| Show Danger in Impetuous Demand for Reform in Administration of Justice Dy By CHIEF JUSTICE DE YOUNG TOUNG Supreme Court l i r l UE liE public is being awakened to that vigilance which is the cost co T of good government Still there is a need for caution that wo we wedo weH do not overstep ourselves There are modern philosophers philosopher who arc are impatient to wipe out the restraints in law that have proved their value through the ages On the streets and in the press almost daily there is some one who would remove the presumption of innocence from a criminal trial Some one ono else elf wants to remove the requirement that guilt must be p proved oved beyond a reasonable doubt These Are rules that must be ret retained or the administration of justice will retrograde cen- cen centuries centuries cen centuries However I would be bo the last one to say that our courts are efficient that they have kept abreast of the times Take the law for example that makes a jury in a criminal case judge of the law as well as the fact This presumes presume that twelve men know more about the technicalities of our Constitution our common law our statutes and and our Supreme court opinions than does the presiding magistrate who has hIlS de devoted his life lire to the study The law enacted in 1815 18 should be abolished Our faults lie as much in the organization of our courts as in the laws There is much room for legislative improvement But the legis legis- legislature legis- legis legislature legislature lature doesn't always move with celerity There is nothing dramatic about reforming court procedure ure nothing there to attract a legislator anxious to please his constituents The judiciary has little political power It has no patronage it has no funds to distribute But the pub pub- public public public lic is aroused by the weaknesses of our criminal prosecutions and the public will get the nee needed ed reforms I I |
