Iditarod pioneer., 1912-02-03
DUTIES OF 4 GRAND JURY

What part should grand jury play in the admnistra- on of ustice What are it's duties the and ima
 on of its powers! These questions probably have never been answered. could be answered in toto and to t satisfaction of all concerned. There has always been notion that grand jury is extraordinary body having wide latitude in dealing with things that pertain to the public veal and that it is less independent of the rules and modes of procedure followed by the regular officials in charge of the administration of ustce Viewed in this light a grand jury may perform whoesome and necessary function by striking balance between pulp
 lie opinion on one hand, and aght-backed, nfexblt rules of action by court officials the other Incidentally it may be said that coroners jury has supposed parta1e largely of the nature of grand jury differ being that its duties do beyond the limits of the particular has been summoned nvest gate
 The Pioneer is not in position to lay down the law these matters The bestnformed lawyers might find in such task room for important differences. One thing i obvious, however, if grand jury has purpose to except to carry the wishes and instructions of the dis rct attorney, then it is useless piece of machinery ought to be relegaed to the scrapheap. Twenyfour assembled to act in merely pelfunctory capacity useless ness eXemplied two dozen times.
 Having proceeded thus far into the subject the thing in order to inquire what the different grand prie> in this division have done to justify themselves public institutions Ii they have ever taken the initiative in bringing voatOrs of the law to justice the public is of it. Their indictments of parties first proceeded against by regular officials and coming before the grand jury through official routine. It may well be believed the district attorney says ndct they inct and if he say dismiss, they dismiss It may be admitted that il most instances the district attorney directs them rightly well. But wherefore the grand jury all if its view be narrowed to the focus of mans sight For instance why did the grand jury feel justified in ndictng lon house for selling bottle of whisky when dozens of house right under the jury eyes engaging in the knC Of traffic under the kind of license? The contention is logical that if the jury indicted it should have in diced all who equally and openly engaged n the acts It not incumbent upon the grand jury to asss the district attorney in trying experiment upon dog Ito hOney figure of speech mpersonal in relation " the outcome of which if may take several seasons determine. It may turn out that the district attorney correct in his interpretation of the retail liquor lawanO then it may not. But what business of the grand jury is to allow itself to be used fail to thrash mustS heaps of legal straw?
 This particular liquor that originated under the directions of the district attorney in the spring of 190 is freely admitted, is the for the foregoing remarks While c. 4. Munro and others were being proceedeo against and prohibited from selling liquor by the bottle Tanana at Fairbanks under the of the district ney the kind of sale under the same kind license dows and in newspapers gave the prices of liquors by the bottle. Not only that but large quantities of liquors bought at Far anks and sold under license all along the Ianana and Yukon rivers One left Fairbanks with two or three barrels of whisky which sold the way down stream. This matter of general knowledge Officials at least heard of it. If the district attor entirely unknowing to it argues aloofness his part from the life of his resident city, Mem bers of succeeding grand ures of them have had nklng of the truth There instance where grand jury could at least have called attention to wrong, but did not.
 Grand uries in this division have done their full