The Hawaiian gazette., 1903-11-13
GRAND JURY BEGINS
INQUEST ON ELECTION
Foreman Parker Asks if the Attorney General
Can Be Excluded and Judg Gear Answers
That He Can if Desired.

opportunity of examining them. The
statement made about the Attorney
General and his department. with the
petition for investigation, had been
withdrawn and, so far as the court
understood, the Attorney General was
not connected with the charges. 1t
might be proper in some cases, not
to have the Attorney General there.
He supposed the Attorney Genral did
not object to the grand jury's exam
lining into the matter without the At
torney Generals presence.
SHOULD RECOGNIZE HONESTY.
Deputy Attorney General Peters sta
ted that the request of the foreman
for instructions on this point was d
proper one and came within the courts
province for consideration. So Tar as
the law was concerned, it was per-
fectly proper for the grand jury to re-
quest his presence or desire his alb
sence, but the speaker thought that
the request, as well as the instructions
of the court in answering it, should
at least take into consideration the
honesty of the Attorney Generals de-
partment and it's desire to investigate
the matter fearlessly and honestly.
jury might act on it's own hook. to
which Mr.. Peters responded that such
was the law.
A JURORS MISGIVINGS.
A grand juror here asked the court
to have the number of the panel in
creased to twenty-five or twenty-three
members. There We're Home Rulers,
Republicans and Democrats on the
present small panel. this juror said, and
three men might stand out and pre-
vent an indictment.
Judge Gear answered that If any
one man or any three men on that
grand jury We're capable of disregard
ing their oath, let them say so and
they would he excused from further
service on the grand jury. He called
on them, If any of them would con-
slider his own party in the investiga-
ton, to say so. None of the grand
jurors responded.
COULD NOT CONVICT.
Continuing, the court said that the
grand jury could not convict anybody.
A man had to be tried, to be convicted !
or acquitted, by a jury after he was
brought into court under an Indictment |
The grand jury were not to pass on
the guilt or innocence of a party, but
to decide whether there was probable |
cause to believe that he committed the
offense on the ex parte evidence before ,
them. If twelve or fourteen men could
not agree, it was better to let the
man go.
CROWD IN ATTENDANCE.
With three jury courts in session and
about hundred witnesses subpoena
I'd for the grand jury, there was a
great crowd damned about the en-
rance as well as inside Judge Gears
'ourt room when the charge was being
delivered. Many natives without COM
'ulsion to attendance at court swelled
he throng
FREEDOM TO WITNESSES.
Shortly after the grand jury retired
o the Supreme Court room, Deputy
Attorney General Peters came out and
eleased a number of witnesses until
allied by messenger or telephone
mis- regard for the time of busy men
vas much appreciated. Several wit
esses We're called in during the after
Don.
THE INTERRUPTED.
iIloib we Witnesses
we're not the most serious looking of
he multitude. One of them said he
ad no objection 10 testifying to all
e knew about unlawful practices, as
is testimony in that regard was IL ,
BILE to send at least one Home Rule ,
olitician on the reef.
SHOULD BE DISQUALIFIED.
There was considerable adverse COM
lent on the outside regarding the abb
ence of an order to disqhalffy the de- '
lated Home Rule candidates on the e
rand jury from sitting in the election r
lvestigation. There are two OF them
Charles w. Booth and Chas. Wilcox
on the panel.