The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1900-11-29
PORTION OF Law IS VOID
IMPORTANT DECISION nv TN
SUPREME COURT.
Decides That Informa lions Must p.
Filed By the County AttorDavs
Constitution Was Violated

According to an opinion of the STAT.
supreme court rendered yesrords, ,s-
legislature of 1899 made a serious him
der in enacting the law creating FL.
office Of district attorney and rras.-r
ing the duties thereof Th. n.,~tr.- w..
the new law referred to- was amend
tory to section 1852 of the revised sf...
utes, which section provided that ns-.
sons accused of crime should be- rrf.r
upon infOrmatiOnS filed in court BIZ -ta
county attorney of the county wHar
the alleged Offense was committed In.
amended law devOIved The du-v ~
making and filing informatio0s un.-
the district attorney of the prsnar DIS
trict, instead of the county artarrar
and the supreme court holds thar -Fa
manner of enactment Of the amended
law was ViOlative of the state cOnsfiu-
ton.
ne opinion was the unanimous ilfg-
ment of the court. and resulted from
consideration of the case Of The stale
against James W. RedJu. auuers--
who was convicted i'm the Fourth disc
trict court in Uintah county uf f-
crime of rape. and sentenced tn serve
. five years in the peDiteHtiarv The aa-
peal was taken by the defendant r
the ground that the information %
J which he was prosecuted was fled h-
( the district attorney. and not bv the
( county attorney II was further r-
sisted Oh behalf of the prisoner thai.
such portion of the new law aurharz-
ing district attorneys TO file iHf9ms-
+ tiOns in criminal cases is void, from ras
fact that the enactment WIS Dot 90
2, q
requires that no law shall be- revised
or amended by reference TO its tHa
only, but shah be re-enactad and pub
liShed at length
The new law was enacted dT mere
reference to the section in the code
criminal procedure intended 20 Be
amended. This method the appellate
court holds was in violation of the .E-
stitutiOn quoted, which IS declared -E
the court to be restrictive and ma1ls-
tory. The wisdom of the constitutions
requirement is cited by the court tN .-
that il is intended To avoid "on-aS.
in determining the status of laws. ell
also TO discourage imur'vidant legs"
lation.
While decreeing that such par. %. ..-
new law dey1Iviug upon rEa 7is.I
attorneys the duty of filing informal.
/ in criminal eases is of no -..a4- .,
cause the constitutional method
amending the old law was NOT folio"
the supreme court opinion rules 0s-
the whole act relating to- dis.rla. am.
ueys is not necessarily void for
reason that if the neH matter ..
taken from the old IaH there 500.
still remain a sensible and ''t-.
enactment. caaabie of execution
In conclusion. the opinion states
inasmuCh as the district attorney
no lawful authority tp prosecute
case against Bedd0. the trial c'..- o.
quired no jurisdiction over the I.''.-
The appellate court volt- Tie COM.
ton and sentence. and remains r~
case to he disposed nj as r-LI-T- 49,.
law, which means that the .'---'
torney must make the prose- 3-in-- che
For the reason that "EE - -
Fourth Fifth. Sixth and ~8Fs.- Pa,
diCiaI districts were district a..--.
/ acting under the new .a"- ne ~. -s
; prosecutors in the other three ~
O. recently elected not taking men -.--
fees until the first Monday JAM --s
next. comparatively fa" ..'--..a5 .+-a
/ are affected by this decision. anu o., -.s
( only where Jhe iu.nEHIr IONS ..--.r.
/ made and filed by the l.-."...
/ instead of by the county a..".-.-