JURORS. AN ACT concerning Grand and Petit Jurors. SEC. 1. Be it enacted by the Council and House of Representatives of the Territory of Iowa, That all per- Who shall sons who are qualified electors, in this Territory, serve as jurors. shall be liable to serve as jurors, in their respective counties, as hereinafter provided. The following persons shall be exempt from serving as jurors, to wit: The Governor, Secretary of the Territory, Judges Who shall be of the supreme and district courts, county commis- exempt from sioners, county treasurers, clerks of the supreme and such service. district courts, and clerks of the boards of county commissioners, judges of probate, sheriffs, under sheriffs, and deputy sheriffs, coroners, constables, the marshal of the United States, and his deputies, counselors and attorneys at law, ministers of the gospel, officers of colleges, (not including trustees or directors thereof,) and preceptors and teachers of incorporated academies or universities, and one teacher in each common school, practising physicians, and surgeons, and all persons more than sixty years of age, together with all persons not of sound mind or discretion and subject to any bodily infirmity, amounting to any disability, and all persons shall be disqualified from serving as jurors who have been convicted of any infamous crime. SEC. 2. That it shall be the duty of the county Duties of councommissioners in each of the counties of this Terri- ty commissiontory, wherein a district court is directed to be held, ers. at least thirty days previous to the sitting of said court, to select twenty-three persons possessing the qualifications aforesaid, in their respective counties, and to deliver an attested copy of the names so Duty of the selected within three days thereafter to the clerk of clerk of district the district court, of the proper county, who shall court thereupon issue and deliver to the sheriff of the county a venire, or summons, under the seal of the court, commanding him to summon the persons so Duty of sheriff. selected as aforesaid to appear before the said court, at or before the hour of eleven o'clock, A. M., on the first day of the term thereof, to serve as grand Grand Jury. jurors, any sixteen of whom shall be sufficient to constitute a grand jury, which said summons shall be Summons to served at least five days previous to the sitting of said jurors how and court either by reading it to the person to be sum-when served. moned, or by leaving an attested copy thereof at his usual place of residence. duties. ments. Foreman of SEC. 3. After the grand jury is empaneled it shall grand jury. be the duty of the court to appoint a foreman, who His powers and shall have power to swear, or affirm, all witnesses to testify before said grand jury, and whose duty it shall be, when the grand jury, or any twelve of them, shall Bills of indict find a bill of indictment, to be supported by good and sufficient evidence, to endorse thereon "a true bill," and when they do not find a bill to be supported by sufficient evidence, to endorse thereon "not a true bill," and shall, in either case, be signed by the foreman at the foot of the endorsement, and shall, in all cases, where a true bill is returned into court as aforesaid, note thereon the name or names of the witnesses upon whose evidence the same was found. Names of wit nesses endors ed on true bills. Oath of grand jurors. inal cases. SEC. 4. That the oath of the grand jury in all cases shall be as follows, to wit: "You, as grand jurors for the body of the county of (as the case may be) do solemnly swear, that you will diligently inqure into, and true presentment make of, all such matters and things as shall come to your knowledge, according to your charge: The counsel of the United States of America, your own counsel, and that of your fellows, you shall keep secret; you shall present no person through envy, hatred, or malice, neither will you leave any person unpresented through fear, favor, or affection, or hope of reward, but that you will present things truly as they come to your knowledge according to the best of your understanding, and according to the laws of this Territory, so help you God." Oath of petit SEC. 5. That the oath or affirmation of petit jurors jurors, in crim- in criminal cases shall be as follows, to wit: "You solemnly swear (or affirm) that without respect to person, or favor, or fear, you will well and truly try and true deliverance make between the United States of America and the prisoner at the bar, whom you shall have in charge, according to the evidence given you in court, and the laws of this Territory, so help you God." Two grand ju sentment. SEC. 6. No grand jury shall make presentment, of rors necessary their own knowledge, upon the information of a less in making pre- number than two of their own body, unless the juror giving the information is previously sworn as a witness, in which case, if the evidence is deemed sufficient, an indictment may be found thereon, as upon the evidence of any other witness who may not be of the jury. Exception. SEC. 7. It shall be the duty of the board of county Duty of county commissioners, in each of the organized counties in commissioners. this Territory, where a district court is directed to be held, at least thirty days previous to the sitting of the said court, to select twenty-four persons possessing the qualifications of jurors, who shall compose and constitute two full petit juries, to serve Petit jurors. as such at the next succeeding term of the district court, in each county respectively to be summoned, Their number in like manner as hereinbefore directed in the case and how sumof grand juries. moned. court. SEC. 8. It shall be the duty of the clerk of the Duty of the district court, at the commencement of each term, clerk of the to write the name of each petit juror, on a separate ticket, and put the whole into a box, or other place for safe keeping, and as often as it may be necessary to empanel a jury the clerk shall, in the presence of Manner of sethe court, draw, by chance, twelve names out of such lecting a petit box, which shall designate the twelve to be sworn on the jury, and in the same manner for each subsequent jury in their turn, as the court may from time to time direct. jury. SEC. 9. In all cases where the sheriff, or other Duty of