Selected quad for the lemma: judgement_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
judgement_n	error_n	law_n	writ_n	2,710	5	9.4811	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A59002	The second part of the Peoples antient and just liberties asserted in the proceedings against, and tryals of Tho. Rudyard, Francis Moor, Rich. Mew, Rich. Mayfeild, Rich. Knowlman, Gilbert Hutton, Job Boulton, Rich. Thornton, Charles Banister, John Boulton, and William Bayly : at the sessions begun and held at the Old-Bailey in London the last day of the 6th moneth, and there continued till the 7th day of the 7th moneth next following, in the year 1670, against the arbitrary procedure of that court, and justices there : wherein their oppression and injustice are manifested, their wickedness and corruption detected, and the jury-mans duty laid open.	Rudyard, Thomas, d. 1692, defendant.; Moor, Francis, defendant.; Mew, Richard, defendant.; Penn, William, 1644-1718. People's antient and just liberties asserted, in the tryal of William Penn.; England and Wales. Court of Quarter Sessions of the Peace (London)	1670 (1670)	Wing S2312; ESTC R21970	50,633	70

failes to render a Reason of its own Actions a Jury is therefore summoned of the Vicinage because it s alwayes presumed that the Neighbourhood are best acquained with the persons inhabiting or the Actions and Facts done or acted within their own Limits and Jurisdiction And that they themselves may know something of the matter in controversie being de Vicineto of the Vicinage where such matter was in action Therefore the Jury must be returned de vicineto of the place where the Fact was done and of men per quos rei veritas melius scire poterit by whom the truth of the matter may be better known so the Jury having some self-knowledge of the matters afore-hand besides hearing the Evidence may the better pronounce veritatis dictum or a just Verdict of the Fact Cit. But Wherein do you conceive a Jury-man may have self-knowledge of matter that may not as fully be evidenced by Witness Stud. It s probable First That they may know the Witness on the one side or the other to be persons of no Credit or Secondly They may know the Party accused to be a man otherwise qualified or principl'd then to do such an act or thing that is charged against him as for instance They may know a man to be 1. A Quiet Peaceable Quaker therefore no Fighter or Rioter or Routous Person 2. A Protestant of the Episcopal Church of England therefore no House-Preacher 3. An honest sober man amongst his Neighbours therefore probably no Thief or Robber And many other Instances might be offered to this purpose Cit. To fine a iury then for things which probably they may know of their own knowledge to be true or false seems very hard and surely our Jurors of London have met with hard usage to be fined and imprisoned for doing their duty in what the Laws of this Land have made them sole and proper Judges Stud. Their hard usage and severity to the Jurors is not so much as the ill-consequence that such practices will be to every English-man and their Posterity if not timely Remedied Cit. Truly the Citizens of London in general have much dreaded the late procedure at the Old-Baily and fear its a Fore-runner of much Mischief that may be acted in the Country who generally take London for a President in their Courts of Justice But pray what 's your Thoughts about these things Stud. The consequence of such Practices the Parliament have very well set forth in Chief Justice Keeling's Case 11 Dec. 1667. when they Voted That fining Juries were not only Innovations in the Tryals of men for their Lives and Liberties but that it was of Dangerous Consequence to the Lives and Liberties of the People of England and tended to the introducing of an Arbitrary Government And their reason was very good for the King sits not in Judgment upon his Subjects but by his Justices in his Courts and if the Iustices who are commanded to be guided by the Law shall contrary unto the Law fine and imprison Iuries for giving Verdicts in such matters which the Laws allow and appoint them to be proper Judges of Where then is the English-man tryed by his Peers and by the Law of the Land To deny us this free Tryal is to Rifle us of our Birth-right and most Arbitrarily and Tyrannically to deny us Equal Law Iustice and Right Cit. Surely when the Parliament meets again they will call these illegal Proceedings of that Bench to Question before them as well as they did Keeling ' s Stud. It as much concerns them in behalf of themselves and Posterity as any of us to curb these subordinate Iudges who have broken both their Oaths and the Law to run into those Arbitrary and Illegal Practices the consequence of which if suffered in a short time will be Sic volo sic jubeo stat pro ratione voluntas And it will necessarily follow That 1st Every Iustice of Peace Mayor Bailiffs of Corporations Stewards of Letts c. what ever matters are tried before them shall have Verdicts to their minds or Fine and Imprison the Iurors till they have so that such must be either pleased humored or gratified else no Iustice or Right to be had before them in their Courts 2d A further ill-consequence will be That although a person may challenge a Iury-man or Shereffs if they be of Kin to this Adversary yet he cannot challenge a Iustice Mayor c. who will have a Verdict for their Kinsman or Fine and Imprison them till they have so that by this means our Lives Liberties and Properties shall be solely tryed and wholly at the Will and in the power of every mercenary or corrupted Iustice Mayor Recorder Bailiff c. Cit. But has it been practicable in former times to fine and imprison Juries for finding contrary to Evidence as the Recorder pretends our Jurors have done Stud. No surely we find not one President in all our Books till Keeling's and he scaping that condign Punishment which the Parliament promised him your Recorder and Mayor has trod his Steps And pray see how such Iudgments on Iurors leave them remediless of relief which is sufficient ground to conclude such practices to be against the Law First It can never be tryed whether they found with or against their Evidence by reason no Writ of Error lies in the Case Secondly They are in worse condition then the Criminals that are tryed by them for in all civil Actions Informations Indictments Appeals and Writs of Error do lie into superior Courts to try their regular proceedings of the Inferior but here can be none Thirdly In the way of an Attaint the Truth or Falshood of a Iurors Verdict in matters of Fact may be tryed by another Iury but in this case the Iurors are concluded by reason that whether they have found with or against their Evidence can never be tryed Litt. Sect. 108. And further Reason which is Law tells us That as the Kings Iustices of the Law have given out that they ought not to have any Action brought against them if they shall in any thing err or mistake the Law So much the more twelve Jurors who are Judges of all matters in issue before them agreeing together in one ought not to be fined where they find a Verdict according to their Consciences albeit the Evidence may seem strong and clear to another person to the contrary of which the Jury have found For they may being de Vicineto where the Fact was done know something of their own knowledge of the matter of Fact before them which the Judge or Standers by are probably Strangers unto and ignorant of it Therefore the Knowledge of twelve men agreeing together ought to be preferred before the single Apprehension of any one Person whatsoever All which does manifest not only the Illegal and Arbitrary Proceedings of your Mayor and Recorder against those twelve men but the Ill and Dangerous Consequence of such Practices to all