Grand Juries Reasons For Their Abolition

Excerpt from "How Say You?": A Review of the Movement for Abolishing the Grand Jury System in Canada The question of the abolition of the Grand Jury system in Canada, which, for a considerable period, had received more or less attention from the Bench and from the public and legal press, acquired about three years ago fresh impetus, when the Honorable Senator Cowan, in his place in Parliament, inquired, among ether things, if the Government had under consideration the propriety of submitting a measure looking to a change in the system, and substituting therefor one similar to that prevailing in Scotland. The result of this inquiry, and the action of the Government thereon, subsequently appeared in the form of a blue book containing the opinions of the Canadian judges and some others, which I have quoted largely from in the following pages. Since the issue of this blue book the press has referred to the question at length; with singular unanimity still pressing for the abolition of the system. As, however, there was considerable divergence of opinion among the judges, the Honorable the Minister of Justice in introducing, this year, his measure codifying the criminal law of the Dominion (although personally in favor of the change) did not appear to see his way clear to include therein the desired reform, and the matter remains, therefore, as it was. I find that a good deal of misapprehension exists in the minds of the general public on the subject of abolishing the grand jury. It is thought by many, who appear to have imbibed the belief either from the charges of the judges or in some other unaccountable way, that the grand jury is to be abrogated pure and simple ; when they are informed that, while it is proposed to do this, the idea is at the same time to furnish a satisfactory substitute for it, they appear to be perfectly satisfied and profess themselves to be anxious for the change. The judges and the press having discussed the subject, and the matter having reached its present stage, it may well be urged that the public, that large body of laymen who are chiefly concerned in this matter, should be informed of the position of affairs in order that they may be able to form an intelligent opinion. Many of these being practical men are quite competent to pronounce upon the subject; particularly may this be said of the more intelligent of those who have served, or are eligible to serve, upon grand juries, and of those who are in the commission of the peace. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Joins the growing national debate on the grand-jury system, acknowledging the arguments for the grand jury's abolition but preferring extensive reform and presenting appropriate data and recommendations

In this timely volume, the authors provide a penetrating analysis of the institutional mechanisms perpetuating the related problems of minorities' disenfranchisement and their underrepresentation on juries.