JUROR'S CONDUCT

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1473, 22 June 1912, Page 7

JUROR'S CONDUCT.

GRAVE MATTER.

FOREMAN VISITS THE CULL:.

THE TRIAL STOPPED-

~ SENSATION AT BLENHEIM.

. (Hy..T«iegraph.-~rrcs(< Association.) ..' . .!:' Blenheim, .1 une- Si". HWlicn-' th'o- Supremo; Court resumed ihis. Morning for. iho continuation cf.' Uio':hoar« ihjj'.of" (ho conspiracy • charges;-', agaiu&t .Binlcp Bnd' Walsh, Mnatlers took .a sowe-. .what "sensational form:-' ■.-■■ « •'

t 'Tho Crown Prosecutor- intimated-. to; his ■Honour: that ho ; had ! boen informed-! : by tho serpeant of.'police that .Iho,''foreman' thoy'jury (Frankt'Clarko) • had visited 'lm jxilico station kist/inisht, nud. inter* viewed the jjriwncia.. 1 ■

Honour' then. entered ; upon". a ! "searchr: inqiiii-j-'vinto thofinatter, examining' .BGverftlsmembc-I'3 of. tho police. force and .Ciarkb on, or.th. . • . ;

,:. : It,was stated- that C 1 s.r 1 ro s ...vvitli another# aceusjd m the corridor of iho ordered oil tho pro-. n::<os by • iho r;e: ; .'«:nl...' It was . ufo nientiinvtd that a. boltlo of. whisky was o[. tllC: prisOlUTS. ■ W-'tiroiisriy' held. ji!]!9.Pl | l 1 !!??i^! ,i, t>thc. : ])risoiici , s. should not jravolbccn; •detained' in'gaol for'the Vn'slit, M'-l, altertailing.in:his. efforts'ty. obtain .'tlOTr,;-.rc!ea«!, : down - l!o n-; Ji tlicy ■wero. all -lie knew- 1 ' Jiothins about He.,did not'" consider ho. hlid' done tmythin;; improper. • . .

iti i-I'<3l ert>nceHc_;tho^;slii>ply: of/Vv 1 liVky. , : counsel, for Walsh ..'aid ,th..t a : ';pau in .Court was/prepared to.; ,iy' viral liegave :tlio;.w)iJskyito;.llio.prisoners. "The.'''.ludgß ■' «uil;:Jio. v pr«!te(B , cd to ieavo' the invosticu-' : ' | (ion of; that part- of the episode to tiia Crown • I'rosvtruUu".'. ~. .. . .JUDGE'S-COMMENT..' i/, V'. Tlll.NG." June L ! l! evidence offered (his 'niorniiigMn. regard, to Jas-t night's .■attae police station his.Honour said Umtit-'' j'w;is .true,..as!ia(S just Ix'cn relnarked, tiiat ■ a most ''unfortunate 'tiling had occurred. Jio could*not.lieli> sayiiiß 1 hut it prossod '■ hardiy ..on accused iu the view tiiai ha ,o°k .of the.matter, but iio could not lie!)) 'r■ !0 in ; w Provided, under S>eetioii «I'< of tho Crimes ■ Act, as follows:—Tlio ' ■ Court may, in tlio case of any emergency; or casualty (renderiiijr it, in its ouniion, ■ higiily expejlient for tlio ends of justice.' 50... to do), in its discrc tion, diseharuo a jury. Without jfiving a verdict, and direct . a new jury to ba empanelled during ills fitting, of the Court, or postpone the trial on such terms as justice-renniml. ■ Aoiv, it, was only on very grave and porious conditions indeed that that claus-j ought to bo applied. It was applicable only, when tlio Court was practically ran..vnieesl of (lie risk of a trial net'being a fair and proper one. When it becamo expedient for the cuds of justlco that tin? eoiir.-e provided for flioniil lie taken, lib ' Jind to _ consider the facts brought under : his notice, and IJicro were no really dis-puted-facts. . 'tillo wished to. say, in as few remarks as possible, tiiat, with re=pect to tho police, ' they had, in all respects, performed'- their ' : duly hi tlio matter. There was'-iiG" gccu-. ..- won. 1 for him to sav more, '■ -',■■■ "■■p . ; A. : . nian named iVcbb liad .... Honed in connection with, tho maUc'f;. and ■■■■'' he did not wish to say anything': judice that mail,"', .Ho eouid op!y villi's liawcycr: That tho.reasonwhy^hiair did.-not.procrcsd to investigato i asfagainst ; him".with a 'viow mining whether he should bo pntished.;'f;ir 'conlompt of Court was because- lie thought'' ' it'better that tlw matter should'be; ! in-''■ vestigated bv the Crown Prosecutor willi. a view-to ilotenniiiing whether he-'had. . .committed any Icja! offence. ■ l'f it wero proved i lint lie did commit a legal, offence;; ' it would bo the duty of the .CfowjiVfo' proceed against him. '■ . '.'

.-.-'That reduced the matter which ho -had 1 to consider to tiio question of tho conduct:, of Clarke, tho foreman of this jiirjv'nndSthe question whether his conduct was such n i as to satisfy him. That it was hi'phljr ,' expedient, for tho ends of justice, that ilia trial should not'proceed tfitli the present jury. This involved only Mr. Clarke jit had nothing to do with-other members of-';.' tho jury. If this were a civil case, .iif . which it might be possible to take a three- ; fourths verdict, that matter might .pass,*" * but it was a criminal case, in which thorp;,: must bo a fair and patient investigation, » and in which.the whole of the circuni- ■ stances must bo determined by n unanimous verdict. • The foreman .of .. the ijury had worked •. himself. • into 'a state of indignation over nothing I ,' because the young men'hart-to' .'stay iii Use cells nil night. Tho treat; ment of these young men was exactly tho same as that received by all accused per-,

sons, with very few exceptions. He misrht 'as..well state in a public manner the re.v sons why'this practice was followed. The reason which insisted that, in all ca«es, accused should bo detained, was so, that, • they might not be found "hobnobbing" with jurors. ■ Such a thing was 'vorv rai'o, but.his judicial experience was snSiieii'iit.ly, long for him to know .that such things slid occur. ■ His experience in this ease was sufficient, to. (el! him that such things' might occur. It was a reasonable fear ..that they might come into contact with. ■ persons who had 110 hitcher sense of duty thnii'Sfr. Clarke had shown-in .this case.

■v He found that, from the moment'that Sir. Clarke walked out of the Court to tiie time .that Hie 'T-rccnnt, found it necessary to eject him fmni.the nremisus of the •>.iol,'ho had showed such. bias ns, i i his Honour's mind. unfitted him to fjuror. and unfitted him to discharge hn 'oath .to-find a true verdict a* between .{ho prisoners mid the rourt. That beimr so, it seemed .to - him that: there was but one course open to him. Tie wouid be failiiigjipliis-dulv were he not to apply .the provisions of Feciiou -t-11 to tliis.rssn. .Tliat-beimr' so, lie, with wont rorrrot. hed. to apply the provisions of this port, of the Crimes':' Act*, which. so fm-.lie had never before been applied in fh'e.'W. 5 .-. t<iry of. the Dominion since the .Act pnw in'-o force.-. -~ t ■;,'- :! Ho-proposed to 1 dischar?<* tiie jury, amd 'nvder >,vfr«sli jury to-, be eninanoilcd. •That' could Oihly be done lit a subveqlrtnt sitting,as|. .110.other jurors wereHn~nt(endanre. , . •. '