COUNTY COMMISSIONERS. AN ACT to legalize the acts of County Commissioners. heretofore per SEC. 1. Be it enacted by the Council and House of Representatives of the Territory of Iowa, That all the Acts of county acts of the respective boards of county commis- commissioners sioners within this territory, heretofore done or performed, shall be deemed legal and valid in law, so valid far as the same were not done in violation of some Proviso. prohibitory law of this Territory, or of the Congress of the United States. dence in the courts. SEC. 2. That a transcript from the records or books Transcripts of said board of county commissioners, signed by from their rethe clerk of their board, with the seal of the said board cords to be eviof commissioners to the same annexed, shall be legal evidence of the action of the respective boards of commissioners in any court of record or before any judicial tribunal in this Territory. APPROVED, January 25, 1839. COURTS. AN ACT to fix the time for the first session of the Supreme Court of the SEC. 1. Be it enacted by the Council and House of Representatives of the Territory of Iowa, That the First session of first session of the supreme court of the Territory the supreme shall be held at the city of Burlington, on the twenty- court. eighth day of November one thousand eight hun dred and thirty-eight. SEC. 2. Be it enacted by the authority aforesaid, practice in su preme court. that all and every such attorneys and counsellors at Attorneys of law as are or may be duly and regularly admitted district courts to practice law in the several district courts within authorized to this Territory, shall be and are hereby authorized to do and perform all and every such act or acts as are or may be necessary in law, to commence and carry on any proceeding within the jurisdiction of the supreme court of the Territory of Iowa: Provided, Proviso. nevertheless, that every such attorney shall, before he shall be allowed to appear in person to do and perform the office of an attorney or counsellor at aw in open court, during the sessions of the same, upon motion, be qualified and admitted, if such attorney shall be otherwise entitled to admission. APPROVED, November 28, 1838. district courts. An act of Wisconsin con COURTS. AN ACT to repeal an act of the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of SEC. 1. Be it enacted by the Council and House of Supreme and Representatives of the Territory of Iowa, That "An act to amend an act, entitled an act concerning the supreme and district courts, and defining their jurisdiction and powers," approved January 19th, 1838, same repealed. concerning the commencement of actions in the district courts, be and the same is hereby repealed. APPROVED, December 14th, 1838. cerning the COURTS. AN ACT regulating Criminal Proceedings. SEC. 1. Be it enacted by the Council and House of Code of crimi- Representatives of the Territory of lowa. That, from and nal procedure after the first day of January next, the following code of criminal procedure shall be the established law of the Territory. established. CHAPTER I. Chap. I. containing a des cription of proceedings to prevent the commission of offences. Affidavit. Warrant. Proceedings to prevent the Commission of Offences. SEC. 1. Whenever, by affidavit, it shall be rendered probable to any justice of the peace, of the proper county, that any person has threatened to commit any considerable offence against the person or property of another, such justice shall issue his warrant to bring such accused person forthwith before him. SEC. 2. Witnesses may be subpœnæd and examExamination ined as in other cases. The examination of the acof the accused. cused may also be taken, but not under oath. Witnesses. To enter into SEC. 3. If the justice becomes satisfied, by such recognizance. investigation, that there is sufficient reason to apprehend the commission of the offence stated in the complaint, he shall require him to enter into a recog nizance, with sufficient surety, conditioned according to the form appended to this code. SEC. 4. When any person is committed to jail for Amount of baik not entering into recognizance, as required by any to be specified law of this Territory, the amount of bail required in mittimus. shall be specified in the mittimus. Any justice of Discharge of the peace may discharge the prisoner upon his giv- prisoner on ing the bail required. giving bail. SEC. 5. The sheriff, in all such cases, upon the Duty of sheriff. application of the prisoner for that purpose, shall take him before some justice of the peace of the county, that he may enter into the required recognizance. &c., to be filed SEC. 6. A transcript of the proceedings of any jus- Transcript of tice of the peace, as provided for in this and the proceedings, succeeding chapter, together with the recognizance, in clerk's office. (if one be taken) shall, by such justice, be filed in the office of the clerk of the district court of the proper county, on or before the first day of the ensuing term of said court. For a failure to do so, he shall be Failing to do liable to indictment, and may be fined in any sum so, liable to innot exceeding two hundred and fifty dollars. dictment. SEC. 7. The district court, at the term to which District court the proceedings of the justice of the peace shall be to investigate returned as above required, shall proceed to investi- the matter. gate the matter by hearing testimony, and may release the prisoner, discharge the recognizance, or require a new one for a time not exceeding one year. CHAPTER II. Preliminary proceedings when offences have been committed. Where offences have been com mitted. SEC. 8. Whenever, by affidavit, it shall be rendered