School History of North Carolina Part 52

SEC. 5. The Governor shall reside at the seat of government of this State, and he shall, from time to time, give the General a.s.sembly information of the affairs of the State, and recommend to their consideration such measures as he shall deem expedient.

SEC. 6. The Governor shall have power to grant reprieves, commutations and pardons, after conviction, for all offences (except in case of impeachment), upon such conditions as lie may think proper, subject to such regulations as may be provided by law relative to the manner of applying for pardons. He shall biennially communicate to the General a.s.sembly each case of reprieve, commutation or pardon granted, stating the name of each convict, the crime for which he was convicted, the sentence and its date, the date of commutation, pardon or reprieve, and the reasons therefor.

SEC. 7. The officers of the Executive Department and of the public inst.i.tutions of the State shall, at least five days previous to each regular session of the General a.s.sembly, severally report to the Governor, who shall transmit such reports, with his message, to the General a.s.sembly; and the Governor may, at any time, require information in writing from the officers in the Executive Department upon any subject relating to the duties of their respective offices, and shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed.

SEC. 8. The Governor shall be Commander-in-Chief of the militia of the State, except when they shall be called into the service of the United States.

SEC. 9. The Governor shall have power, on extraordinary occasions, by and with the advice of the Council of State, to convene the General a.s.sembly ? ? into? ? extra session by his proclamation, stating therein the purpose or purposes for which they are thus convened.

SEC. 10. The Governor shall nominate, and by and with the advice and consent of a majority of the Senators elect, appoint all officers, whose offices are established by this Const.i.tution, and whose appointments are not otherwise provided for.

SEC. 11. The Lieutenant-Governor shall be President of the Senate, but shall have no vote unless the Senate be equally divided. He shall, whilst acting as President of the Senate, receive for his services the same pay which shall, for the same period, be allowed to the Speaker of the House of Representatives; and he shall receive no other compensation except when he is acting as Governor.

SEC. 12. In case of the impeachment of the Governor, his failure to qualify, his absence from the State, his inability to discharge the duties of his office, or, in case the office of Governor shall in anywise become vacant, the powers, duties and emoluments of the office shall devolve upon the Lieutenant- Governor until the disabilities shall cease, or a new Governor shall be elected and qualified. In every case in which the Lieutvaant-Governor shall be unable to preside over the Senate, the Senators shall elect one of their own number President of their body, and the powers, duties and emoluments of the office of Governor shall devolve upon him whenever the Lieutenant- Governor shall, for any reason, be prevented from discharging the duties of such office as above provided, and he shall continue as acting Governor until the disabilities are removed, or a new Governor or Lieutenant-Governor shall be elected and qualified. Whenever, during the recess of the General a.s.sembly, it shall become necessary for the President of the Senate to administer the government, the Secretary of State shall convene the Senate, that they may elect such President.

SEC. 13. The respective duties of the Secretary of State, Auditor, Treasurer, Superintendent of Public Instruction and Attorney General shall be prescribed by law. If the office of any of the officers shall be vacated by death, resignation or otherwise, it shall be the duty of the Governor to appoint another until the disability be removed or his successor be elected and qualified. Every such vacancy shall be filled by election at the first general election that occurs more than thirty days after the vacancy has taken place, and the person chosen shall hold the office for the remainder of the unexpired term fixed in the first section of this Article.

SEC. 14. The Secretary of State, Auditor, Treasurer and Superintendent of Public Instruction shall const.i.tute, ex officio, the Council of State, who shall advise the Governor in the execution of his office, and three of whom shall const.i.tute a quorum; their advice and proceedings in this capacity shall be entered in a journal to be kept for this purpose exclusively, and signed by the members present, from any part of which any member may enter his dissent; and such journal shall be placed before the General a.s.sembly when called for by either House.

The Attorney-General shall be, ex officio, the legal adviser of the Executive Department.

SEC. 15. The officers mentioned in this Article shall, at stated periods, receive for their services a compensation to be established by law, which shall neither be increased nor diminished during the time for which they shall have been elected, and the said officers shall receive no other emolument or allowance.

SEC. 16. There shall be a seal of the State, which shall be kept by the Governor, and used by him, as occasion may require, and shall be called "the Great Seal of the State of North Carolina."

All grants and commissions shall be entered in the name and by the authority of the State of North Carolina, sealed with the "Great Seal of the State," signed by the Governor and countersigned by the Secretary of State.

SEC. 17. The General a.s.sembly shall establish a Department of Agriculture, Immigration and Statistics, under such regulations as may best promote the agricultural interests of the State, and shall enact laws for the adequate protection and encouragement of sheep husbandry.

ARTICLE IV. JUDICIAL. DEPARTMENT.

SECTION 1. The distinctions between actions at law and suits in equity, and the forms of all such actions and suits, shall be abolished; and there shall be in this State but one form of action for the enforcement or protection of private rights or the redress of private wrongs, which shall be denominated a civil action; and every action prosecuted by the people of the State as a party, against a person charged with a public offence, for the punishment of the same, shall be termed a criminal action. Feigned issues shall also be abolished, and the fact at issue tried by order of Court before a jury.

