About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

17 Panel 1 (1939)

handle is hein.journals/panelmbu17 and id is 1 raw text is: To increase the effectiveness of the Grand Jury Systeii EANaL A Publication Devoted to the Exchange of Views of Public Officials and Citizens in the Effort to Prevent Crime and Secure the True Administration of Justice PUBLISHED BY THE GRAND JURY ASSOCIATION OF NEW YORK COUNTY Contributions and letters in The Panel are either credited to their authors or signed with the names or initials of their writers and the Association assumes no responsibility for the opinions contained therein beyond expressing the views that the subjects they treat of are worthy of the attention of Grand Jurors. VOL. 17 JANUARY, 1939 N. 1 Uniform Bill to Receive Attention Lawyers Committee Active on Association Measure The Association's Lawyers Com- mittee again in 1939 will be active as usual in seeking ways and means to improve the criminal code of the state. At present writing, however, it appears that the Committee's major task this year, in cooperation with the Legislative Committee, will be to secure favorable action on the Association's bill for the uniform selection of jurors. Details of this bill are already well known to many Association members. Its main purpose is to remove the selection of jurors and the drawing of panels from the hands of locally elected political offi- cers who may or may not be per- sons of high integrity and conscien- tious in performance of duty. The bill would place the direct respon- sibility for the selection and draw- ing of jurors upon the justices of the Appellate Division who already exercise regulatory powers over all the courts within the district and over all attorneys practicing within the district. The mechanical difficulties in the drafting of this bill occupied so much of the Lawyers Committee's time last year that the bill was not completed until near the close of the legislative session. Work first began on the bill about three years ago. With the proposal now in final form, it is the hope of the Lawyers and Legislative Committees that it can be introduced early in the pres- ent session and that favorable ac- tion can be obtained. Architect's model of the new Criminal Courts and city prison building now in process of construction to replace New York's famous old Tombs prison and existing criminal courts building. Construction Starts On New Building To House Criminal Courts and Prison A new city prison and criminal courts building in New York for which this Association has cam- paigned unceasingly since 1927 is fast becoming a reality. Ground for the new $18,500,000 structure at Leonard and Center Streets was broken in early August and work is proceeding on schedule. To the Honorable Irving V. A. Huie, Commissioner of Public Works, this Association is grateful for the opportunity he afforded it to participate in the planning of the Grand Jury rooms. To the public generally we predict that the new structure will be a monument to jurisprudence in this state. The rise of the new building marks the doom of one of the city's historic old landmarks-the late, but scarcely lamented, Tombs. This noted old prison and the present criminal courts building will be re- placed by the new development. Architecturally the new structure will appear as one building occupy- ing the entire two blocks from Leonard to White Streets and from Center to Baxter. Actually, the court house and city prison section, though connected by two bridges, will be separated by a spacious prison courtyard. The architecture of the seventeen- story building will be of contempo- raneous functional design with its masses and proportions in harmony with present buildings of the Civic Center. A decorative Grecian treatment, with suitable sculptured designs, will feature the main en- trance on Center Street. The prison portion of the build- ing which accommodates 1,090 in- mates, has been designed in accord- ance with the highest standards of modern penology. Juries Active in Several Counties Investigations Under Way by Special Panels Special Grand Juries have been active in many different sections of the country recently. At least three such investigations are going on in New York state alone with special grand juries and special prosecutors appointed by the governor. In Erie County, which contains the city of Buffalo, Frank G. Raichle, Buffalo attorney, was ap- pointed Deputy District Attorney to continue an investigation into al- leged irregularities in the city gov- ernment. In Orange County, New York, Governor Lehman instructed Attor- ney General John J. Bennett to supersede Henry Hirschberg as Orange District Attorney in an in- vestigation into criminal activity in the county and its connection with public officials. In Brooklyn, District Attorney Geoghan was superseded on order of the Governor by John Harlan Amen to investigate, with the aid of a special Grand Jury, charges of official corruption in Kings County. In Connecticut special grand juries have recently been at work both in Bridgeport and in Water- bury, while in Miami, Florida, re- cently, a special grand jury indicted the Mayor and two city commis- sioners on charges growing out of an investigation of alleged bribe taking. In Philadelphia a grand jury has been at work for many months in- vestigating various phases of muni- cipal government.

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most