The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-07-07

. wrong. and the natural result Is that he concocts a plan, he gets his witnesses and goes into court, and per5ures him- self and thereby causes the downfall or possibly an innocent man, ana yet, gen tlemen of the Convention. the majority of the committee gays that that man shall not be put on notice as 10 what he is expected to prove or to defeno. Let us see the other side. The State of Alabama brings an ejectment suit aRainst a man. The complaint Is tileo and served upon the defendant. lie E put on notice as to what he Is expected to defend against Why should tne State not be so generous as to crimin- ais? say, MT. President, that II tnis is inserted. that many man who is innocent of any soffense Will nave .ns right and the pfivilege of summoninS witnesses that will prove to the courts that he is innocent.
 Now, let us take another proposition, gentlemen of the Convention, and dare say there is not practicing law yer in this Convention who has hot gone up against the same proposition. A man is charged with an offense, ana when he gets into court he has possipiy one Or two absent witnesses. He ,s forced to a trial by being put on a showing, He makes his showing, ana he submits 1t to the solicitor, who &C., cepts it. In that showing it contains Il statement of one time and place, anu the solicitor. gentlemen of the Con 'eh- ton, will prove another time and ah- other place. What is the result? mere Is d man that stands before the par or justice without a single witness 10 speak in his behalf, and the result IS ha ct nd n his own behalf and the law says thai his testimony shull be weighed in the light of the interest he has in the re- suit of the trial
 l say gentlemen. that it is an ln)uS- tice to force man to go into court. and not allow him to know what he Is expected to defend.
 MT. smith (Mobile)-Upon theory it looks as if there were merit in the rnl- nority report. but any lawyer who has had experience in the criminal coufis for any considerable length of time knows that to put that section in there will be a stumbling block to the prose cution in at least two-thirds of the cases. 1 am not now interested in the criminal practice. l have had no con- nection with that practice since 1893. but prior to that time was in the criminal
  1t was open. was the representative of a number of defendants. but never prosecuted a man in my life. and 1 un- hssitatingly say that if that law hac been in effect l should. regardless ot every other question of evidence. have bnen able to have acquitted at least o' per cent. Of the men 1 defended. upoi that and that alone. It matters no' what question arises, there will ba di- vergency between witnesses as to mi mute particulars. There will be di vergency between the with asses espec tally as to a question of time. and al though the testimony may satisfy thoS' that hear 1t that each witness is reall! speaking in regard to the same occas | ton. yet when you come to faSten thei testimony upon the ra!ticulir time | there will be such a dlVergeacy that tn testimony will not be considered. Now when the question is before the Grant ! Jury there are several witnesses, am | tboseEeveral witnesses testify substan | italy to the same transaction. but the. | do differ in the detail as to the particr! 1 lar circumstances, or the particula place, or the particular time. Unde | this rule the Grand Jury must locat upon that hearing, the particular timc After the Grand Jury has heard tn case. found the indictment. and tn man is put upon trial, the several wit neases get together, under the rule o not. and discuss the matter, and tn | man upon whose tcstim )ny the pai t.cu l lar time has lrcen fixed is convince by the other witnesses that he is i | error as to that particular instance. O | that particular minute, and upon tn trial the caes is thrown out. Now, ,.aII in han a cases of innocent men tried where was impossible for me to locate tn particular time and place of the charge I those instances were so very very fe' that I do not now recall a single on that occuYfed during my practice. Ger tainly where that was the case, ther l was not sufficient evidence of the sut stantive facts to get a conviction.
 certainly never represented man tha | was convicted of a crime, the time an | place and circumstances of which h | did not know in advance. Once ( twice. as I said bcfore ave Gcfen ed men who did rot know e-i.ct!y' "a they were charged with. hu. the res < always was that the witnesses Gil nC know either and the man Wa
 readily acquitted, without more tAa
 the form of q trial
 
 rule as here laid down is apparent
 reasonable in practice. 1t wi! tend 1
 defeat justice and enable more men 1
 be cleared upon technicalities tha
 already aVoie the law upon sue
 grounds, and my experience is th1
 there is now an abundance Of thla
 who are guilty, and know they al
 guilty, that avoid conviction u2o
 technicalities. which serves no GoJ
 purpose to the State.
 Mr. Wilson (Washing
 reason for alleging the time and p.at
 in any prosecution, criminal or clVi
 prew up centuries ago. Sprung u
 when the juries were selected from
 particu!ar vicinity out of which tF
 i;tigat;on came under the idea that L!
 men from that community knew no
 ahout fl than anyoody else, and the | were selected not to try the case C
 the evidence irnpartiaily, but to try
 from their personal knoWIeoSe CT t1 facts. hence the necessity TOT a4leS!s
 the place. It was essential 10 anet the time in order to enable the She!- 10 select jurors. who were ln the cyii
 Inunitv at the time that the l.tiSat4- sprunE up. MT. President. that aAS-
 nas ceased to be for over SuO years
 addition to this. Mir. President. eol.li. eown to the present oay why should defendant be served with notiNe the exact time and place of the r1i'
 mission of the alleged offenseE It aii in indictments for carrying c2'
 coaled weapons that the state ni2 | simply allege one carrying and ml
 prove another. but as said by the se' .!anlan from Mobile. case ot that ki' will not arise in one ease out oi thousand. MT. President. the solicit