SEC. 2. The judicial power of the State shall be vested in a Court for the trial of Impeachments, a Supreme Court, Superior Courts, Courts of Justices of the Peace, and such other courts inferior to the Supreme Court at may be established by law.

SEC. 3. The Court for the trial of impeachments shall be the Senate. A majority of the members shall be necessary to a quorum, and the judgment shall not extend beyond removal from and disqualification to hold office in this State; but the party shall be liable to indictment and punishment according to law.

SEC. 4. The House of Representatives solely shall have the power of impeaching. No person shall be convicted without the concurrence of two-thirds of the Senators present. When the Governor is impeached, the Chief-Justice shall preside.

SEC 5. Treason against the State shall consist only in levying war against it, or in adhering to its enemies, giving them aid and comfort. No person shall be convicted of treason unless on the testimony of two witnesses to the same overt act, or on confession in open court. No conviction of treason or attainder shall work corruption of blood or forfeiture.

SEC. 6. The Supreme Court shall consist of a Chief-Justice and two a.s.sociate Justices.

SEC. 7. The terms of the Supreme Court shall be held in the city of Raleigh, as now, until otherwise provided by the General a.s.sembly.

SEC. 8. The Supreme Court shall have jurisdiction to review, upon appeal, any decision of the courts below, upon any matter of law or legal inference. And the jurisdiction of said Court over "issues of fact" and "questions of fact" shall be the same exercised by it before the adoption of the Const.i.tution of one thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, and the Court shall have the power to issue any remedial writs necessary to give it a general supervision and control over the proceedings of the inferior courts.

SEC. 9. The Supreme Court shall have original jurisdiction to hear claims against the State, but its decisions shall be merely recommendatory; no process in the nature of execution shall issue thereon; they shall be reported to the next session of the General a.s.sembly for its action.

SEC. 10. The State shall be divided into nine judicial districts, for each of which a Judge shall be chosen; and there shall be held a Superior Court in each county at least twice in each year, to continue for such time in each county as may be prescribed by law. But the General a.s.sembly may reduce or increase the number of districts.

SEC. 11. Every Judge of the Superior Court shall reside in the district for which he is elected. The Judges shall preside in the Courts of the different districts successively, but no Judge shall hold the Courts in the same district oftener than once in four years; but in the case of the protracted illness of the Judge a.s.signed to preside in any district, or of any other unavoidable accident to him by reason of which he shall be unable to preside, the Governor may require any Judge to hold one or more specified terms in said districts, in lieu of the Judge a.s.signed to hold the Courts of the said districts.

SEC. 12. The General a.s.sembly shall have no grower to deprive the Judicial Department of any power or jurisdiction which rightfully pertains to it as a coordinate department of the government; but the General a.s.sembly shall allot and distribute that portion of this power and jurisdiction, which does not pertain to the Supreme Court, among the other courts prescribed in this Const.i.tution or which may be established by law, in such manner as it may deem best; provide also a proper system of appeals; and regulate by law, when necessary, the methods of proceeding in the exercise of their powers, of all the courts below the Supreme Court, so far as the same may be done without conflict with other provisions of this Const.i.tution.

SEC. 13. In all issues of fact, joined in any court, the parties may waive the right to have the same determined by a jury; in which case the finding of the Judge upon the facts shall have the force and effect of a verdict by a jury.

SEC. 14. The General a.s.sembly shall provide for the establishment of Special Courts, for the trial of misdemeanors, in cities and towns where the same may be necessary.

SEC. 15. The Clerk of the Supreme Court shall be appointed by the Court, and shall hold his office for eight years.

SEC. 16. A Clerk of the Superior Court for each county shall be elected by the qualifier voters thereof, at the time and in the manner prescribed by law for the election of members of the General a.s.sembly.

SEC. 17. Clerks of the Superior Courts shall hold their offices for four years.

SEC. 18. The General a.s.sembly shall prescribe and regulate the fees, salaries and emoluments of all officers provided for in this Article; but the salaries of the Judges shall not be diminished during their continuance in office.

SEC. 19. The laws of North Carolina, not repugnant to this Const.i.tution, or the Const.i.tution and laws of the United States, shall be in force until lawfully altered.

SEC. 20. Actions at law, and suits in equity, pending when this Const.i.tution shall go into effect, shall be transferred to the courts having jurisdiction thereof, without prejudice by reason of the change; and all such actions and suits commenced before, and pending at the adoption by the General a.s.sembly of the rules of practice and procedure herein provided for, shall be heard and determined according to the practice now in use, unless otherwise provided for by said rules.

SEC. 21. The Justices of the Supreme Court shall be elected by the qualified voters of the State, as is provided for the election of members of the General a.s.sembly. They shall hold their offices for eight years. The Judges of the Superior Courts, elected at the first election under this amendment, shall be elected in like manner as is provided for Justices of the Supreme Court, and shall hold their offices for eight years.

