Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1900-01-18
MISTRiAL IN MEARES CASE.
Judge Buchanan InduIges in a TRADE Against
the Jury.

After remaining in the room from
Wednesday Afternoon At S o'clocl
until Friday morning at II, the jury
charged with the bastardy case
against Professor N1cares, reported ,
mistrial. a correspondent, giving
an account Of the trial, says that
Judge buchanan called the jury out
Of their rooms at II o'clock Friday
morning, and when they announced
that there was no possibility of reach
ing verdict, he began to speak tc
the jurymen in Il very novel anG
plain spoken manner in regard to the
case. Their inability to agree, he
stated, was Il matter of much regret
and nothing brought so much re.
proach upon the administration OF
justice as mistrial. The jury had
spent three or four days in hanging
out, and had cost the county about
$3.50, whereas even verdict against
the defendant would have put upon
him bond for only $500; that tho
jury had spent more money by hang
ing on and fooling around than the
amount that would have been OK.
acted by conviction.
"You, gentlemen" said the Judge,
"probably will be the first to 3pcak
lightly of courts and to say that jus,
ticc cannot be COTTON that the law.
ycrs fool around in the courts and
delay justice, while the truth Of the
matter is the lawyers, the solicitor
and the court do their duty, and you
men have not the manhood to dc
yours. You have no one but your.
selves to blame for the miscarriage
of Justice. The State and the de-
fcndant arc entitled to a verdict anC
you have acted like set of school
boys locked up three or four days
when you should have agreed upor
a verdict. If the public would cult
vatc higher standard Of obligation
and men were TO understand that
when they take an oath to do theil
duty, they should do it honestly in
stead Of frittcring their time away
and vascilating by reason Of feeling
Of kindness for ncighbor, or some
fancicd thing in the evidence, moro
exact Justice would be done, ant
there would be no more rcproacl
upon the administr, ton of justice
through the neglect of the jurors t(
do their duty. They seem to thinl
it is slight of hand thing when they
shcnld go on a jury. \ man taking
an oath to perform duty on tn.
jury should meet his obligations a!
he would his promise to pay a note
Jurors don't do it, and because O
the fact that we have to have Juror!
to try this sort of cases, Justice il
not done.
81 want to burn that idea into you
gentlemen, that justice has miscar
ricd in this case, because you did no
have the manhood to carry out th'
law and the obligation you took
And | want you to know | know it
and | want every juror to under
stand when he comes into the cour
where | am to preside, and takes a,
obligation to decide q case and does
not do it, that | intend to tell hin
about it and make it hot for him.
"Another jury may have to g
over this same thing because of youl
lack of manhood and nothing else
1t is because you all did not under
stand your own oath and did no
keep it to decide this case accord
ing to the evidence. | want 20,
to understand that | know it ant
everybody else knows it, and whcl
it becomes matter of opprobriun
for jnries to make Il mistrial every
body will rcproach them for it, be
cause they did not keep their obliga
tions they took to agree on yer
dict and further the administration
| Of iuSticc.N