People v. Wheeler

105 N.W. 607, 142 Mich. 212, 1905 Mich. LEXIS 667
CourtMichigan Supreme Court
DecidedDecember 4, 1905
DocketDocket No. 239
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 105 N.W. 607 (People v. Wheeler) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Michigan Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. Wheeler, 105 N.W. 607, 142 Mich. 212, 1905 Mich. LEXIS 667 (Mich. 1905).

Opinion

Ostrander, J.

Respondent was convicted of keeping a house of ill fame, resorted to for the purpose of prostitution and lewdness. The case comes here on exceptions before sentence. The errors assigned and argued may be grouped as (1) those relating to the selection of the jury; (2) those relating to the admission and exclusion of testimony ; (3) those relating to the charge and to refusals to charge as requested.

1. The panel of jurors having been exhausted with three jurors in the box, and one juror summoned from among the bystanders having been excused for cause, the. following took place:

The Court: Gentlemen, we have exhausted the panel. I am inclined to think we bad better send out a special venire for jurors; and have you any suggestions to make as to how they shall be selected ? •
“Mr. Shepard: Why, I don’t want to waive any rights here, your honor, in the matter. I would be Better prepared to make that statement if I could see Mr. Price. I would suggest, however, that the usual course ought to prevail.
[214]*214‘ ‘ The Court: Well, we have used here the usual course of summoning talesmen from bystanders, or of letting the sheriff select or write down a list of names from the different townships, 40 or 50 or 60 names, and then allow each the prosecutor and the attorney for the defendant to strike off a certain number, and let him bring in the bal.ance. I suppose— The statute provides a way, by drawing upon the names that have been returned. Just as soon do that way.
“Mr. Shepard: Well, whichever way would be directed by the judge.
The Court: I think, then, unless it is done by agreement, we will draw from the names returned. I didn’t know but we might agree upon the townships, though.
“Mr. Shepard: Yes, I am willing to do that, so far as that is concerned. So far as I am concerned, why, it would perhaps suit the wishes of the sheriff better if he could suggest what would be more desirable on his part, which would be most .convenient. I suggest that they be drawn as far away from the city as—
The Court: Well, how about Camden? Would that be all right ?
“Mr. Shepard: Yes.
“ The Court: Amboy, Wright; Pittsford, Ransom, Wheatland, Somerset, Moscow, Scipio, Litchfield — any objections to drawing from those townships ?
“ Mr. Shepard: No, sir.
The Court: That is ten townships.”

An order was entered reading:

“ It appearing to the court that the regular panel of jurors summoned for this term have been exhausted in this case, and that a sufficient number of jurors were not' drawn and summoned for the term, and that it is necessary to have drawn and summoned other jurors for service at this term and in this case.
“ Therefore it is hereby ordered that forthwith there be drawn, in pursuance of the statute made and provided, from the list of petit jurors returned, 30 jurors, and that they be summoned to appear forthwith; and it further appearing to the court that the jurors of the regular panel from the city of Hillsdale and vicinity had formed opinions in this case such as disqualified them from sitting, and by consent of counsel for respondent in open court [215]*215that the jurors to be drawn should be drawn and summoned from the outlying townships and the townships hereafter named,- therefore it is hereby ordered that said 30 jurors be drawn from the townships of Camden, Amboy, Wright, Pittsford, Ransom, Wheatland, Somerset, Moscow, Scipio, and Litchfield in this county.”

Pursuant to this order jurors were drawn from the list of petit jurors returned, and in the regular way for drawing jurors for the term, by the clerk, sheriff, and two justices of the peace. Prom jurors so drawn the selection of a jury proceeded to the point where, with 12 jurors in the box (3 of the original panel and 9 of the special panel), and after a number of jurors had been excused for cause upon the examination of counsel for-respondent, who had exhausted peremptory challenges, said counsel filed in writing a challenge to the array as follows:

“And now, at this day, to wit, the 28th day of December, 1904, at Hillsdale, in said county, came as well the said people as the said defendant by their respective attorneys, and the jurors of the jury impaneled in this cause also came, and hereupon the said defendant challenges the array of the said panel, because he says that the order of the court upon which the jurors Nelson Humphrey, J. M. Valentine, James Ritchey, Wilber Gardner, Prank Lewis, Frank Denning, Charles B. Case, O. A. Roe, and Myron Comstock were drawn and summoned to appear is without jurisdiction and void, and was made without the consent of defendant; secondly, the defendant challenges the array of the said panel because, after the regular panel of jurors for the present term had been exhausted, 30 jurors, including the jurors whose names are given above, were ordered drawn, and were drawn from the list of petit jurors which had been returned under the law prior to the drawing of the regular panel, and the said jury was completed from the list thus drawn without authority of law, and the jurors whose names are given above were drawn and summoned as jurors in this case without authority of law and in violation of the rights of defendant; third, because defendant never consented to the method pursued in drawing said jurors, nor waived her right to object to the same. [216]*216And this the defendant is ready to verify, whereupon she prays judgment and the said panel may be quashed.”

The challenge was overruled. Thereupon the nine jurors selected from the special panel were challenged for cause for the reasons set out in the challenge to the array, which challenges were overruled.

It is said that the method and only lawful method of completing the panel is that pointed out in 1 Comp. Laws, § 344, and, as this method was not followed, respondent was not tried by a lawful jury. It is contended on the part of the people that counsel for defendant consented to the method pursued, and also that objections were not seasonably made. The statute referred to is not in its terms mandatory, nor is any authority brought to our attention for the proposition that the course pursued was an improper one. It is clear that consent was in effect given to the selection of jurors from the townships from which they were drawn. There is no pretense that there were not proper lists returned from which to draw, or that in making the drawing which was made the statute method was not pursued. We think the objection without merit, and that the challenge to the array was properly disallowed.

2. There was abundant and convincing evidence produced to show that the house occupied by respondent was a house of ill fame, resorted to for the purpose of prostitution and lewdness, between the dates laid in the information, which were March 1, 1904, and October 8, 1904. It is complained, however, that some of the. testimony received was objectionable, and that in receiving it there was error. This testimony related to the reputation of the house at periods prior to March 1, 1904.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

People v. Lee
12 N.W.2d 418 (Michigan Supreme Court, 1943)
The People v. Alterie
190 N.E. 305 (Illinois Supreme Court, 1934)
Dawson v. United States
10 F.2d 106 (Ninth Circuit, 1926)
Haffner v. State
187 N.W. 173 (Wisconsin Supreme Court, 1922)
Konopisos v. State
185 P. 355 (Wyoming Supreme Court, 1919)
People v. Peroni
134 N.W. 1107 (Michigan Supreme Court, 1912)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
105 N.W. 607, 142 Mich. 212, 1905 Mich. LEXIS 667, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-wheeler-mich-1905.