The General a.s.sembly may, from time to time, provide by law that the Judges of the Superior Courts, chosen at succeeding elections, instead of being elected by the voters of the whole State, as is herein provided for, shall be elected by the voters of their respective districts.

SEC. 22. The Superior Courts shall be, at all times, open for the transaction of all business within their jurisdiction, except the trial of issues of fact requiring a jury.

SEC. 23. A Solicitor shall be elected for each Judicial District by the qualified voters thereof, as is prescribed for members of the General a.s.sembly, who shall hold office for the term of four years, and prosecute on behalf of the State, in all criminal actions in the Superior Courts, and advise the officers of justice in his district.

SEC. 24. In each county a Sheriff and Coroner shall be elected by the qualified voters thereof, as is prescribed for members of the General a.s.sembly, and shall hold their offices for two years. In each towns.h.i.+p there shall be a Constable elected in like manner by the voters thereof, who shall bold his office for two years. When there is no Coroner in the county, the Clerk of the Superior Court for the county may appoint one for special cases. In case of a vacancy existing for any cause in any of the offices created by this section, the Commissioners for the county may appoint to such office for the unexpired term.

SEC. 25. All vacancies occurring in the offices provided for by this Article of the Const.i.tution shall be filled by the appointments of the Governor, unless otherwise provided for, and the appointees shall hold their places until the next regular election for members of the General a.s.sembly, when elections shall be held to fill such offices. If any person, elected or appointed to any of said offices, shall neglect and fail to qualify, such office shall be appointed to, held and filled as provided in case of vacancies occurring therein. All inc.u.mbents of said offices shall hold until their successors are qualified.

SEC. 26. The officers elected at the first election held under this Const.i.tution shall hold their offices for the terms prescribed for them respectively, next ensuing after the next regular election for members of the General a.s.sembly. But their terms shall begin upon the approval of this Const.i.tution by the Congress of the United States.

SEC. 27. The several Justices of the Peace shall have jurisdiction, under such regulations as the General a.s.sembly shall prescribe, of civil actions founded on contract, wherein the sum demanded shall not exceed two hundred dollars, and wherein the t.i.tle to real estate shall not be in controversy; and of all criminal matters arising within their counties where the punishment cannot exceed a fine of fifty dollars, or imprisonment for thirty days. And the General a.s.sembly may give to Justice of the Peace jurisdiction of other civil actions wherein the value of the property in controversy does ? ? list? ?

exceed fifty dollars. When an issue of fact may be joined before a Justice, on demand of either party thereto, he shall cause a jury of six men to be summoned, who shall try the same.

The party against whom judgment shall be rendered in any civil action may appeal to the Superior Court from the same. In all cases of a criminal nature, the party against whom judgment is given may appeal to the Superior Court, where the matter shall be heard anew. In all cases brought before a Justice, he shall make a record of the proceedings, and file the same with the Clerk of the Superior Court for his county.

SEC. 28. When the office of Justice of the Peace shall become vacant otherwise than by expiration of the term, and in case of a failure by the voters of any district to elect, the Clerk of the Superior Court for the county shall appoint to fill the vacancy for the unexpired term.

SEC. 29. In case the office of Clerk of a Superior Court for a county shall become vacant otherwise than by the expiration of the term, and in case of a failure by the people to elect, the Judge of the Superior Court for the county shall appoint to fill the vacancy until an election can be regularly held.

SEC. 30. In case the General a.s.sembly shall establish other courts inferior to the Supreme Court, the presiding officers and clerks thereof shall be elected in such manner as the General a.s.sembly may from time to time prescribe, and they shall hold their offices for a term not exceeding eight years.

SEC. 31. Any Judge of the Supreme Court, or of the Superior Courts, and the presiding officers of such courts inferior to the Supreme Court, as may be established by law, may be removed from office for mental or physical inability, upon a concurrent resolution of two thirds of both Houses of the General a.s.sembly.

The Judge or presiding officer against whom the General a.s.sembly may be about to proceed, shall receive notice thereof, accompanied by a copy of the causes alleged for his removal, at least twenty days before the day on which either House of the General a.s.sembly shall act thereon.

SEC. 32. Any Clerk of the Supreme Court, or of the Superior Courts, or of such courts inferior to the Supreme Court as may be established by law, may be removed from office for mental or physical inability: the Clerk of the Supreme Court by the Judges of said courts, the Clerks of the Superior Courts by the Judge riding the district, and the Clerks of such courts inferior to the Supreme Court as may be established by law, by the presiding officers of said courts. The Clerk against whom proceedings are inst.i.tuted shall receive notice thereof, accompanied by a copy of the causes alleged for his removal, at least ten days before the day appointed to act thereon, and. the Clerk shall be ent.i.tled to an appeal to the next term of the Superior Court, and thence to the Supreme Court, as provided in other cases of appeals.

SEC. 33. The amendments made to the Const.i.tution of North Carolina by this Convention shall not have the effect to vacate any office or term off office now existing under the Const.i.tution of the State, and filled, or held, by virtue of any election or appointment under the said Const.i.tution, and the laws of the State made in pursuance thereof.