The Washington times., 1922-03-26
u FEMlNlSM SAY MIXED JURIES ARE FATAL TO JUSTICE
HUNG PANELS
NOTED|N MANY
RECENT CASES

Frequency Makes Opponent.
Despair Of System as
Complete Failure.
"FATTY". TRIAL A SAMPLE
Splits Said to Occur Along One
line-Husbands of Women
Protest.
NEW YORK. March 25-Many
months ago, when the acquisition
OF "women's rights" spelled the
general Inauguration of juries com.
posed Of both sexes, those who 90
posed the feminist movement
warned that mixed juries would
prove fatal to justice, particularly
In criminal cases.
.. Controversy Arises.
The growing frequency of late OF
hung" or deadlocked, juries has
given these opponents the exultant
opportunity for recording their Il
told you sos" A sharp controv ersy
has already arisen over the merits
and dement's Of the mixed jury sys.
TEN, and not a few declare they are
now convinced that the system Is a
failure and never should have been
established. On the other hand, pro.
ponents Of the system demand moro
time in which to test II before pass.
ing final judgment.
One OF the most conspicuous cases
In which women were on juries that
could not reach a verdict is that Of
Roscoe c'Fatty'D Arbuckle, the noted
screen comedian, accused in San
francisco of granddaughter in the
death OF his party guest, Miss Vir.
ginia Rappe. motion picture actress.
Arbuckle's Third Jury.
Arbuckle's third trial is now under
way. In this jury there are five
women. In both previous trials
long elaboration could not effect a
verdict. Five women were in the
first dozen Of his supposed judges
and one of them, Mrs. Helen Hub.
bard. stood out for conviction and
made impossible the verdict Of &C
auittal that her eleven colleagues
were determined on returning. In
The second trial there were several
women on the jury. but the dead.
lock could not be ascribed to them,
IS the men jurors were also split.
IL In Arbuckle's third trial another
disagreement is reported 1t may be
q strong howl Of dismay will be ut.
tered by those who oppose women
as tenants of the jury box.
No Kennedy Verdict.
No less intense in its public inter-
est Is the case growing out Of the
murder In Los Angeles last August
OF j. Benton Kennedy. Arthur
Burch, accused Of shooting him, goes
to trial tomorrow for the secor d
time. His first trial, after mary
hours of deligeration, resulted N u
hopeless deadlock. Women were
among the Jurors. opponents Of the
mixed system remind the public 1t
Is likely that for his second trial
women will be chosen from among
the candidates for the jury. Is there
be embittered in the event this
group, too, reports a deadlock?
Closely related to this trial is the
case Of Mrs. Madelynne Obenchain,
sweetheart Of Kentucky, who is ac-
cused OF instigating Burch to shoot
him and Of accompanying Burch to
the murder scene and lighting for |
him the path Of the death-dealing |
bullet.
Her first trial, consuming many |
days Of testimony and many hours |
Of jury deliberations, also developed |
n disagreement, necessitating a sec
ond trial that will commence short
ly. In her case, too, women were
on the first jury and will be in the
panel from which the second jury
will be selected.
Two instances in the last several
days have served to emphasize this
problem and make it an issue among
those who debate the whole matter
of mixed juries. One was in st.
Paul, Mimi, and the other in Tren-
ton, N. j. Both attracted a coun-
try-wide interest and debate on the
question raised by the locking up
of these juries was widespread and
intense, in some cases quite bitter.
The st. Paul case was the more
spectacular because of the sensa
tional action taken by husbands OF
the women jurors. In this case, IN
which a man was accused of auto.
was eventually reached. But 1t took
Two whole days and nights of DELHI
eration to attain a decision, and dur
Ing the two nights the men and
women jurors were locked up to-
gether, to the intense indignation
IF the husbands, who filed formal
and vehement protest with Governor
Preus.
This jury included seven women.
Five OF them were married. Two of
hem were single.
One of the single members OF the
seven, Miss Grace Williams, had this
% say Of her experience on the two
Nights:
1--WE argued until late. Finally,
/ man yawned and said something
about going to bed. 1t was very
We had to put out
The lights and get ready for bed
IN tho dark. 1t was very incon- {
senient, but we did 1t. The next
night we had a thin curtain in be-
.ween the men and women and We I
we're less inconvenienced. The men I