CHAPTER VII.

OF THE POLICE COURT.

SECTION 1. There is hereby created and established in and for the City and County of San Francisco, State of California, a Court to be known as the "Police Court of the City and County of San Francisco;" which Court shall consist of four Judges, each of whom shall hold office for the period of two years. No person shall be eligible to the office of Judge of the Police Court who has not been licensed to practice before the Supreme Court of the State of California, and who has not practiced for five years continuously before his appointment. Any one or more of the Judges may hold Court. The Court shall be divided into departments, to be known as Department Number One, Department Number Two, Department Number Three and Department Number Four, and there may be as many sessions of said Court at the same time as there are Judges thereof. The Judges shall choose from their number a Presiding Judge, who may be removed at their pleasure. He shall assign them to their respective departments, and may assign and transfer cases to the different departments of the Police Court. Any of the Judges may preside in any of the departments, in the absence or inability to act of the Judge regularly assigned thereto. The judgments, orders and proceedings of any session of said Court held by any one or more of the Judges of said Court shall be equally effective as if all the Judges of said Court presided at said session.

The judges must, within one month after this Charter shall have gone into effect, adopt a set of rules of the Police Court, which may be altered from time to time.

SEC. 2. The Police Court of the City and County of San Francisco shall have:

1st. Exclusive jurisdiction of all prosecutions for the violation of city ordinances, or orders of the Board of Supervisors of the City and County of San Francisco.

2d. It shall have concurrent jurisdiction with the Superior Court thereof of all misdemeanors and of the examination of all felonies committed in the City and County of San Francisco.

SEC. 3. Proceedings in said Court shall be conducted in accordance with the laws of this State regulating

proceedings in Justices' and Police Courts, and appeals to the Superior Court; and said Court or any of the Judges thereof, shall have the same power in all criminal actions, cases and proceedings as are now, or are hereafter conferred by the general law of the State upon Justices of the Peace; provided, that:

1st. It shall be the duty of the Judges of the Police Court to assign as far as possible all jury cases to one department. Any number of jurors may be summoned to act as a panel from which trial jurors shall be drawn. Said panel of jurors shall serve one month in said Court. Any juror serving his full term shall not be again required to serve as juror in said Court for the period of one year. The jurors shall be summoned in accordance with sections 230, 231 and 232 of the Code of Civil Procedure of California.

2d. That no case shall be dismissed or fine imposed until the testimony for the prosecution shall be taken.

3d. That any defendant who neglects to file his statement on appeal within ten days after sentence shall lose his right to appeal, unless good cause for the delay be shown on affidavit. Press of business on the part of defendant's attorney shall not be deemed good cause for delay. Unless the District Attorney shall file amendments to the proposed statement on appeal within five days after the same shall have been filed the proposed statement on appeal shall be the statement on appeal. It shall be the duty of the Judge before whom the case was tried to settle the statement on appeal within five days after the District Attorney shall have filed his amendments to the proposed statement.

4th. Any person who shall solicit or importune a Judge either before or after judgment to dismiss a case, or mitigate a sentence unless the same be done in open court, shall be guilty of a contempt of court.

5th. A complaint in the Police Court may be demurred to on the same grounds allowed by the Code in demurrers to indictments or informations, and the complaint may be amended after a demurrer is sustained by permission of the court.

6th. A defendant in custody shall have the right to be tried before a defendant on bail, and felonies shall be heard before misdemeanors.

7th. It shall be the duty of the Judges of the said

Court to try all cases as speedily as possible, and to refuse continuances after the first calling of a case except upon affidavit showing good cause therefor.

8th. The general sections of the Code of the State of California shall govern the procedure of the Police. Court when not contrary to the provisions of this chap

ter.

9th. No person shall be eligible to be a bondsman for any defendant on trial in the Police Court, or on appeal from a judgment therein, except he take an oath that the property specified in the undertaking is in the City and County of San Francisco, and that he is worth the amount specified exclusive of property exempt from execution, and exclusive of all demands for which he may become liable by reason of the forfeiture of any appeal or bail bonds for which he is surety.

SEC. 4. No person except a licensed attorney of the Supreme Court of the State of California shall practice law in said Court; provided, however, that a person accused of crime shall have the right to defend himself.

SEC. 5. The District Attorney of the City and County of San Francisco shall have the conduct, and attend to the prosecution of all actions, cases and proceedings coming before said Court. To that end he shall appoint an Assistant District Attorney for each of the departments of said Court.