sheriff. officer, shall be commanded to execute any summons as aforesaid, he shall be required to make timely return thereof to the clerk, who may have issued the same, with an endorsement thereon, certifying on whom it has been served, and the time Neglect of when, and, in default of so doing, such sheriff, or duty. other officer, shall be considered as being guilty of a contempt, and may be fined for the use of the Penalty. proper county in any sum not less than ten, nor more than fifty dollars, unless such sheriff, or other officer, shall make his excuse to the satisfaction and acceptance of the court. SEC. 10. If a sufficient number of grand or petit Non-attendjurors do not appear, when selected and summoned as ance of grand aforesaid, or if by challenges, or any other cause, there or petit jurors. shall not appear a sufficient number of qualified persons to make up the panels, the court may order the How remedied. sheriff to return, without delay, such number of good and lawful men of the county, as may be necessary for that purpose. And when the sheriff is When sheriff is interested or related to either of the parties, the interested,court may direct the coroner to make such return: And if any district court shall at any time sit before the board of county commissioners shall have made a selection of grand or petit jurors, as aforesaid, or coroner may act. Bystanders. if on any account the whole panel in either case shall fail to attend, the court may order the sheriff, or other officer, to summon from the bystanders, being qualified persons as aforesaid, a sufficient Their qualifi number to supply such deficiency who shall continue to serve for the remainder of the term, unless they shall be sooner discharged by the court. cations, and term of service. Grand and petit jurors. SEC. 11. Every person who shall fail to appear when lawfully summoned as a grand or petit juror, as aforesaid, without having a reasonable excuse, shall be considered as being guilty of a contempt, and shall be fined by the court in any sum not exceeding twenty dollars, for the use of the proper county, unless good cause be shown for such default at or before the next term of said court, and it shall be the Duty of clerk. duty of the clerk to issue a summons against such Fine for nonattendance. Proviso. Death or sick ness of jurors provided for. Duty of clerk. tain number of days and amount. delinquent, when such person shall not come in without process, to show cause at the next succeeding term of said court why he or they should not be fined for such contempt: Provided, That the oath or affirmation of any such delinquent shall, at all times, be received as competent evidence in his favor. SEC. 12. In case of the death, sickness, or nonattendance of any grand or petit juror, after he shall have been sworn upon the jury, or where any such juror, being sworn as aforesaid, shall, for any reasonable cause, be dismissed, or discharged, it shall be lawful for the court to cause others, if necessary, to be summoned and sworn in his or their stead. SEC. 13. It shall be the duty of the clerk of the district court, at the end of each term of said court, service, to con- or within ten days thereafter, to make out a certificate to each juror, certifying the number of days and amount of compensation due to each juror, which To whom pre- certificate shall be presented to the board of county sented, and by commissioners, and allowed as other demands against said county: Provided, That no juror shall be paid out of the county treasury for any days attendance as a juror, in the district court of the Territory, for which he may have received, or may be entitled to receive, pay as a juror of the district court of the United States. whom allowed. Proviso. Jurors privileg SEC. 14. All grand and petit jurors shall be priviled from arrest. eged from arrest, in all cases, except for breach of Exceptions. the peace, treason, felony, and other criminal offences, during their attendance at said court, going to, and returning from, the same, and all arrests in Arrest of jursuch cases shall be deemed as illegal and void. ors void. SEC. 15. It shall be the duty of the board of county Duty of county commissioners to arrange and select the grand and commissioners. petit jurors, as aforesaid, in such manner as to make the qualified persons of the county perform duties as jurors, as nearly as may be, in rotation, and so that Rotation in the the same may not be unnecessarily burdensome to selection of juany of the citizens of the county according to the rors. best information that the said commissioners can obtain. APPROVED, January 4, 1839. JUSTICES OF THE PEACE. AN ACT to make valid and good in law the acts of Robert G. Roberts, done and performed by him as a justice of the peace, in and for the original county of Du Buque, in the Territory of Wisconsin, now the Territory of Iowa. 1836 WHEREAS, Robert G. Roberts, a citizen of the R. G. Roberts county of Du Buque, late Wisconsin, now Iowa Ter- commissioned ritory, was in the month of November, in the year of in November, our Lord one thousand eight hundred and thirty-six, duly commissioned, and, in the month of February of the same year, sworn and qualified to act as a justice of the peace, according to the requirements of the law in such case made and provided, except that the bond of the said Robert G. Roberts was not, agreeably to law, filed in the proper office, by the neglect of which requirement doubts have been made Neglected to as to the validity and virtue of all the official acts done file his bond. and performed by the said Robert G. Roberts, in pursuance of his commission aforesaid, in and for the county aforesaid: And whereas, it is highly important that his said acts should be declared and rendered legal and valid: Therefore, valid. Be it enacted by the Council and House of Representatives of the Territory of Iowa, That all and every official acts of the official acts and doings of the said Robert G. said R. G. RobRoberts, done and performed by him, by virtue of erts declared his commission of justice of the peace, in and for the county of Du Buque aforesaid, during the time he held the same, and performed the duties thereof, be and the same are hereby declared to be as good and valid, in law, as if the said bond had been properly filed according to the requirements of the law in |