Court Opinion

ID: 9581920
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-21 22:20:31.492742+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:37:20.725767
License: Public Domain

Hill, Justice,
dissenting.
I would approve the majority decision of the Court of Appeals affirming the ruling of the trial judge.
The Code section does not require in the first sentence that the demand be made while a jury is impaneled. That sentence says that the demand can be made during the indictment term or the next regular term. If not timely tried after making demand the defendant is entitled to be discharged provided there were juries impaneled and qualified to try him at the two prescribed terms. The majority moves the proviso which conditions the right of discharge and imposes it on the *490time for making demand.
Clearly, demand can be made under this Code section at the term when the indictment is returned. But the majority here would say that if the grand jury sits longer than the traverse jury, demand cannot be made at the indictment term unless a traverse jury is still impaneled and subject to recall. See DeKrasner v. State, 54 Ga. App. 41 (1) (187 SE 402) (1936). This to me is judicial revision of the law. I respectfully dissent.