29 Iowa 286 | Iowa | 1870
Whether the discharge of a jury under the circumstances of this case will entitle the defendant to a discharge, as having been once in jeopardy, is a question upon which the authorities are discordant. In Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Indiana, and, perhaps, other states, it is held that a discharge of the jury by the court, except in cases of absolute and impertive necessity, will entitle the accused to his discharge. While the federal courts and the courts of Massachusetts, New York, Illinois, Kentucky, Mississippi, and, perhaps, other states, hold that the discharge of the jury in such cases is a matter of sound discretion, and presents no impediment to a second trial.
Affirmed.