Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-11-15
Fifty Years Ago
In The Star

THE question Of Jurisdiction in Gui-
teau's case" says The Star of Novem-
Competency for has been a fruitful
Guiteau Jury. s sion t 81 ui5SoSt
the country is now supplemented by
the doubt raised whether a jury can
be obtained in the District of Column
bia to try him. A paragraph is afloat
in the press to the effect that Judge
Wylie has expressed the opinion that
q jury cannot be impaneled to try Gui-
teau until Congress alters the law in
force here, which disqualifieS any one
from serving on jury in q criminal
case who has formed or expressed an
opinion as to the guilt of the accused
or read any newspaper discussion of
the subject This paragraph induces
the editor of a Cincinnati paper to
say that If there Is any law or usage
in the administration Of the law that
prevents the punishment of Guiteau
the sooner he is waited upon by a
vigilance committee the better. It is
quite certain from Judge Wylie's rul-
ings as criminal judge that he holds
that man who has not formed and
expressed an inflexible opinion on the
subject of the guilt or innocence of the
accused is competent juror, notwith-
standing he may have read any num-
Der of newspaper articles on the SUBJ
ject. 1t would appear also that Judge
Wylie does not hold that a man is dis
qualified from being juror simply be-
cause he has expressed an opinion, as
that expression may have been in the
way CT jest. The law reads that
those who have formed and-not or
expressed an opinion are disqualified
There Is no statute law here as to
the competency of jurors-that in
force being the common law and what
custom and usage have made. It is
the theory Of the law that a juror
must go into the box with an impair
tial mind, free for such impressions as
may be made upon 1t by the evidence.
The rule as laid down by Chief JUS
tice Marshall in the trial of Aaron
Burr, that no one who has formed
and expressed an opinion as to the
guilt or innocence of the accused was
competent to sit upon the jury, is re-
garded as the law. Our judges have,
however, been in the habit of constru-
ing this rule in the largest and most
enlightened sense possible, and in
Judge Crawford's time, in the case of
Herbert who killed Heating at Will
lard's Hotel, one juror was impaneled
on the third trial-which resulted in
an acquittal-who had on the first
trial heard the evidence and was firm
in his opinion as to the guilt of the
accused and who had not heard testi-
mony in the second trial nor what was
to be offered in the third. The general
custom in our courts seems to be, first,
to ask as to the formation and ex-
preston of an opinion. If the an
swer be Affirmative, the next question
is: Was that opinion formed from
the facts and testimony or from ru-
mor?' If the juror answers from the
facts and that he has still that opin-
ion he is told to stand aside. If the
juror answers that his opinion
amounts only to impressions which
would yield to facts he Is declared
competent.
THE latest ruling on the subject
was made in the case Of Bedford,
Queenan and Pinn, convicted of the
murder of young Hirth, decided in a
general term. Judge Hagner'S ruling,
in deciding juror competent after
he had stated that he had an opinion,
hut that that opinion would not pre-
vent him from rendering a fair. and
impartial verdict, on the evidence adj
the general term. The ruling was sus-
tanned in the general term and doubt
less will be the rule hereafter.
I'm the case of Guiteau it will. of
course, be difficult If not impossible to
find jurors who have not formed and
expressed an opinion in regard to the
assassination of President Garfield.
But it is probable that II further ques-
toned q sufficient number for jury
duty could be found who would be able
to give an impartial verdict on the
evidence and law, as to malice, in
sanity etc But, in any event, the
task of getting jury In this case is
likely to be protracted one and the
need Of some legislation in the matter
of jurors qualifications in this Dis
trict will present itself to Congress at
the coming session with peculiar force
I'm New York State the common
law In regard to jurors has been
amended so that intelligent men who
read newspapers and are capable of
forming and expressing opinions are