Jury

In practice. A certain number of men, selected according to law, and sworn (jurati) to inquire of certain matters of fact, and declare the truth upon evidence to be laid before them. This definition embraces the various subdivisions of juries ; as grand jury, petit jury, common jury, special jury, coroner's jury, sheriff's jury, (q. v.) A jury is a body of men temporarily selected from the citizens of a particular district, and invested with power to present or indict a person for a public offense, or to try a question of fact. Co.de Civil Proc. Cal. § 190. The terms "jury" and "trial by jury," as used in the constitution, mean twelve competent men, disinterested and impartial, not of kin, nor personni dependents of either of the parlies, having their homes within the jurisdictional limits of the court, drawn and selected by officers free from all bias in favor of or against either party, duly impaneled and sworn to render a true verdict according to the law and the evidence. State v. McClear, 11 Nev. 39. Classification.

— Common jury. In practice. The ordinary kind of jury by which issues of fact are generally tried, as distinguished from a special jury, (q. v.)

— Foreign jury. jury obtained from a county other than that in which issue was joined.

— Grand jury. A jury of inquiry who are summoned and returned by the sheriff to each session of the criminal courts, and whose duty is to receive complaints and accusations in criminal cases, hear the evidence adduced on the part of the state, and find bills of indictment in cases where they are satisfied a trial ought in be had. They are first sworn, and instructed by the court. This is called a "grand jury" because it comprises a greater number of jurors than the ordinary trial jury or "petit jury." At common law, a grand jury consisted of not less than twelve nor more than twenty-three men, and this is still the rule in many of the states, though in some the number is otherwise fixed by statute; thus in Oregon and Utah, the grand jury is composed of seven men; in South Dakota, not less than six nor more than eight; in Texas, twelve; in Idaho, sixteen; in Washington, twelve to seventeen ; in North Dakota, sixteen to twenty-three; in California, nineteen ; in New Mexico, twenty-one. See Ex parte Bain. 121 U. S. 1. 7 Sun. Ct. 781, 30 L. Ed. 849; In re Gardiner. 3l Misc. Rep. 364, 64 N. Y. Supp. 760; Finley v. State, 61 Ala. 204; People v. Duff, 65 How. Prae. (N, Y.) 365; .English v. State, 31 Fla. 340, 12 South. 689.

— Mixed jury. A bilingual jury; a jury of the half-tongue. See De Medietatæ Lin-guæ. Also a jury composed partly of negroes and partly of white men.

— Petit jury. The ordinary jury of twelve men for the trini of a civil or criminal action. So called to distinguish it from the grand jury. A petit jury is a body of twelve men impaneled and sworn in a district court, to try and determine, by a true and unanimous verdict, anv question or issue of fact, in any civil or criminal action or proceeding, according to law and the evidence as given them in the court. Gen. St. Minn. 1878, c. 71, § 1.

— Pix jury. See Pix.

— Special jury. A jury ordered by the court, on the motion of either party, in cases of unusual importance or intricacy. Called, from the manner in which it is constituted, a "struck jury." 3 Bl. Comm. 357. A jury composed of persons above the rank of ordinary freeholders; usually summoned to try questions of greater importance than those usually submitted to common juries. Brown.

— Struck jury. In practice. A special jury. So called because constituted by striking out a certain number of names from a prepared list. See Wallace v. Railroad Co., 8 Houst. (Del.) 529. 18 Atl. 8l8; Cook v. State, 24 N. J. Law, 843.

— Trial jury. A body of men returned from the citizens of a particular district before a court or officer of competent jurisdiction, and sworn, to try and determine, bv verdict, a question of fact. Co.de Civ. Proc. Cal. § 193. Other compound terms.

— Jury-box. The place in court (strictly an inclosed place) where the jury sit during the trial of a cause. 1 Archb. Pr. K. B. 208; 1 Burrill, Pr. 455.

— Jury commissioner. An officer charged with the duty of selecting the names to be put into the jury wheel, or of drawing the panel of jurors for a particular term of court

— Jury-list. A paper containing the names of jurors impaneled to try a cause, or it contains the names of all the jurors summoned to attend court.

— Jury of matrons. In common-law practice. A jury of twelve matrons or discreet women, impaneled upon a writ de ventre inspiciendo, or where a female prisoner, being under sentence of death, pleaded her pregnancy as a ground for staying execution. In the latter case, such jury inquired into the truth of the plea.

— Jury process. The process by which a jury is summoned in a cause, and by which their attendance is enforced.

— Jury wheel. A machine containing the names of persons qualified to serve as grand and petit jurors, from which, in an order determined by the hazard of its revolutions, are drawn a sufficient number of such names to make up the panels for a given term of court.