The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1905-01-20


of the county attorneys. Twenty three
men come together from all parts of
the county. Each may have an mixing
of information that the others do not
know about. Each can make known his
suspicious, and thus a great number
of malfactors brought to the attention
of the court, who might escape, if the
matter of bringing them to trial should
be entirely left to one man.
w. X. Geddes regards the grand jury
as the safest and most conservative ele-
ment in the whole judicial system. 1t
Sits out cases that amount to moth
| ing. 1t keeps quiet what ought to be
kept quiet and makes public what ought
jury, any man could be brought to trial
before petit jury on the sworn state
ment of one man. The constitutional
amendment that gave the legislature the
power of abolishing grand juries car
ried, he thinks, because the people didn't
know what they were voting upon, the
language ON the ballot being very mex
plicit.
Evan Hughes thinks that to abolish
the grand jury puts too much power in
the hands of the county attorney. The
grand jury, as the law stands, can COM
pei the county attorney to act. If the
county attorney will not proceed against
a certain party of whom complaint is
made to him, the aggrieved person can
carry his complaint directly to the grand
jury, which can take the matter up and
say to the county attorney. "You do"
so and so. Such cases are by no means
rare. Furthermore the grand jury, by
its periodical investigation of the run
ming of the county Jail and other coun-
ty Institutions, tends to keep these in
stitutions running in good order Mr.
Hughes voted against the amendment
and was surprised that it carried. He
does not believe that the people realized
what they were voting upon.
W. L. Comstock is also decidedly OPP
posed to the abolition of the grand jury
Such would be an exceedingly dangerous
measure. 1t would place entirely too
much power in the hands of the county
attorney. The grand jury is body that
is free from politics. It's ballots and
deliberations are secret. 1t can summon
witnesses from any part of the state
1t can take the initiative in any case
1t can exclude the county attorney at
any time from the sessions. 1t is indie
pendent 1t is comparatively free from
such powerful influences that corrupt
county attorneys and judges. County
attorneys would be given chance to
reap rich harvests, if the grand jury
should be abolished Moreover the grand
jury keeps an eye on the general con-
duct of public affairs and tends to keep
things straight.
w w. Smith is willing to see the
grand jury abolished altogether That
body takes responsibility out of the
hands of the county attorney. The ooun-
.ty attorney can use his influence to
keep the jury from indicating a friend
Of his and then say it was not his fault
that the man was not brought to trial,
because the grand jury would not in
dict him. Moreover the grand jury
makes considerable expense that might
as well be avoided. Let an accused man
be simply held for trial instead of be-
r. S. Jones, who was for three years
a praticing attorney at law at Portage,
Wis, favors the adoption of the Wis
consin system in this state. Little use
is made of grand Jurles in the state of
Wisconsin. Yet the circuit judge, cor
responding to the district Judge in this
state, can summon special grand jury
whenever he deems it eXpedient. As a
rule an accused man has his preliminary
hearing before justice of the peace
OF municipal judge, by whom he may be
bound over to the next term of the court
of competent jurisdiction. If district
attorney fails to proceed against Grim
inal of whom complaint is made to him,
the aggrieved party may file his COM
plant with the circuit Judge, who may
of his own motion order the clerk of
the court to file the information and an
arrest follows in due time. The pres
ent system of indictment in the state
has been found to work very well. Re-
Gently some bribery scandals were un-
earthed by district attorneys among the
aldermen of Milwaukee and Green Bay,
and number of culprits were convicted
and sent to prison, without the help of
any grand jury. The Wisconsin people
are well satisfied without periodical set
tings of grand juries, and get along just
as well without them The Wisconsin
system has been in vogue a number of
years and has been thoroughly tried.