for
Jury Commissioners. But neither does
the Constitution prohibit such officers.
On the contrary, it places the whole
subject of the selection Of juries in the
hands Of the Legislature. The Constl-
tuition specifies the cases in which the
Legislature shall not pass local or spe-
cial laws, among which is ''summoning
DR. impanelling grand or petit juries,"
but it adds, "the Legislature shall pro-
vide by general laws for the foregoing
etc. The new jury law is a general,
not special or local law. and so far as
We can see the Constitution gives the |
Legislature full power in the premises.
This point disposed of, we fail to see
anything that is not highly commend
Lble in the new law and calculated to
rive us purer and better jury system.