284 



JURY. 



them.* The proceedings of the grand jury are, in 

 Uie first instance, at the instigation of the govern- 

 ment or other prosecutor, and are ex parte, and in 

 secret deliberation. The accused has no knowledge 

 of, nor right to interfere with, their proceedings. If 

 they find the accusation true (which is usually drawn 

 up in form by the public prosecutor), they write upon 

 the indictment the words " a true bill," which is 

 'signed by the foreman, or chief of the grand jury, 

 and is presented to the court publicly, and in the 

 presence of all the jurors. If the indictment is not 

 proved to the satisfaction of the grand jury, the word 

 " ignoramus'" (we are ignorant), or " not a true 

 bill," or " not found," is written on it by the grand 

 jury, or by their foreman, and it is then, in common 

 parlance, said to be ignored, and the accusation is 

 tli<inissed, as unfounded. When the grand jury 

 return an indictment as a true bill (billa vera), the 

 indictment is said to be found, and the party stands 

 indicted, and may be required to be put upon his 

 trial. When the indictment is not found, or is 

 declared to be not true, the accused, if he is in 

 custody, or has been in any way required to appear 

 at the court, and answer to any accusation against 

 him, is entitled to be discharged, or dismissed from 

 any further inquiry or attendance before the court. 

 Every public offence may be properly the subject of 

 nn indictment, and taken cognizance of by the grand 

 jury of the county within which it is committed. But 

 there is another mode of proceeding at the common 

 law, at the suit of the king, called an information, 

 which is similar to an indictment, except that it is 

 not found by the grand jury, and is filed, ex officio, by 

 the proper officer of the government. An informa- 

 tion cannot be filed except in cases of mere mis- 

 demeanors, or offences not capital ; for, whenever 

 any capital offence is charged against a party, he 

 cannot be put upon his trial unless the accusation be 

 made by the grand jury by indictment. 



IV. The Organization of the Grand Jury. The 

 functions being such as we have stated, it is obvious 

 that the duties require great care in the selection of 

 the persons who are to serve as grand jurors. A pre- 

 cept, commonly called a venire facias, issues to the 

 sheriff of every county, some time before any court 

 of criminal jurisdiction is held therein, requiring him 

 to summon twenty-four good and lawful men of his 

 county, to attend the court, to inquire into, and present 

 all offences committed within the body of the county. 

 At the common law, these grand jurors are required 

 to be freeholders of the county, and in England, where 

 the sheriff makes the selection, they are usually gen- 

 tlemen of the first respectability in the county. In 

 the United States of America, different modes pre- 

 vail in different states in the selection of grand jurors. 

 In some, the grand jurors are chosen, as in England, 

 by the sheriffs ; in others, as in the New England 

 States, the grand jurors are drawn by the town 

 officers, from boxes containing the names of all the 

 persons qualified to serve, from time to time, and in 

 such numbers as are required ; and the names so 

 drawn are returned to the sheriff, and by him to the 

 court. But, in whatever way the grand jurors are 

 selected, their names are returned on a piece of parch- 



There are no grand juries in Scotland, except in cases 

 f iiUh treason, where the law is similar to that of England. 

 In all other criminal trials, in Scotland, a number of jury. 

 men, not exceeding forty-five, is cited. Of this number 

 >ire chosen by the judge to sit upon each trial, the 

 prisoner being allowed to object to any of them upon good 

 ground*. It is not necessary that the jury be unanimous, 

 s in Kncland, in their verdict a majority being con- 

 sidered sufficient. Clergymen, surgeons, and butchers, are 

 exempted from the office of jurymen. See the article 

 Scotland, section Law. 



ment or paper, by the sheriff, which is called H 

 and as many of them as appear in court are sworn on 

 the grand jury, not exceeding twenty-three, so that 

 twelve may constitute a majority. Their oath is, 

 in substance, that they will diligently inquire and true 

 presentment make of all offences committed within 

 the county ; that the government's counsel, that of 

 their fellows, and their own, they will keep secret ; 

 that they will present no man for envy or malice ; 

 neither will they leave any one unrepresented from 

 fear, favour, affection, or hope of reward ; but that 

 they will present things truly as they come to their 

 knowledge, according to their best understanding. 

 Usually, the presiding judge of the court instructs 

 them in the matters which are within their jurisdic- 

 tion, by delivering to them a charge, containing a 

 summary of the offences and other business which 

 may come before them. They then retire to their 

 room, and sit, as has been said, in secret, hearing 

 evidence in favour of the prosecution only, as the 

 main question before them is, whether the party 

 accused ought to be put upon his trial to answer the 

 accusation. But they are always bound to act upon 

 legal evidence, and are instructed that they ought 

 not to find an indictment unless upon their oaths they 

 are persuaded, so far as the evidence goes, that the 

 accusation is true. It has been already stated, that the 

 grand jury is to inquire only into crimes committed in 

 the county for which they sit. And this is regularly 

 true at the common law, for no man was bound to 

 answer for any crime but before his peers in the 

 county and neighbourhood where it was committed. 

 But, by sundry statutes, both in Englandand America, 

 some offences, not committed within a county, have, 

 to prevent a defect of justice, been made cognizable 

 therein. To enumerate these offences would occupy 

 too large a space. There are proper powers vested 

 in the courts to compel the attendance of grand 

 jurors ; and if any are returned who are not qualified, 

 they may be excluded from the panel ; and if an 

 indictment be found by persons not qualified, the 

 accused may except to it on this account. Thus care- 

 ful has the law been, in the original selection of 

 grand jurors, who are supposed, and indeed required, 

 to be men of integrity, impartiality and intelligence, 

 and above all just objection. And thus a body of 

 men, brought together for the occasion, and for that 

 only, are placed between the government and the 

 citizen, as a shield against oppression and injury, and 

 to afford a reasonable protection to him, if he be not 

 justly suspected of a crime. 



V. As to Petty or Petit Juries, or, as they are 

 sometimes called, Traverse Juries. These consist, 

 as has been already said, of twelve persons, and no 

 more, for the trial of all criminal offences, and of all 

 issues of fact in civil cases at the common law. 

 There are some peculiar modes of trial by jury in 

 England, where a larger number than twelve is 

 required, which may be called the extraordinary trial 

 by jury; as, for instance, a grand assize for the trial of 

 issues in writs of right, which consists of four knights 

 and twelve other persons ; and the jury of attaint, to 

 convict a former jury of a corrupt verdict, which con- 

 sists of twenty-fowr jurors. But these modes of trial 

 are, at present, wholly disused in America ; and, in 

 England,thatof a jury ofattaint has fallen into neglect, 

 since the general use of the remedy of moving for a 

 new trial, where the verdict is unsatisfactory. And 

 first, as to the trial by jury in civil cases. This is 

 generally confined to issues of fact in proceedings at 

 common law, as contra-distinguished from proceed- 

 ings in equity and admiralty. When, then, the parties 

 have, in their written pleadings, or allegations, come 

 to a fact which is denied on one side, and affirmed 

 . on the other, in a regular mode, the cause is said to 



