The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1932-12-08
legal METHOD OF
OBTAINING JURORS:
OUTLINED BY LAW
Statute Contains Safeguards
Insuring Equal Representa-
ton to All Districts

Action of local attorneys In chal-
longing the jury panel for the De-
cember term of Burleigh county dis
trict court created considerable spec
ulation Wednesday regarding the le-
gal method of selecting names for
the jury box and of drawing names
from it to ascertain who should serve
on the jury panel.
Here is the method outlined by the
law:
The clerk of the district court is
the officer charged with keeping the
jury records and the jury box and
the law requires that it shall contain
the names of 200 persons at the time
any drawing is made If there is that
number of citizens in the county ELI
gible for jury duty.
When the number Of names in the
box falls below that figure, the clerk
is required to notify the county au-
ditor as secretary of the board of
county commissioners, which serves
as jury board in each county, ad-
vising him of the number of names
needed to bring the jury box up to
the legal requirements.
Law Is Specific
This request is transmitted by the
auditor to the commissioners, who
then are charged by law with appor-
tioning the number to be chosen to
the various voting districts in the
county "as nearly as may be on q
pro rata basis"
The county commission having
acted, the county auditor then mott
fies each political subdivision. of the
number of names required from it
Provision also is made for the selec-
ton of jurors from unorganized
townships.
Upon receipt Of such a request
each township board or the city COM
mission is required to post notices
that it will meet as jury board to
draw the names, giving the place and
time. Three times the number OF
names required from the area are
selected on the basis of qualifications
for jury service and placed in re-
ceptacle. The number of names
needed then are drawn out and the
list is sent to the county auditor as
the persons from that district eligi-
BILE for jury service. Local boards are
required to keep a record of the
names drawn but failure to do 50
does not invalidate the action.
This list ordinarily is sent to the
county auditor, who turns it over to
the clerk of court, but it frequently
happens that the list is sent to the
clerk direct.
When the lists are received, the
clerk enters the names In his jury
book and the names also are writ
ten on slips of paper. These are fold
ed and placed in the jury box.
Juries are drawn only upon order
of the judge of the district court
Within three days after the receipt
of such order, the clerk of court
county auditor, county treasurer and
sheriff meet together at the county
seat to draw from the jury box the
names of persons to serve on the jury
panel.
Clerk Records Names
After comparing the names in the
jury box with the jury list, the draw
ing IS made by having one of the
officers other than the clerk take
the names from the box by lot. The
clerk records the names of the jurors
in the order in which they are drawn
and when the number directed by
the judge to be obtained is complete
the drawing is finished.
Special provision is made for the
selection of jurors if, for any cause,
the panel of grand or petit jurors is
not complete, if no jury is drawn as
provided by law, or If all persons
summoned as jurors fail to appear.
In such cases the presiding Judge
orders the clerk to summon a SUI
ficient number of qualified persons
to complete the panel, specifying the
time and place where they shall ap-
pear. The clerk then convenes the
county board to obtain Jurors and
the board then selects the names Of
the required number of citizens ELI
gible to serve, such selection being
made by majority vote Of the
board. A venire then is issued for
the persons so selected and served
in the same manner as provided for
jurors of the regular panel.