SEC. 6. The District Attorney shall also appoint a Warrant and Bond Clerk and three Assistant Warant and Bond Clerks, at such salaries as shall be fixed by the Board of Supervisors. It shall be the duty of the Warrant and Bond Clerk to keep his office open continuously night and day for the transaction of business; to draw complaints in actions in the Police Court, and approve the same with his written signature; to have the custody of all bail bonds and appeal bonds taken in the Police Court; to examine the sufficiency of every bail bond and appeal bond taken in the Police Court and to make a return thereon, within twenty-four hours after such bond shall have come into his possession, in the following form:

“I‚ . . . ,Warrant and Bond Clerk of the City and County of San Francisco, have examined the within bond and find it good in law. I have examined the records of the City and County of San Francisco, and

find the property, its owners and incumbrances herein described to be correct according to said records. Signed Warrant and Bond Clerk." The Warrant and Bond Clerk shall also indorse upon the bond the time when it was issued by him or when it came into his possession. The Warrant and Bond Clerk shall have authority to issue bail bonds and appeal bonds when the liability thereof does not exceed two thousand dollars; and to order the discharge from custody of the persons for whom the bonds are issued; he shall also have authority to take cash bail to the extent in any one case of one thousand dollars. The Warrant and Bond Clerk shall be required to account for all moneys received as bail and make a record of the same in the manner now required by law of the Clerks of the Police Court. The power of said clerks to issue bonds and to order the release of prisoners is hereby abolished.

SEC. 7. In the matter of fixing bail and ordering the release of prisoners the Warrant and Bond Clerk shall be subject to the Judges of the Police Court, and any violation of a valid order of any of said Judges shall be a contempt of Court.

SEC. 8. For any failure to keep the office of the Warrant and Bond Clerk open continuously he shall be immediately dismissed from office by the District Attorney, or the Mayor. The Warrant and Bond Clerk and each of his assistants shall execute to the City and County of San Francisco a bond in the sum of ten thousand dollars to indemnify said city and county against loss caused by their malfeasance or gross negli gence. The Warrant and Bond Clerk and his bondsmen shall be liable to the City and County of San Francisco for any loss to the city and county caused by his malfeasance or gross negligence, or the malfeasance or gross negligence of his assistants.

SEC. 9. The Supervisors of said city and county shall provide said Warrant and Bond Clerk with a suitable office for the transaction of business, and suitable appliances for the preservation of documents entrusted to his care.

SEC. 10. It shall be a misdemeanor for any person not a Judge of some Court in the City and County of San Francisco, or the Warrant and Bond Clerk ofsaid city and county, to receive bail money for defendants. or to order their discharge.

SEC. 11. The Chief of Police shall appoint one or more police officers to attend constantly on each department of said Court to execute the orders and processes of the Court. The Chief of Police shall cause to be made out and delivered to each of the Clerks of the Police Court at of before nine o'clock in the forenoon of every day a calendar of arrests in which the cases shall be assigned in accordance with the rules and regulations established by the Police Judges. Such calendar shall contain all of the cases assigned according to the rules established by the Judges and shall state the offense with which each defendant is charged and whether the defendant is in custody or on bail. If the defendant is on bail the amount thereof must be stated, and whether the bail be cash or a bond. The name of the officer making the arrest must be stated.

SEC. 12. There shall be appointed by the Judge of each department of said Court a stenographer, whose compensation shall be fixed by the Supervisors of the city and county.

SEC. 13. The Clerk of the City and County of San Francisco shall appoint a Clerk for each department of said Court, who shall receive the same salary as the Clerks of the Superior Court. They shall transact the business of Clerks of said Court as now provided by law.

SEC. 14. Any Justice of the Peace, designated in writing by the Mayor for the purpose, shall have power to preside in and hold Police Court, or any department thereof, in the event of the temporary absence or inability of the Police Judges, or either of them; and the Justice so designated to act as Police Judge shall have and exercise all the powers, jurisdiction and authority conferred upon said Court or the Judges thereof.

CHAPTER VIII.

OF THE SHERIFF.

SECTION 1. The Sheriff of said city and county shall hold his office for the period of two years. He shall attend in person or by deputy all the Courts in and for said city. and county, except the Police Court. He may appoint an under sheriff, a bookkeeper and two assistant bookkeepers, one superintendent and one assistant superintendent of keepers, twelve deputies for serving papers,