Whether it is contempt of court for a mas ter to discharge a workman because he was obliged to serve as a juror is discussed in an article quoted from the London Law Times in 36 Am. L. Rev. 596.
The federal constitution provides that in criminal trials the jury shall be taken "from the state and district where the crime shall have been committed." State constitutions usually confine the selection to the county or district, except where, in some states, a provision is made in case jurors cannot con veniently be found in the county. The right to a trial by a jury of the vicinage is an essential part of trial by jury.
In some states the qualifications of jurors are regulated by the constitution ; e. g., Florida. requires them to be taken from the registered voters. Georgia requires that ju rors shall be upright and intelligent persons. Subject to the constitutional provisions as to impairing the right of trial by jury, the legislature has power to define the qualifica tions of jurors. It may dispense with the freehold qualification required by common law ; Kerwin v. People, 96 Ill. 206 ; Corn. v. Dorsey, 103 Mass. 412 ; but see 20 Am. L. Reg. 436; Proffatt, Jury Trial § 115.
In some states conviction for certain high crimes disqualifies ; some states require citi zenship ; others that jurors shall be selected from the qualified voters ; others impose tests of integrity, or intelligence or educa • tion. Freehold or property tests are requir ed in some states. That the jurors shall be over twenty-one years of age is probably a universal requirement ; while in some states those past a certain age cannot serve; Prof fatt, Jury Trial § 117.
In the federal courts the qualifications are the same as those relating to the highest courts of law. in the respective states ; U. S. R. S. § 800; but this does not require a mi nute adherence to the state practice ; U. S. v. Collins, 1 Woods 499, Fed. Cas. No. 14,837, per Bradley, J. A statute confining the se lection of jurors to white citizens is invalid under the fourteenth amendment ; the right to serve on a jury is an incident of citizen ship ; Strauder v. West Virginia, 100 U. S.
303, 25 L. Ed. 664 ; Neal v. Delaware, 103 U. S. 370, 26 L. Ed. 567.
The intelligence and ability of a juror are matters within the sound discretion of the court, and it is sufficient if he knows the Eng lish language and can understand the testi mony and the argument of counsel ; State v. Casey, 44 La. Ann. 969, 11 South. 583. It rests with each state to prescribe such quali fications as it seems proper for jurymen, taking care only that no discrimination in respect to such service be made against any class of citizens solely because of their race ; In re Shibuya Jugiro, 140 U. S. 291, 11 Sup. Ct. 770, 35 L. Ed. 510.
The passage of the Act of July 20, 1840, R. S. § 800, granting peremptory challenges to the government in criminal cases, has not taken away the right to conditional or qualified challenges when permitted in ,the state and adopted by the federal court by, rule or by special order ; Sawyer v. U.,S., 202 U. S. 150, 26 Sup. Ct. 575, 50 L. Ed. Ann. Cas. 269, where it was held not unrea sonable to permit jurors to be required to stand aside at the foot of the panel, it ap pearing that neither the government nor the defendant had exhausted all their perempto ry charges when the jury was empanelled.
The selection of jurors is to be made im partially; and elaborate provisions are made to secure this impartiality. In general, a sufficient number are selected, from among the qualified citizens of the county or dis trict, by the sheriff, or a similar executive officer of the court, and, in case of his dis qualification, by the coroner, or, in some cas es, by still other designated persons. See ELISORS. From among these the requisite number is selected at the time of trial, to whom objection may be made by the parties.
Sir Matthew Hale says that the writ to return a jury issues to the sheriff who is entrusted to elect and return the jury with out the nomination of either party. The ju rors were to be such persons as for estate and quality were fit to serve on that em ployment. They were to be of the neighbor hood of the fact to be inquired, or at least of the county. Cond. Gen.