The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-08-15

thukS the SheffnS have been oefeilct, suspend them from office? The argu- ment in support of the proposition has been more by way of ills stration than directly upon the point For instance, as an illustration to say that h busi- ness man in any employment. ana that 1t Is necessary in conducting his Dusi- ness properly. to have the power and the authoritw to suspend or dismiss any employee. Mr. President. that has no bearing upon the question. NO em- ployer would be apt to lismlss an em- ployte. and after he had dismissed him. then examine to see 1T he had right to dismiss him. There Is where the argument Is faulty. In this case the proposition is to dismiss him. ana after he is dismissed to go ana see whether he has done wrong. and that Is the argument That is the language which you will find in this report.
 MT. Browne-Under the provisions oi the measure. suppose the Governor sus- bends a Sheriff, pending an impeach- ment. and he remains suspended SIX months or a year During that time. the Sheriff receives no fees, l suppose Some other officer receives them. IS there any provision to reimburse him. if he has been suspended on an i'm proper ground, or impeached. and not sustained?
 Mir. Coleman-Of course. those points are to be taken up. propose at this time to call attention to the argument made in support of the proposition The next argument was that since lSlS a Governor has been subject to suspen- sion during Impeachment. If there IS any force in the argument growing out of the conditions or provisions of the statutes in 1919. the same force shouid be applied to that of sherlns. mas much as since 1919. down to this good time. there has been no such provision in our law suspending Sfferiff. You see what kind of an argument when it is sifted and examined. has been made It is further said that the soli- | citor Is suspended. but has the gem | tleman cited you any law or can he find any. where solicitor was suspend l ed until after he was impeached ana during trial9
 MT. Jones-My argument was when solicitor was indicted. I didn't say im- peached.
 MT. Coleman--Of course. the Cover nor is impeached or suspended, but the Governor Is not suspended until he IS | impeached before the Senate.
 Mir. Joncs-will my friend permit another question? Under the present stautes of Alabama, has not the Gov 1 e, TOT the power to order sheriffs i'm peached on an information filed by the Attorney-General under the present | laws?
 1 MT. Coleman-I am answering your | arguments Yes sir but has not under | the present law the Governor the power to suspend him before hc IS impeached.
 Mr. Jones-Of course not.
 | MT. Coleman-That Is your argu- ment. you want to justify his suspen- sion before impeachment.
 Mir. Jones-Before trial--
 MT. Coleman-Please do not interrupt me. I have you argument and will meet 1t fairly, even if I make a mis- ! take in doing 1t. A solicitor Is never suspended until after an indictment. I In this instance. 1t !s proposed to sus- l pend hiph even without impeachment 1 or ndictmept, and Mr. President and delegates of this Convention. 1t goes i farther. With any other criminal, no matter how heinous an offense he has committed. the presumptionAof law all the way through Is that he Is an inno- cent man until proven guilty. but in this case the gentleman proposes to reverse the only rule which has ever received universal approbatione by de- l claring that the sheriff Is guilty with l ment upon him in the first instance, 1t is wholly untenable: 1t is not right in l principle, and no argument can be 1 brought to sustain it when properly examined. The citation from Judge Manning does not bear him out or have anything to do with it whatever. Of course. when the Legislature creates an office and the office is abolished and the man Is removed from 1t. the office goes, but whoever heard of taking an office from a man. except In the one instance where something of the kind was attempted to be done up here in Jefferson, but in law, whoever heard of an office being taken from a man with out a charge or trial or anything of the kind Now, MT. President and dele gates of ths Convention it has been said that it was impossible for the State to have a fair trial at the home of the sheriff. His influence with the jury would be so great that justice | could not be done. MT. President. you have taken him away from his home, you have brought him to Montgomery now, he has no jury. he is to be tried here. Why then go farther and in-
 iict upon him unnecessary, unusual | prohibitions or burdens in addition to these? You have selected one officer alone out of all the State officers of l that kind and he Is the only one of 1 them that you propose to suspend upon the opinion of the Governor without even charge being formulated. But | 1t Is said, Mir. President. that in view l of the grave offenses that are being perpetrated in our land, it Is necessary to hold this threat over the sheriffs of 1 the State. I am no man to advocate mob law, and in fact will go as far as the farthest to suppress it, but you will remember 1t is the common law, whether the written law of this State. that when man trespasses upon your domestic family, and your wife or daughter Is defiled or seduced. he is justified from one end of this land to the other. when he resorts to the shot gun. Those men are all justified and doubt whether anybody in this House would rise and say that in a case nf that kind the man would not be justified in resorting to violence. You would justify such a case IS that. but when such an occasion of this. in St. Clair County arises. beautiful young lady trying to prepare herself for school, returning home Is overtaken left for dead. in a pond. and when she revives and go towards home. with her clothes torn from her body, then 1t Is the mob who with the father rises and would vndcate the wrong done his family In one instance. the argument is right My time is up. but ! am not half through.