The age-herald., 1901-07-07


 worship or for maintaining any ministed
 or ministry; that no religious test shall
 be required as qualification to any off, ce or public trust, under this State; and
 that the civil rights. privileges and ca
 pacities of any citizen shall not be in any manner affected by his religious princi- pies.
 Liberty of the Press.
 Section was then adopted as follows: Section 5. That no law shall ever be
 passed to curtail or restrain the liberty
 of speech or of the press; and any per
 son may speak, write and publish his
 sentiments on all subjects, being respon-
 sible for the abuse of that liberty.
 Section was then adopted and read, as follows:
 G. That the people shall be secure in their persons, houses, papers and posses sions from unreasonable seizures or searches, and that no warrant shall issue to search any place or to seize any person
 or thing without probable cause, sup ported by oath or affirmation Section Seven. Section 2, which regulated the rights of defendants in criminal cases, was then
 taken up. There was a minority report to this section by MT. Barefield, which re- quired the time and place where a crime
 was committed to be stated with reason-
 able certainty in te indictment. | MT Barefield spoke in favor of his amendment, saying that defendant was entitled to be put on notice as to the time | and place of the offense which he was to I be tried for.
 | MT. Smith of Mobile said if the minor | ity report was adopted it would put a stumbling block in the way of two-thirds of the criminal prosecutions. He spoke l of his own experience In the criminal courts, and said if this law had been in | effect he could have acquitted fully 50 per | cent of his cases on this one point alone | Testimony of witnesses varied as to time, | although they were all referring to the | same event.
 | MT Wilson of Washington asked why
 defendant at the present day should be served with a notice of the time and place | of the alleged offense. To adopt this pro- vision carries with it the idea that the | State must furnish the defendant with an abstract of the evidence to be used l against him. It would open the doors to I fraud and perjury. It was as easy to prove an alibi against time as place | MT Williams of Marengo said it was I better to throw open the doors of perjury and bribery rather than have the doors of | the penitentiary close on too many inno- cent persons. His friend, MT. Wilson, who was solicitor looked at the matter I from one standpoint, while he looked at | it from another. In civil cases the time and place are fixed, and why not fix them | in criminaa cases?
 ] l.Tf iA..r of Chambers said he could act see any .s1od reason why this amendment should not be adopted. Why should not | man whose life or liberty might be | taken from him be put on notice of the | time and place of the offense he is charged with committing? How is the defendant | to know except from the indictment? He | cited a case where he was prosecuting g. defendant for carrying concealed weap- ons and on the defendant stating to him | that the prosecutor would not tell him anything about when the offense oc- | cured he told him and gave him coll | tinuance in order that he might E.t up | his evidence.
 Minority Report Tabled. | MT. Reese of Dallas moved to table the minority report This was done by vote
 of 56 to 36.
 MT. Reese then moved to amend the sec | ton by allowing the judge to clear the | court room of all persons not engaged | in. the trial, in cases of rape and similar
 cases. MT. Espy of Henry moved to lay | the amendment on the table. This was
 done by a vote of 57 to 34.
 Judge Walker of Madison moved to
 strike out that part of the section which
 allowed a defendant to make application for a change of venue without being per-
 sonally present. Judge Walker said this | was a dangerous innovation in our law. | A defendant, for instance, might be in | Texas on trial and if his application for | change of venue was denied he might | elect to stay there. It was good common | law doctrine that person asking relief
 of court should be present in the court MT. Fitts of Tuscaloosa said 1t was an | innovation but that it had been well con-
 sdered by the committee. It did not | provide that a fugitive from justice could | apply for change of venue but it was | only provision to avoid lynching which l was more apt to occur at the first appear | ance of the defendant.
 | Judge Coleman of Greene moved to | amend the section by adding a proviso | that the defendant should be in jail at the
 time his application for change of venue
 was made. This proviso was accepted by the committee.
 Section Seven.
 Section was then adopted as follows: Section 2. That in all criminal prosecu- tions the accused has a right to be heard
 by himself and counsel for either; to demand the nature and cause of the &C., cusation; to have copy thereof; to be confronted by the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor; to testify in all cases, in his own behalf, If he elects so to do; and, in all prosecutions by indict- | 'nent speedy public trial by an impartial jury of the county or district in which the
 offense was committed and that he shall
 not be compelled to give evidence against
 himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty
 or property. but by due process of law.
 but the general assembly may by a gen.
 eral law, provide for change of venue for the defendant in all prosecutions by indictment, and that such change of venue
 on application of the defendant may be
 heaxd and determined without the per sonal presence of the defendant so apply ing therefor; provided, that at the time of such application the defendant shall be confined in jail.
 Section Eight. Section was then adopted as follows; Section 8. That no person shall be ac- cused or arrested or detained except in cases ascertained by law and according to the form which the same has pre- scribed; and no person shall be punished
 but by virtue of a law established and
 promulgated prior to the offense and le-
 gally applied
 Section Nine.
 Section 9 was then taken up, which
 reads as follows:
 Section g. That no person shall, for any
 indictable offense be proceeded against
 criminally by information except in cases
 arising in the militia and volunteer forces
 when in actual service or by leave of the
 court. for malfeasance, misdemeanor, ex-
 tortion and onpression in office otheruyisa