59 Md. 123 | Md. | 1882
delivered the opinion of the Court.
The plaintiff in error having been indicted, and convicted of forgery, by the verdict of a jury, in the Circuit Court for Queen Anne’s County, moved in arrest of judgment, because a member of the grand jury indicting him, and one of the petit jury which tried and convicted him, were over the age of seventy years. The Court overruled the motion, and the case was brought to this Court on a writ of error. The same reasons are assigned here, and relied on, as ground of error.
The question presented is, does our statute, on the subject, render persons over seventy years incompetent to serve as grand or petit jurors; so that, if a person over seventy years does actually sit on the jury finding the indictment, or the one trying the issue, the finding or verdict is thereby rendered void?
The first section of Article 50, of the Code of General Laws, provides, that “no person shall he summoned and returned on a panel as a juror who may not have arrived at the age of twenty-five-years.” The second section pro
If the Judge makes a mistake the statute directs how it may be corrected, and expressly declares it shall not viti
The authorities in unbroken line concur in holding language like this with reference to jurors, as only giving “a privilege,” and not creating a disability. The Statute of 13 Edward I, chap. 58, exempted men above seventy years from all jury service; but it was held to be a privilege and not a disqualification. 3 Black. Com., 364;
The statute of Maine exempts from jury service “all United States officers and coroners, and directs they shall not he placed on the lists.” Construing this statute, the Court said in State vs. Quimby, 51 Maine, 395, that a postmaster was exempted only and not disqualified. The Court said that exemption pre-supposed qualification, and such exemption was a personal privilege, with which the parties to the cause had no concern, and “that it was no. ground of challenge;” though the Court on suggestion, would not hold the juror to duty. A like ruling was made on the same statute in the case of State vs. Wright, 53 Maine, 328. In Fellow’s Case, 5 Maine, 333, the Court held a constable, whom the statute exempted, competent, hut not compellable. In the case of Inhabitants of Amherst vs. Inhabitants of Hadley, 1 Pickering, 38, a juror was drawn contrary to the provisions of the statute, and the fact did not come to the knowledge of the prisoner till after verdict. It was held to he no ground for setting aside the verdict; that though it was an irregularity, the objection should have been made at an earlier period. This was a capital case.
In Munroe vs. Brigham, 19 Pickering, 368, we have the case of a juror over sixty-five, where the statute exempted all persons over sixty-five. The statute also gave the parties a right to except on account of a juror’s age. The exception was not taken till after verdict. The Court held it was no ground for setting aside the verdict. It was not a disqualification.
In Iowa justices of the peace and ministers of the gospel are exempted from jury service, and the Courts have
In New Hampshire, ordained ministers are exempted from jury service, and their names forbidden to he put on the lists of jurors; but in State vs. Forshner, 43 N. H., 89, which was a case of rape, the Court held the exemption to be a personal privilege and not a disqualification, and that the parties to the suit had no concern with it. We think the statute under consideration ought to be understood as only granting exemption and not creating a disability, as to persons over seventy years. If that he the sole object of the law in that regard, as we think it is, then the direction to the Judge not to put any exempted person in the box, is in the interest of the exempted class, and not for the benefit of litigants, or for the advancement of public justice. The direction is intended to save the person exempted, the necessity, and perchance, the expense, of claiming his privilege, and the Judge cannot in the discharge of his duty put the name of such person in the box if he knows the fact of his exemption. A mistake, however, cannot possibly work injury to anybody but the juror drawn. A law must be accorded such construction as will most reasonably accomplish the legislative purposes, and the construction we adopt, we think, carries out the whole legislative intent. Any other construction ascribes a meaning which has no solid reason to rest upon. If the sheriff selected the jury, as he did formerly, it cannot be doubted that the same construction would be accorded this provision respecting exemption, as has been given the Statute of Edward I.
The mode of selection is changed, and the direction to the Judge is only to carry out the objects intended by the law existing when the new mode was introduced. If by mistake an exempted person is drawn, and he chooses to waive his privileges, and gives no information of his age, or cause of excuse, and preferring to serve, does serve, we
The case of State vs. Quimby, 51 Maine, 395, already cited, decides that the same rule and test will be applied to both grand and petit jurors, and we think that is right.
Inasmuch as we think this is not a case in which a, writ of error will lie, the assignment of errors will be quashed.
Assignment of errors quashed.