Affidavit. probable to a justice of the peace that an indictable offence has been committed within the county, he shall, by his warrant, forthwith cause the accused Warrant. person to be brought before him. SEC. 9. The officer having the warrant, or any other Officer, &c., to person engaged in the pursuit, shall be thereby arrest the acauthorized to arrest the accused any where within cused. this Territory, and bring him forthwith before the magistrate who issued the warrant, or (if he cannot attend the examination) before some other justice of the same county. SEC. 10. Such officer shall have the same powers, Powers of the in making the arrest in any other county, as in his officer in any 15 other county. Search warrant own, and may retain the prisoner in custody, and lodge him for the night in jail, in any county through which he may have to pass, on his return to his own county. SEC. 11. When the affidavit shall state that propmay be issued. erty has been stolen or embezzled, and that affiant suspects such property is concealed in any particular house or place, the justice, if he think there is sufficient ground for such suspicion, shall issue his warNot to be exe- rant to search for such property. But such warrant shall not authorize the officer to make the search in the night time, unless positive proof has been given to the justice that the property is concealed in such house or place. cuted in the night time. Persons in pos- SEC. 12. If the property be found, the officer shall sessionofstolen bring the person, having it in possession, forthwith property to be before the justice who issued the warrant. brought before justice. SEC. 13. Upon satisfactory proof of ownership, the Property to be justice shall direct any stolen property to be given up to the claimant thereof. given up to owner. Accused person may be searched. Statement of SEC. 14. When, in any case, it shall be sufficiently shown that the prisoner has been in possession of counterfeit money or bank notes, or has stolen property capable of being concealed about his person, the justice, before whom he is brought, may direct the officer having him in custody to search the person of the accused. SEC. 15. The prisoner shall be allowed to make prisoner not to his own statement, but not under oath. After which be under oath. the witnesses on both sides, shall be sworn and Testimony may be re duced to writing. Witnesses may withdraw. Recognizance of prisoner. examined. SEC. 16. The magistrate may direct any portion of this statement or testimony to be reduced to writing, and signed by the person making the same, which shall be returned with the other proceedings as directed in the previous chapter. SEC. 17. The magistrate may direct any of the be ordered to witnesses to be removed from court, during the examination of the prisoner, or of any other witness. SEC. 18. If there appears sufficient grounds of suspicion of the prisoner's guilt, the magistrate shall (in bailable cases) require him to enter into recognizance, with sufficient surety, conditioned as prescribed in the form appended to this code. Of witnesses SEC. 19. Any of the witnesses may be bound by recognizance to appear and testify in the proper court, and in case of homicide they may be required to find sureties in such recognizance. SEC. 20. If the witness be an infant, or a married If the witness woman, some other person shall enter into the recog- be an infant, nizance for their appearance as aforesaid. or married wo man. SEC. 21. If the offence be not bailable by a justice Commitment of the peace, and there are probable grounds to sus- of prisoner. pect guilt, the prisoner shall at once be committed. But he may be afterwards bailed by a judge of the Judge of sup. supreme court. court may bail. CHAPTER III. Of the Grand Jury. Territory, Who shall be those who competent ju SEC. 22. All qualified voters of the except persons of unsound mind, and have been convicted of a felony, shall be competent rors. jurors in their respective counties. SEC. 23. The following persons shall be excused Persons excusfrom serving on juries, to wit: All officers appointed ed from serving by the President of the United States, and their on juries. deputies, officers of the court, and their deputies, county officers, ministers of the gospel, practising attorneys, physicians, surgeons, and teachers in colleges, academies, and schools. SEC. 24. The county commissioners of each organ- County Com. ized county shall, at least thirty days previous to to select grand any term of the district court for their county, make jurors, and deout and deliver to the clerk of the said court, a list of twenty-three persons qualified to serve as grand court. jurors therein. liver list to clerk of dist. SEC. 25. The said clerk shall forthwith issue a Clerk to issue venire, and deliver it to the sheriff of the county, venire. commanding him to summon the persons so selected to appear in said court at eleven o'clock A. M. on the first day of the next term thereof, to serve as grand jurors. This venire shall be served at least When return five days before the first day of the term, by giving to be made by personal notice to said jurors, or by leaving a written. notice at their respective places of abode. The sheriff shall return said venire to the proper court, on the first day of the next term thereof, at its opening, and shall specify the manner in which each person was served. sheriff. SEC. 26. If a sufficient number of the regular pan- Deficiency in nel of grand jurors shall not appear at the proper the regular time, or if, from any cause, after being empanneled, pannel. the number shall be less than sixteen, the court may direct the sheriff to return without delay such num |