167 Iowa 75 | Iowa | 1914
The complainant was a member of the panel of trial jurors in the district court of Webster county for the January, 1914, term thereof, and as such was selected and served as a juror in the trial of a certain criminal case, entitled the State of Iowa v. John Cunningham, in which the defendant was charged with having committed an assault with intent to murder. After the jury had been impaneled, and pending the trial of the said cause, the county attorney made formal complaint and application to the court, alleging that before Murphy was accepted and sworn as a juror he was duly examined as to his qualifications, and stated that he had never formed or expressed any opinion of the merits of the ease, and had no prejudice or bias in the matter. It was further alleged that since the impaneling of the jury it had come to the knowledge of the prosecutor that Murphy, very shortly before being selected as a juror in said cause, had expressed his opinion thereof in favor of the defendant, and had declared that the defendant ought not to be convicted and sent to the penitentiary. It was also further charged that after being selected as a juror in the case, and pending the trial thereof, said Murphy had been in intimate association with one Steve Cunningham, a brother of the defendant, and one Cain, a witness for defendant, and that they visited the saloons together and drank together in a manner prejudicial to the dignity and authority of the court. Because of such alleged misconduct of the juror the county attorney asked that the trial be suspended, an investigation had, and such order entered as should appear proper and just in the premises. The application was supported by the affidavits of several parties. Thereupon a citation was issued to the said Murphy, notifying him of the charge that, while a juror in said cause, he had improperly associated with the brother and other- personal friends of - the defendant, had visited a saloon with them and drank with them, and had otherwise misconducted himself as a juror, and ordering him to appear and show cause ■ why he should not' be adjudged-
I. Taking these objections in the reverse order of their statement, we have to say that the alleged prejudice of the trial judge is something of which this court can take no cognizance in a certiorari proceeding. If the . .... court below had jurisdiction ox the contempt proceeding (which cannot seriously be questioned), and had any evidence before it on which its finding of fact can be sustained, its judgment cannot be disturbed by us on certiorari because of the alleged existence of any prejudice or bias or improper motive which the person charged with- such contempt may think or believe influenced the decision. Polk Co. v. Des Moines, 70 Iowa, 351; Tiedt v. Carstensen, 61 Iowa, 334; Ioma Med. Coll. v. Schrader, 87 Iowa, 659.
We may add, however, that an examination of this record discloses no sufficient ground for the charge of unfairness on the trial. It seems that the parties had respectively offered and- concluded their evidence, after which, at the request of