The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1900-01-10
Meares' Case a MistriaJ.
Judge Buchanan's Remarka.
bic Lecture to the Jury

In the criminal court Friday morn.
ing the jury, ln the case against }
C. Meares for bastardy. was relieved
from further consideration of the case
and mistrial entered upon the rec
ords of the court
Judge Buchanan called the jury
out at IL o'clock and upon their
announcing that there was no posi-
bility of their agreeing upon yer
dict, proceeded to give the members
of the panel a ''bauling over the
Goals" which was some what novel
aud decidedly plain.spoken
he stated that the inability of the
jury to agree was matter Of regret,
aud that nothing brought so much
reproacb upon the administration of
Justice as q mis.risl The jury had
spent three or four days in hanging
out and had cost the country about
$3.50, whereas even a verdict against
the defendant would have put upon
him bond for only $500, that the
jury had spent more meney by hang,
ing on and fooliDg around than the
amount that would have been exact
ed by conviction.
"You gentlemen" said the judge,
'probably will be the first to speak
lightly of courts and to say that
Justice canpot be gotten, that the
lawyers fool around in the courts and
delay justice, while the truth of the
matter is the 'awyears, the solicitor
and the court do their duty, and you
men have not the manhood to do
yours You have DO one but your
selves to blame for the miscarriage OF
Justice The State and the defend
ant are entitled to verdict. and you
have acted like set of school boys,
locked up three or four days, when
you should have agreed upon
verdict. If the public would culti
vate a high standard of obligation
and men were to understand that
when they take az oath to do their
duty, they should do it honestly,
instead Of frittering their time away
aud vacilIating by reason ofa feeling
of kindness for neighbor or some
fahcied thing in the evidence, more
exact justice would be done and
there would be no more reproach
upon the administration of justice
through the neglect Of the Jurors to
do their duty They seem to think
it is sleigh: ofhanG thing when they
go on the jury A man taking an
oath to peform. duty on the jury
should meet his obligation as he
would his promise to pay note.
Jurors don't do it, snd because of
the fact that we have to have jurors
to try this sort of cases, justice is
not done.
Il want to burn that idea into you
gentlemen. that justice has miscar
ried in this case. because you did
not have the manhood to carry out
the law and the obligation you took,
and I want you to know that know
it, and l want every juror to under
stand when he comes into this court
where | am to preside and takes an
obligation to decide case and does
not do it, that intend to tell him
about it and in,eud to make it hot ior
him
another jury may have to go
over this same thing because Of your
lack of manhood aud nothing else
1t is because ycu all did not ander
stand your oath and did not keep i
to decide tn ) case according 10 the
evidence l want you to understand
that | know it and everybody else
knows it, and wnen it becomes
matter of opprobrium for Jurors TO
make mistriai everybody viii re-
proach them for it because they did
cot keep the obligation they took 10
agree on verdict and further the
&c ;pot;co