The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1901-08-16

and the court erred, is not a matter for
the consideration of the Grand Jury. /
Though the court has given you instruc- !
ton in regard to the law you have seen
fit to disregard it, and taken the state
ment of the Attorney General on mat
ter of law, as to whether the decision OF
this court was right. This action on the
part of the Attorney General is wholly
His duty is to advise you
as to indictments, not to tell you what
this court should do in matters you have
under consideration, or how they may be
This court does not intend
to hold the Grand Jury for three weeks
until the Supreme Court gives it's opinion
in the habeaS corpus cases. l want to
say that 1 consider the action of the SUI
preme Court in making the statement In
this matter to the Grand Jury, as stand
ing alone in the history of courts, with
in the knowledge of this court"
Mr.. Cathcart-"If the Grand Jury is add
iourned until Tuesday l will have the In
dictments ready for signatures.
Il do not think the Grand Jury can be
adjourned, except from day to day" re-
piled the court.
II would like to make a statement
said Foreman Ables; you said that the
Attorney General had taken part in our
deliberations.
of the court.
81 beg your pardon" said MIR. Cath
cart; you misunderstood me. L stated
that j had advised the Grand Jury. i
told them it might be a good IDEA"
I'VE had called the Attorney General
in to advise u.s." explained Mr.. Ables.
we thought we needed the advice OF
lawyers We are none OF us lawyers and
thought there were some questions that
should be decided for us by lawyers. As
to the idea emanating from the Attorney
Generals department concerning the hab-
cas- corpus cases, this is not true. 1t
originated in my own mind, and L am
willing to take the blame for it. Mr.. Cath
cart has not taken part In our delibera-
lions. Relative to the communicate
from the Attorney General we gave that
TO you with other papers. You asked us
concerning the men in jail, re-arreSted
after being released on writs of habeas
corpus, and thought it proper to investi-
gate. We thought that the best way was
| to go direct to the head of the Attorney
Generals department, which had the
matter in charge. We thought it wise to
see the Supreme Court in regard to the
/ appeal before taking up the cases fur
| Their. The Supreme Court told US that
| there might be a decision Tuesday. The
| members of the Grand Jury feel that
| they have assumed the responsibilities OF
a Grand Jury, and feel willing to con-
| tinue, but we do not think it our duty
| to find out whether these men were H.
| legally imprisoned or not We did moi
| think it fitting that we should investigate
| these cases"
Mr. Castle, a member of the jury: -
| would like TO say word. These, cases
| We're talked about and we were willing tC
| stay by the job until it was finished. W.
don't want to shirk any duty"
| II am glad to hear that" remarked
the court.
To the Clerk: Let me your re
port
The clerk to the Grand Jury returned
in few moments with the report. Tn,
| court then read to the official stenog
rapher for record the excerpt from tn
Grand Jury's report stating that the Su
preme Court will not give an opinion il
the habeas corpus matters until mex
week, this being statement attribute
to the Chief Justice
IF the court is making a portion of tn
Grand Jury's report a matter of recor
at this time" said Mr.. Cathcart Il ob
| ject The minutes of the Grand Jury ar
secret. absolutely inviolate and ought no
! be published"
l The court always has right to knoN
| what the Grand Jury is doing"
Il do not think the law gives tina
right. The minutes are sacred, not eve
the official clerk or stenographer is a
liberty to see them If this is to be mad
a matter of record the whole repor
/ should be given"
/ The court has right to know every
thing that the Grand Jury is doing. Thi
L is to be kept secret; it is not to be pub
| lished."
i Under the law all proceedings of tn
Grand Jury secret, inviolable. n
| one shall know anything of their delibeI
| atoms. Members of the Grand Jury car
| not even he called into court to teStif
| as to what transpres in the jury room.
| The court will take note of your OF
| lection
At this stage of the proceedings one ,
the other jurors spoke up, stating thu
the Grand Jury was about to take actio
in the habeas corpus matter; that the
L had been working on other cases al
| expected to reach these cases today
| The court will not require any furth
service of you" replied Judge Gear J
| soon as you have completed the wol
now in hand and signed the bills, y,
| may be excused. While the court h
| some doubt to the right to excuse "
/ over one day, until next Tuesday IL
will be done, the Attorney General a
4
you, gentlemen of the jury. for the wo
| done" The jury was then excused un
| Tuesday morning.
After the jury had left the room \
| Cathcart requested the privilege of q
| dressing the court, which was granted
IF the court please, | was brought
. fore the bar and fined for contempt.
. would like to explain why ! refused to
a sworn; not for the purpose of modifyi
the courts decision, but to place mys
= in a proper light If | offended the cou
& l desire to apologize. l declined to
4 sworn because | did not recognize
+ right of the court to put under GA
r | 1t seemed to me question of veraci
from what the court stated, between II
4 self and the Chief Justice of Hawaii
4 saw no reason for this cross examinat
7 or why ! should be put in a position
standing upon my own statement or p
4 | ting in question the statement of
+ Chief Justice. | do not understand tn
7 your honor l want to go on record
= not being disrespectful to this court, a
I the court ought to see that he should
4 put me, as Attorney General, in a pc
= ton where it is question of the Oh
= Justice classifying or of me deliberat
Z lying