The Honolulu republican. [volume] (Honolulu, T.H.) 1900-1902, 1901-02-06
suMmoslne JURORS.

No better Illustration OF the need u
legislation providing a system Of draw
ing Jurors is needed than the manner
Of summoning the grand ana trial jur-
ors for The present term Of the Cir
cui, Court by High Sheriff Brown
There must be q system providing for
the selection Of not less than 100
names from the electoral rolls each
year for service as grand Jurors and
not less than three hundred for ser
vice IS trial jurors Out Of these
lists the grand and trial Jurors for
each term should be drawn by officials
to be named for the purpose The Sc
lection OF the iuries FOR the present
term Of court would indicate either
gross favoritism or a desire on the
part OF the High Sheriff TO summon
only those men who could be summon
ed the most easily
The Organic Act provides that any
citizen OF the L. s. over tgenty-one
years old who can speak. read and
write the English language shall he
eligible as a juror. There are hun
dreds Of natives on the Island Of Oahu
who fulfill these requirements yet III
summoning the jurors for the present
term Of court. the same as was the
case at the last August term, natives
were almost entirely omitted. the
population Of the Island Of Oahu is in
round figures sixty thousand of which
less than forty thousand live within
the district comprising what is term
ed the city OF Honolulu. Yet despite
lis fact in summonIng twenty-four
men for grand jury duty High Sheriff
Brown failed TO summon one man who
did not live within the limits of the
city OF Honolulu. The twenty thous
and inhabitants of the rest OF the
island were denied representation pp-
on the grand jury ~ the High Sherln.
We fail TO understand why residents
of the rest of the island of Oahu are
not just as competent for jury duty
as are the people residing within the
city.
In one instance two men from the
same business house were summoned
to serve upon the grand jury while
in several other instances one repre-
sentative of a firm was summoned TO
serve upon the grand jury and one or
more members of the same rirm su2l-
moned to serve upon the trial jury.
Two men from the Office of Henry
Warehouse & Co. were summoned for
grand jury duty as though there was
a dearth of citizens for such work.
4 rank Brown of the Hawaiian Wine
Company was summoned for duty on
the grand jury and one of his clerks
summoned upon the trial jury. James
Gordon Spencer, of the Pacific Hard
ware Company, was summoned tor
/ duty on the grand jury ana book
keeper and one clerk from the same
house summoned upon the trial jury.
Here are men taken from the down
town business houses all within two
locks of the High Sheriff's Office
while hundreds of citizens in other
/ parts OF the city are ignored. Not
| only that but the thousands of resi-
dents of other parts of the Island. but
who live some distance from the High
| Sheriff's office, were not noticed in
! selecting the men 10 examine into
puUnc affairs and to sit in trials If
cases in which their fellow citizens
are lItigants.
Outlines in the trial of a case II
/ becomes necessary to issue a special
/ yenire. in which cases t becomes
/ necessary for the Sheriff to select
/ jurors from the residents first at
hand. but there is no excuse for this
in summoning the jurors for the Gper-
ing of a regular term of court. The
venire is issued 10 the High Sheriff
in ample time for him to summon jury.
men from all parts of the Island and
from ali walks of life. In the light
of the ugly stories concerning the
High Sheriff's relation TO the polics
protected dens of vice at lwilei, his
action in only summoning men with
whom he is in daily contact, looks bad
70 say the least